MIAMI -- The night was captured in two images.
Cleveland State guard Cedric Jackson didn't make the postgame media session because he was receiving fluids intravenously. He knows his next game will be in the second round of the NCAA Midwest Regional.
"It was tough," Jackson said. "I was cramping up pretty bad. I got some IVs in me, so I'm good to go."
Wake Forest forward James Johnson headed home not knowing where his next game will be and facing a big decision about his future.
"I don't want my career to end like this," Johnson said. "I would like to leave Wake Forest like Tim (Duncan) or Chris (Paul) did, but now isn't the time to make that decision."
Both players left their best effort on the court, but Jackson (19 points) got more help from J'Nathan Bullock (21 points) and Norris Cole (22 points) than Johnson did from Al-Farouq Aminu and Jeff Teague.
The result was a stunning upset as No. 13-seeded Cleveland State ended No. 4-seeded Wake's season, 84-69, on Friday night at AmericanAirlines Arena in a game that wasn't as close as the score.
The Vikings (26-10) play No. 12 Arizona (20-13) today. The Wildcats upset No. 5 Utah, 84-71.
Coach Dino Gaudio and Wake Forest face a bigger question. Will Johnson and Teague, both sophomores, and Aminu, a freshman, return next year to redeem themselves after starting with 16 straight wins and finishing 8-7?
"If they get good information from the right people, all three will be back," Gaudio said. "Each of them has so much to improve on and needs at least another year to do it."
Teague, who finished with 10 points, clearly was outplayed by Jackson and Cole.
Aminu wasn't a factor until the second half, when he scored 15 of his 17 points.
"It hurts," Teague said, "because of how badly we finished after our great start. We just lost it."
The Vikings advantage of 25-4 in points off turnovers was decisive.
During the 8-7 finish, in which the Deacons won six of their final seven in the regular season before losing to Maryland and Cleveland State, they averaged 15.4 turnovers and gave up 17.7 points off turnovers per game.
"We put too much pressure on ourselves to win the ACC tournament, and it led to the (74-65) loss to Maryland," Gaudio said. "I told the guys to try and win the first four minutes against Cleveland State."
After four minutes, Wake Forest (24-7) was down 14-4 on a Jackson jumper with 4:03 elapsed, and the game was essentially over. Cleveland State scored the game's first nine points with three 3-pointers.
The Vikings, who beat Indiana 83-79 as a No. 14 seed in 1986, never let up. A layup from Cole opened a 17-point lead, 29-12, with 8:54 left.
Johnson scored 15 of his 22 points in the first half to help the Deacons close to single digits, 39-30, by halftime. He also finished with eight rebounds and four blocks.
"Without James," Gaudio said, "we wouldn't have been in the game."
David Weaver's 3-point play with 11:04 left to play reduced the deficit to six, 55-49, but the Deacons got no closer.
Jackson, who had 19 points and combined with Cole and Bullock to control the tempo, then hit a 3-pointer to begin an 18-5 run over the next 7:37 that led to a 19-point lead, 73-54. The surge was capped by two Cole free throws with 3:27 left.
"I hate losing more than anything," Wake guard Ish Smith said, "and to taste this, it hurts."
With guard Harvey Hale the only senior who played significant minutes, Gaudio called the program's future "incredibly bright," and if he is right about Johnson, Teague and Aminu returning, it is.
Johnson, like Teague and Aminu, indicated they would talk with the staff, their teammates, family and friends before making a decision.
"We knew it was possible this would be our last game together," Johnson said, "but I don't think the reality of this has set in yet. This shocked us. I don't know how any of us will feel in a couple of days."
friday's BOX SCORE
CLEVELAND STATE (26-10)
FG FT Reb
Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Tandy 23 2-5 2-2 2-5 2 4 6
Bullock 38 8-16 4-5 4-6 1 0 21
Moore 28 4-9 1-2 3-6 0 2 9
Jackson 38 8-14 0-1 2-7 8 2 19
Cole 37 8-18 5-6 0-0 4 2 22
Harmon 18 1-1 3-4 0-0 0 2 6
Montgomery 13 0-0 0-0 0-1 0 3 0
Fields 5 0-2 1-2 0-0 0 2 1
Totals 200 31-65 16-22 14-32 15 17 84
Percentages: FG .477, FT .727.
3-Point goals: 6-15, .400 (Jackson 3-4, Harmon 1-1, Bullock 1-4, Cole 1-6).
Team rebounds: 7.
Blocked shots: 1 (Tandy).
Turnovers: 6 (Jackson 2, Montgomery, Cole, Tandy, Fields).
Steals: 9 (Jackson 3, Tandy, Montgomery, Cole, Harmon, Moore, Bullock).
Technical fouls: None.
WAKE FOREST (24-7)
FG FT Reb
Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Aminu 31 7-11 2-2 2-6 1 3 17
Johnson 36 8-13 2-3 3-8 1 4 22
Woods 5 0-1 0-0 1-2 0 1 0
Teague 37 4-7 2-4 0-1 5 3 10
Williams 30 2-4 1-2 1-5 0 3 5
Clark 2 0-1 0-0 0-0 0 0 0
Hale 8 0-2 0-0 1-1 0 1 0
Smith 26 2-6 2-3 0-3 3 2 6
McFarland 17 1-2 2-2 1-5 0 3 4
Weaver 8 2-3 1-1 1-1 0 0 5
Totals 200 26-50 12-17 10-33 10 20 69
Percentages: FG .520, FT .706.
3-Point goals: 5-13, .385 (Johnson 4-5, Aminu 1-3, Williams 0-1, Clark 0-1, Teague 0-1, Smith 0-2).
Team rebounds: 1.
Blocked shots: 13 (Johnson 4, McFarland 3, Aminu 2, Smith, Woods, Teague, Weaver).
Turnovers: 18 (Teague 7, Smith 3, Aminu 3, Johnson 3, McFarland, Williams).
Steals: 4 (Smith 2, Johnson, Hale).
Technical fouls: None.
Cleveland State 39 45 -- 84
Wake Forest 30 39 -- 69
Officials--Les Jones, Steve Olson, Lamar Simpson.
A--8,990.
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