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CSU Vikings One Win Away From NCAA Tournament Berth

Vikings basketball fans on a bus headed to the Horizon League tournament in Detroit [Lucas Fortney / ideastream]

The 12-22 Cleveland State’s men’s basketball team is headed to Detroit this evening for a chance at an NCAA Tournament bid. And all CSU's eighth-seeded team has to do to get there is beat out second-seed Wright State for the Horizon League championship. It won’t be easy, but it helps when you’re not alone.

This afternoon, roughly 150 students and staff piled into charter buses paid for by Cleveland State. They’re headed to Detroit to support what CSU's Mitch Peterson is calling a “cinderella run” to the top.

“We’re playing with nothing to lose right now,” Peterson said. “We’re playing with house money, so I like our chances so far.”

CSU junior Samuel Notman was first to board the buses.

“It’s very exciting. We’ve already knocked off the number one team, the number four team. So I’m very confident for tonight, and I think it’s going to be a great game,” Notman said.

Despite the surprising wins of the past few days, head coach Dennis Felton is cautious. He says even though senior Kenny Carpenter has been a top scorer for the team this season, they need every player to step up.

“For us to be successful, we literally can't rely on just a couple of players,” Felton warned. “We've got to rely on everybody doing their job to the best of their abilities and with over the top effort.”

Vikings last played in the NCAA tournament in 2009 when they lost in the second round.

Tip off is at 7 tonight.

Annie Wu is the deputy editor of digital content for Ideastream Public Media.