Cleveland State 77, Illinois-Chicago 66
Marlin Mason scored 22 points as Cleveland State extended its winning streak over Illinois-Chicago to 12 games with a 77-66 Horizon League victory Saturday night at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago.
The Vikings (11-12, 3-6 Horizon) haven't lost to the host Flames since 2008-09. They improved their overall series advantage to 41-32.
Junior Lomomba scored 13 points, Charlie Lee had 11 points and 10 rebounds and Bryn Forbes added 10 points as Cleveland State snapped a four-game losing streak.
Gary Talton scored 16 points and Daniel Barnes had 14 points as Illinois-Chicago (14-9, 5-5) saw its three-game winning streak end. Hayden Humes and Josh Crittle added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
Cleveland State, which never trailed, outscored Illinois-Chicago 8-3 in the final 1:36 of the opening half for a 34-26 halftime lead.
The Flames' Anthony Kelly opened the second half with a fast-break layup, the last Illinois-Chicago points for nearly six minutes. The Vikings used a 12-0 run for a 46-28 lead with 13:58 left.
Cleveland State opened its biggest lead at 58-36 on Mason's 3-pointer with 10:08 remaining, but the Vikings managed just two free throw over the next 6:22. A Flames rally cut the lead to 60-53 in a run that included 11-of-12 free-throw shooting.
Illinois-Chicago got no closer, and Lee restored a double-digit lead with a jumper with 1:25 left that gave Cleveland State a 66-55 lead.
Both teams resume league play Wednesday with Cleveland State at Youngstown State while Illinois-Chicago travels to first-place Valparaiso.
