Fort Wayne, IN – The streak is over. The historic 17-game and program record win streak for the Purdue Fort Wayne (20-6, 15-1 Horizon League) has come to its ultimate end at the hands of a motivated and energized Cleveland State (21-6, 12-4 Horizon League) team. This article is brought to you by the word of the day – defense. A textbook defensive showcase saw the Mastodons fall at home to the Vikings by a score of 52-61.
First Quarter: The defensive showcase was on display from the first possession of the game. With the Vikings winning the opening tip, Purdue Fort Wayne got the first crack at playing defense. Jazzlyn Linbo stepped up to bat for the ‘Dons after missing a few games of action after getting injured in the January 25 game against IU Indy. In her first defensive stand, Linbo was able to force CSU’s double-double machine Jordana Reisma into a turnover down low.
Cleveland State’s response was nothing short of impressive. The bench starting yelling defensive assignments and calls the moment the Mastodons touched the ball, and this is how it would be all game. The Cleveland State intensity forced a rare shot clock violation on the Mastodons. In this defensive battle – who would crack first?
Cleveland State would strike first with a free throw from Reisma for the 1-0 lead. The next possession for PFW would see an offensive rebound by Lauren Ross which would be kicked out to Audra Emmerson for a three-pointer to get the scoring started for the ‘Dons. Lauren Ross continued the defensive show with her active hands getting a deflection and giving the ball back to the ‘Dons.
Ross would get her first basket of the game as the shot clock was expiring after 29 seconds of great defense from the Vikings. Effort was not missing from this game as shown by Amellia Bromenschenkel and Fillippa Goula both dove on the floor after a deflection to force a jump ball and sent it to the first break in the action – score only 5-3 PFW.
Sydney Freeman would show off her defensive prowess by playing an impressive on-ball defensive that would force a 5-second violation call on potential Horizon League Player of the Year Mickayla Perdue. The effort would be rewarded by a Lauren Ross three-pointer on the other end. Ross would continue to get deflections and get a steal that would be poked out to Taeya Steinauer and eventually out to Jordan Reid for a fast break layup.
Reid wanted to play some defense too – blocking a shot that would end up in Sydney Freeman’s hands that would result in a floater down on the other end. To end the quarter, PFW tried to throw a wrinkle in the Viking gameplan by coming out in a 1-2-2 zone only to be busted by Mickayla Perdue for a three. The ‘Dons would take a 14-11 lead into the break.
Second Quarter: A Perdue drive and layup out of the huddle made it a one point game. Sydney Freeman responded with a DEEP three from another zip code. “Anything you can do, I can do better” is probably what Perdue said when she responded with a right wing three 2 possessions later. Amellia Bromenschenkel would score her lone two points of the game on a cut to the hoop for an easy back door layup on the BLOB.
No stranger to doing so, Audra Emmerson stood her ground and took a charge on the other end to give the ball back to the Mastodons. Cleveland State continued to play impressive defense to force uncharacteristic turnovers by the Mastodons plaguing them all contest. Sydney Graber was clinical in the post for the third straight game, spinning and scoring on the taller Reisma multiple times.
Mastodons defense nothing to throw aside – Graber played incredible defense on Reisma causing Reisma to get called for a hook in the post trying to gain position. As the clock was winding down in the half, the Vikings missed a shot that would have made it a one-possession game, but Sydney Freeman challenged the taller Reisma at the rim on an offensive rebound putback attempt with textbook form and forced the missed shot. The Mastodons clung to a four point lead as the teams went into the locker room 30-26.
Third Quarter: The defense was not left in the locker room. On the first possession of the second half, Amellia Bromenschenkel stood her ground and took a charge from Sara Guerreiro setting the tone for the rest of the game. The (other) streak is no more – Lauren Ross lost her consecutive free throw streak of 38 in a row with a miss early in the half. She would make the second of the two. These would be the first free throws of the game for PFW. Cleveland State only shot two free throws in the first half.
The Vikings would regain the lead on a Jordana Reisma bucket down low and a foul charged to the Mastodons. Reisma would convert the old school three-point play. The Mastodon defense would draw yet another charge – this time by Renna Schwieterman.
The ‘Dons would also continue to be scrappy forcing another illegal screen call on Sara Guerreiro. The charge and illegal screen would send Guerreiro to the bench with 3 fouls. Lauren Ross would give the Mastodons the much needed spark on the other end with a three-pointer from the left wing. The three would be matched by Destiny Leo two possessions later. The media timeout saw the Vikings grasping to hold a 36-34 lead.
Following a made bucket in the paint by Sydney Graber, Lauren Ross drew an offensive foul on Jordana Reisma lowering the shoulder down in the post. Ross would come down and nail an inside-out three-pointer from the right corner on the very next possession to regain a one point lead 39-38 heading into the final quarter of play.
Fourth Quarter: The Mastodons came out swinging on the first play of the quarter. A backside cut and seal decoy from Renna Schwieterman down low allowed Jordan Reid to sneak behind the Vikings completely unnoticed until it was too late. A foul on a scrambling Jordana Reisma would send Reid to the line for the and-one where she would sink the Mastodon’s third free throw attempt of the game to go up 4. The Mastodons would go into a full-court trap defense that would force CSU to call a timeout before the 10-second backcourt violation only 18 seconds into the quarter.
Some careful play calling by head coach would have the Vikings dissect the Mastodon defense to find Reisma wide open for two at the bucket. Jordan Reid went into her bag and pulled out the Jordan Reid special – a dribble drive pull-up jumper that kissed off the glass and in for the score.
Reisma would try to keep the Vikings within striking distance with a pair of free throws, but a set from the Mastodons saw Jordan Reid take a handoff from Graber at the elbow and turn the corner for the hoop and harm. Reid jumped so high on that shot, she looked like she had potential to participate in the NBA All-Star dunk contest. A big three-point play from Sara Guerreiro and two Mya Moore free throw would keep the Vikings in range, but another Reid driving layup threw the ‘Dons back up three. Hard hitting defensive possessions had the game go back and forth.
A steal by Destiny Leo on a BLOB resulted in two Macey Fegan made free throws to go ahead by one. Not to be outdone, the Mastodons grabbed a defensive rebound and Audra Emmerson hit a quick trigger wing three-point to retake the lead 52-50 for one of the loudest pops in Gates Sports Center all year. This would be the final bucket for the Mastodons for the game…
During the timeout called after the Emmerson three, the Vikings would become streak killers. Back-to-back layups by Mickayla Perdue and an assist from Perdue to Reisma would spark a 6-0 run by the Vikings to go up 56-52 and force a timeout by Head Coach Maria Marchesano. A offensive rebound and score by Sara Guerreiro would make it an 8-0 run.
The Mastodons had multiple chances to end the bleeding, but no buckets would fall for the grey and pink. A Destiny Leo free throw and a more than questionable jump ball call would continue to spell the end of the historic win streak. The ‘Dons would have to foul again to get the ball back, and Mickayla Perdue would make 1 of 2. The Mastodons would be held scoreless for the final 4:27 of the game – a true testament to the defense on display this afternoon. The Vikings would leave Fort Wayne victorious by a score of 61-52.
Stats and Leaders: Cleveland State was led in scoring by the three-headed monster of Perdue (22 PTS), Reisma (14 PTS), and Destiny Leo (13 PTS). Mickayla Perdue operated on the law of averages today – the more times you shoot the ball, the more times the ball will go in the basket. Perdue finished with 23 shot attempts, 11 of which came from behind the arc.
Both Reisman and Leo recorded double-doubles by each recording 10 rebounds each. However, neither would be the game leader in rebounds as teammate Sara Guerreiro would lead all players with 11 rebounds.
For Purdue Fort Wayne, the scoring came from Jordan Reid (16 PTS), Lauren Ross (12 PTS), and Sydney Squared (Freeman and Graber) each pitched in with 8 points. Amellia Bromenschenkel continued to show why she is the Mastodon’s leading DI rebounder by grabbing 9 rebounds.
The Mastodons only attempted four total free throws in the game where they would make three of the four. Also like many games this year, the Mastodons won the turnover battle by forcing an impressive 18 turnovers.
The 61 points scored by Cleveland State is tied for second-lowest points scored in a Horizon League game for the Vikings this season. They scored 52 points against Green Bay in their loss back in January. The Vikings average 76.2 points per game.
Purdue Fort Wayne’s 52 points sets a new season low for the ‘Dons. The previous low was 56 points scored against Georgia State in the first game of the GSU Thanksgiving Tournament back in November. The ‘Dons average 77.2 points per game.
Over the course of their 17-game winning streak, the Mastodon’s outscored their opponents 1308-969 for an average margin of victory of nearly 20 points (19.94) aided by the 40-point victory over Oakland and expected 74 point win over Aquinas.
What’s Next: Cleveland State’s next game does not get any easier in the slightest. The Vikings will return back home on Wednesday, February 19 to face off against the Green Bay Phoenix and their 16 game win streak and look to be streak killers in back-to-back games. That game (that very well can decide the top three seeds of the Horizon League tournament) will tip off at 7:00pm ET on ESPN+.
Purdue Fort Wayne will travel down to the banks of the Ohio River to face off against the Northern Kentucky Norse on Thursday, February 20. The Norse, coincidently, are coming off a huge 72-69 victory over Cleveland State. The Norse are currently sitting in 4th place of the Horizon League standings at 7-8 in conference play. This game will tip off at 6:00pm ET on ESPN+.
