CLEVELAND, Ohio — Less than 48 hours after losing to Wright State to end Cleveland State’s hopes of a share of the Horizon League regular season crown, head coach Daniyal Robinson knew he had the guys he wanted to make a run in March. Falling to the Huskies 82-76 on Feb. 27 was a crushing blow for the Vikings, but the reality of defeat brought out the best of Robinson’s squad less than two days later with Purdue Fort Wayne in town. “When we came back from Wright State after we played (Purdue Fort Wayne), you could tell what our guys were made of that first seven or eight minutes of that PFW game, because we had the regular season still hanging where we could have tied and we lost it at Wright State, where we played the best that we probably played in the first half and they walked us down in the second half and beat us,” Robison recalled. “We had less than 48 hours to play against PFW, so when those guys showed up to play the way they did against PFW (winning 68-57) it gave me even more confidence and doubled-down on the type of guys that we had. “I’m looking forward to Monday night because I’ll go to war with these guys anywhere.” Earning the No. 2 seed in the the Horizon League tournament guarantees a team nothing, but the Vikings earned another game in Indianapolis against No. 4 Youngstown State by having a winning attitude. That semifinal matchup will tip at 9:30 p.m. on Monday at Corteva Coliseum on Indianapolis. “It’s our expectation here at Cleveland State (to make it to Indianapolis),” Robinson said. “The goal is to be in it to win it and for me I’ve very fortunate to have the support that we have here starting with our leadership and then it goes to our staff. I want to give our staff a ton of credit in terms of how they prepare. “The people allow you the opportunity to get to Indy and compete for championships and were surrounded with great folks here. We deserve to go to Indy. We deserve to win.” Junior Dylan Arnett sat in front of the media after last Thursday’s quarterfinal win over Northern Kentucky, toweling off the sweat from a physical battle, then gave credit to what got his team to Indianapolis for a fifth straight year. “I feel like our defense is made for March,” a confident Arnett said after posting 16 points and 10 rebounds against the Norse. “The way we play, the way we guard, it will definitely help us win games.” If the 2024-25 Vikings had a calling card to leave after big wins, it would be the defensive effort. The Vikings rank 37th in the nation by holding opponents to just over 66 points per game. Robinson believes his team’s defensive effort has been a difference-maker this season. It all came together in the first round of the league tournament win, holding a high-scoring offense to just 63 points. But in Robinson’s mind, the success of his team in March includes experience late in games throughout the season. The Vikings (21-11) had a 13-game win streak end in early February, then closed the regular season winning three of their final eight games. “All the things that we’ve been through all season long has prepared us for this,” Robinson said. “We got some scars in February, but it hardened us up for a night like this. We hang our hat on our defense and these guys totally bought into it. “It’s the concentration level, it’s the extra effort. It’s all the stuff that doesn’t necessarily show up in box scores.” The next one is now the only game that matters for the Vikings. The team isn’t interested in who wins the semifinal before theirs, between top-seeded Robert Morris and No. 6 Oakland. All that matters now is the Penguins, who split the season series with the road team earning each win. Most recently, the Penguins won at the Wolstein Center on Feb. 16, 68-60, on an off night shooting for the Vikings where they shot 35% (22-62) from the floor and struggled mightily from deep making just 3-20 from 3. “Me and (coach Robinson) have been to Indy for the first three years and that means something, that’s really important to us,” Arnett said. “We’ve just got to finish it out, take it game by game.”