CLEVELAND — Regardless of what others might expect, the Cleveland State Men's Basketball team hasn't hesitated to set big goals.
"Nobody really thought we would be in this position, so I think we kinda take pride in being the underdog," said junior forward Tristan Enaruna.
Winning is a priority for the team, said senior guard Deshon Parker.
"The ultimate goal is win the regular season title, then go on to win the national championship," he said.
Those goals are within reach for the Vikings, as they sit in a three-way tie for second place in the Horizon League. Youngstown State and Northern Kentucky also sit in second place with a 9-3 conference record.
Milwaukee sits at the top of the standings just a half-game ahead of the other teams, sitting 10-3 overall.
"We've established a foundation here. Everything we do is based on our habits, the things that we practice every day. A couple core ones are playing hard, playing physical and taking care of the ball," Enaruna said.
With nine games left in the regular season, Cleveland State will face each team it's tied with one more time.
"This upcoming stretch is the biggest stretch of the season, so, right now, stakes are high. We're really locked in," Parker said.
The Vikings are currently on a three-game winning streak and have won six of their last seven games. With less than a month until the start of the conference tournament, they'll be leaning on their established habits to finish out the regular season strong.
"There's a lot of room for improvement, but I feel like, right now, we're making strides to where we wanna be at the end," Parker said.
Carly Mascitti is a sports anchor at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Twitter @carlymascitti.
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