The Youngstown State women's basketball team will host Cleveland State in the quarterfinals of the Horizon League Tournament on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at Beeghly Center. The game will be broadcast live on 570 WKBN, iHeartRadio and HorizonLeague.com.

The second-seeded Penguins had their best regular season in 15 years and set a school record with 11 Horizon League victories. Led by Horizon League Coach of the Year Bob Boldon and Horizon League Player of the Year Brandi Brown, the Penguins finished the regular season 21-8 overall and 11-5 in conference games. YSU went 2-0 against Cleveland State during the season, beating the Vikings 72-63 in Cleveland and 73-69 at Beeghly Center on Feb. 21. Cleveland State finished the regular season 13-16 overall and 5-11 in league play, which earned them the seventh seed in the tournament.

Since becoming YSU's coach in April 2010, Boldon has completely rejuvenated the program. The Penguins were 0-30 the year prior to his arrival, and he has progressively improved them to six wins, 10 wins and 21 wins in his three seasons. YSU was picked to finish eighth in the league's preseason poll. Brown has been his catalyst on the court from day one, and she's capped off one of the best careers in Horizon League history with a banner senior year. Brown ranks among the nation's leaders in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles, and she may have clinched the award down the stretch with some outstanding performances at home when she was YSU's only healthy post player. Freshman point guard Shar'Rae Davis was also voted onto the Horizon League's All-Newcomer Team.

Cleveland State eliminated YSU from the tournament last season, and the Penguins will be looking to win their first conference tournament game since 2007-08. The Penguins have had shots at the buzzer to send the game to overtime each of the last two seasons. If YSU wins, it would play either No. 3 Loyola or No. 6 Milwaukee on Friday in the tournament semifinals.

Tickets

Tickets are available for purchase phone at (330) 941-1978 and at the main YSU Athletics Ticket Office in Stambaugh Stadium until 5 p.m. on Wednesday. The Beeghly Center ticket office will open at 6 p.m. on Monday. Reserved seats will be $10, and general admission seats will be $7 apiece. Horizon League students will be admitted free with a current and valid ID.

#YSUWBB Summary

• YSU is in its 38th season in 2012-13 and its third under head coach Bob Boldon.
• The Penguins already have their most wins in a season since 1999-2000.
• The Penguins are averaging 8.3 3-pointers per game this season, which ranks seventh in the country. They averaged 9.2 3-pointers per game last season.
• YSU is plus-7.2 in scoring margin this season. That's a 10.1-point improvement from last season and a 33-point improvement from three years ago.
• Opponents are scoring 57.3 points per game against YSU, the lowest since 1978-79. They averaged 67.5 points last year.
• YSU is averaging 64.5 points this season, down 0.1 points from last season.

A Win Would

• Give YSU 22 victories, tying for its fourth-highest win total in school history.
• Be YSU's first victory in the Horizon League Tournament since 2008 and its second ever.
• Be YSU's 13th at Beeghly Center, tying a school record for wins in the arena.
• Be YSU's third straight over Cleveland State.

Game Recap vs. Detroit

Detroit scored nine straight points in the latter part of the second half, and Youngstown State couldn't make a push to catch the Titans in a 62-48 YSU loss at Calihan Hall on Thursday.

Detroit led by five seven minutes into the game, but YSU came back to tie the score at 13 and at 16. Detroit scored the next nine points and led by eight at halftime.

YSU hung around and trailed by seven with 4:30 left, but Detroit scored the next seven points to pull away.

• Shar'Rae Davis led the Penguins in scoring for the first time in her career. All 16 of her points came in the second half. She added three steals, three rebounds and a block in the period in 20 minutes.
• Liz Hornberger scored all 12 of her points in the first 17 minutes She made four of her first five field-goal attempts but missed her last seven.
• YSU played the final 27 minutes without leading scorer Brandi Brown, who rolled her ankle with 7:27 left in the first half.
• With Brown out, YSU did not have an active post. Amanda Barger, a 5-foot-10 guard, guarded the post the rest of the game. Barger played a career-high 29 minutes.
• YSU's size disadvantage resulted in a 30-18 edge in points in the paint and a 40-22 advantage in rebounds for Detroit.
• Detroit was held to its lowest point total at home all season. The Titans were also forced into 22 turnovers.
• During Detroit's 9-0 run in the first half, YSU went scoreless for nearly six minutes.
• Monica Touvelle scored the 500th point of her career. She was 3-for-8 inside the arc and attempted just four 3-pointers.
• YSU was a season-best 12-for-12 from the free-throw line.

Scouting Cleveland State

Cleveland State lost five of its last six games of the season and finished 13-16 overall and 5-11 in conference play. The Vikings lost six conference games by five points or fewer and another in overtime. CSU lost its last seven road games against conference teams, but the Vikings were tough to beat at Beeghly Center on Feb. 21 in a 73-69 contest. Shalonda Winton is the Horizon League Defensive Player of the Year and a first-team all-conference pick.

Last Time vs. Cleveland State

Brandi Brown scored a then-career-high 33 points, and YSU rallied from an early eight-point deficit to beat Cleveland State 73-69 on Feb. 21 at Beeghly Center .

The Penguins trailed by five at halftime and by six three minutes into the second half. Brown's three-point play broke a 52-52 tie with 11:47 left, and YSU led the rest of the way.

Brown scored 21 of YSU's 45 points in the second half, and Monica Touvelle had all 13 of her points in the final 16 minutes.

Series With Cleveland State

YSU has played Cleveland State more than any other opponent, and the Penguins hold a 33-27 lead in the all-time series. The Vikings have won 11 of the last 14 meetings, but YSU has won three of the last five. The Penguins beat Cleveland State 73-69 at Beeghly Center earlier this year and are 19-8 in the building against the Vikings overall. YSU is 1-1 against Cleveland State all-time in the postseason, winning in the 1993 Mid-Con Tournament and losing in the Horizon League Tournament last year.

Best Season Since 1999-2000

• With 21 wins, Youngstown State has its most victories in a season since going 22-9 in 1999-2000, which was 13 years ago. The Penguins were 10-20 last year.
• YSU's 11 conference wins are the most in 12 seasons in the Horizon League. The Penguins previously won a high of eight league games in 2001-02 and 2007-08.
• The 10 non-conference wins tied the 1997-98 team for the most in school history.
• The Penguins won their first six home games for the first time since the 1991-92 season. Their 12 wins at Beeghly Center are the most since 1998-99 and one shy of a school record. YSU had 11 wins at home over the previous four seasons combined.
• YSU's nine road wins are the most in the last 13 years. The Penguins had seven road wins combined in the last four years.

Among the Nation's Most Improved In...

• RPI – The Penguins have improved their RPI from last season by 186. That is the best improvement in the country. YSU was 257 last year and is 71 this year. Mercer is second in improvement at 176.
• Wins – YSU has 11 more wins in 2012-13 than it did in 2011-12. Only four teams have improved their win total by more.
• Scoring defense – YSU is allowing 10.2 fewer points per game in 2012-13 than it did in 2011-12. Only 11 teams in the country have improved its scoring defense by more. The Penguins are allowing 57.3 points per game this season, down from 67.5 in 2011-12.

Boldon Named Horizon League Coach of the Year

• As the orchestrator of Youngstown State's improvement this season, YSU's Bob Boldon was voted the Horizon League Coach of the Year.
• The Penguins have 11 more wins than last season and finished second in the regular-season standings. YSU was picked to finish eighth in the preseason poll.
• Boldon became YSU's head coach after the 2009-10 season, which saw the Guins finish 0-30 and lose games by an average of 25.8 points. YSU was 6-24 his first year and 10-20 last year.
• YSU's last conference coach of the year was Ed DiGregorio in 1998-99.

Brown is Horizon League Player of the Year

• Youngstown State senior Brandi Brown was rewarded for a banner year with the Horizon League Player-of-the-Year Award, which was voted on by the league's coaches, women's basketball sports information directors and select media.
• Brown led the conference in rebounding and double-doubles while finishing second in scoring.
• Just as important, Brown led the Penguins to an 11-win improvement from last season and a second-place finish in the Horizon League standings.
• Brown is YSU's first conference player of the year since Brianne Kenneally was the Mid-Continent Conference's top player in 1999-2000. Brown is also the first YSU player to be a first-team all-conference honree since Jen Perugini in 2004-05. Perugini is YSU's only other first-team selection since the Penguins joined the conference in 2001-02.

Davis Earns All-Newcomer Team Honors

• YSU freshman Shar'Rae Davis was voted onto the Horizon League's All-Newcomer Team.
• Davis ranked second in the conference with 4.4 assists per game. She also ranked 25th in scoring, sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio, 11th in steals and 12th in free-throw percentage.
• Among newcomers, Davis was first in assists, fourth in scoring, and tied-for-sixth in rebounding.
• Davis is the first Penguin to be on the all-newcomer team since Brandi Brown in 2009-10.

YSU's HL Tournament History

• YSU is 1-11 all-time in the Horizon League Tournament, but the Penguins are 1-0 at Beeghly Center. The last time they hosted a home game was against No. 10 Detroit on March 10, 2008.
• YSU has had shots at the buzzer to force overtime each of the past two seasons but has come up short.
• The Penguins have never been seeded higher than fifth, and that was in their first year in the conference in 2001-02.
• YSU is 0-1 against Cleveland State in the Horizon League Tournament with a 59-56 loss in Cleveland last year.