NCAA Tournament Preview: Cleveland State vs. Wake Forest

When Sunday’s CBS Selection show hit the airways, the Cleveland State Vikings gathered at the Wolstein Center to see where they would be sent. This was a moment 23 years in the making. Luckily, the waiting game didn’t last that long. In fact, CSU’s first round matchup with Wake Forest (Friday approximately 9:40 PM) was one of the first four pairings shown. The Vikings are a 13-seed in the Midwest, which hands-down is the toughest region of the four.

At the top you’ve got the overall #1 seed in Louisville, Big Ten champ Michigan State as the two, defending National Champion and Big 12 Champion Kansas. Wake Forest, CSU’s first round opponent, spent time at #1 in the polls this season, and boast wins over both North Carolina and Duke. This isn’t even taking into account the dangerous sixth-seeded West Virginia Mountaineers and #7 Boston College. It’s an absolutely loaded quadrant, but the question is out there; Can upstart Cleveland State pull off a stunner and knock off The Demon Deacons?

The one thing you can say about Gary Waters club is they aren’t scared to play anyone. They went into Syracuse and shocked the Orange on the now famous Cedric Jackson 65-footer. That win was no fluke; CSU led for a large portion of the game before blowing a late lead. The Jackson prayer had the Vikings in the winners circle and avoiding overtime. They also hung with Pac-10 regular season champion Washington and won at #19 Butler with a conference title on the line.

This is a veteran group, led by seniors Jackson and J’Nathan Bullock. They play a very controlled style on offense. Waters likes to slow things down and get the best possible shot. Making the extra pass is key to the Vikings attack. The players all seem to know their roles and excel in them. For example, Chris Moore and George Tandy and bangers inside and do an exceptional job as doing the dirty work. Freshman Jeremy Montgomery is the three-point specialist off the bench and can spell Jackson in handling the ball if need be. He has a knack for finding the open spots beyond the arc and knocking down the big jumper. Just ask Butler (he hit three second half threes in the Horizon League title game). The Vikes will once again be without defensive stopper and starting SF D’Aundrey Brown, who’s knee isn’t ready for action.

The stars are Jackson and Bullock. A St. John’s transfer two years ago, Jackson is a dribble-drive penetrator and defensive wizard who is always shadowing the opponent’s best perimeter player. Cedric’s targets on the wing are streak-shooter Norris Cole, and Freshman Trey Harmon and Montgomery. Bullock is the consummate mid-major big man. He is only 6’5, but his brute strength can’t be understated. He plays much bigger than his frame on the defensive end. Offensively, he forces opposing big man to step away from the lane and respect his range, which extends beyond the three-point arc. This will be key to get Wake’s bevy of big men, including James Johnson (14.8 ppg, 8.5 rpg) and Al-Farouq Aminu (12.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg), out of the paint.

While the Demon Deacons are extremely talented, their one major flaw is their lack of quality outside shooting, which plays right into CSU’s hands. Other than PG Jeff Teague (19.1 ppg), an all-ACC performer, Wake doesn’t have any real consistent deep-shooting performers. SF Harvey Hale can be hot and cold at times, the same goes for SG L.D. Williams, but the Wake offense is at its best running up and down the floor and controlling the tempo. If the Vikings can dictate their slower-paced style and play the suffocating defense they have all year, they can hang around and see what happens at the end. That involves putting the clamps down on Teague, who has been spectacular this season. It will be up to Jackson to slow him down. It’s easier said than done.

Where the Vikes are at a major dis-advantage is in the post. Aminu and Johnson are freakishly athletic, unlike an bigs CSU has seen all year. The Freshman Aminu was one of the top five recruits in the nation coming into the season and will be a top five NBA draft pick whenever he decides to go pro. Chas Mcfarland is a big time bruiser who can get chippy at times. Keeping Bullock out of foul trouble is imperitive. Don’t be surprised if Gary Waters employs a tightly packed in zone and forces Wake to beat them from the outside. Maryland did this in the ACC quarterfinals and the Deacons were a miserable 3-25 from deep in their 85-75 loss. The bottom line is CSU cannot get into a track meet with Wake Forest or they will be one and done.

From a pure talent standpoint, Wake Forest may have the most of any team in the country. They also play with a ton of emotion. On paper, it seems like a mismatch, but Cleveland State won’t be intimidated, and will be ready for the ACC giant.