| Year: | 2017–18 |
| Team: | Cleveland State Vikings |
| Sport: | Basketball |
| Conference: | Horizon League |
| Short Conf: | Horizon |
| Record: | 12–23 |
| Conf Record: | 6–12 |
| Head Coach: | Dennis Felton |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Asst Coach1: | Lou Dawkins |
| Asst Coach2: | Bryan Tibaldi |
| Asst Coach3: | Dražen Zlovarić |
| Stadium: | Wolstein Center |
The 2017–18 Cleveland State Vikings men's basketball team represented Cleveland State University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by first-year head coach Dennis Felton. The Vikings played their home games at the Wolstein Center as members of the Horizon League. They finished the season 12–23, 6–12 in Horizon League play to finish in a tie for eighth place. As the No. 8 seed at the Horizon League tournament, they defeated Youngstown State and upset No. 1 seed Northern Kentucky and No. 4 seed Oakland to advance to the championship game where they lost to Wright State.
The Vikings finished the 2016–17 season 9–22, 5–13 in Horizon League play to finish in ninth place. They lost in the first round of the Horizon League tournament to Youngstown State.
On March 7, 2017, head coach Gary Waters retired.[1] He finished at Cleveland State with an 11-year record of 194–172. On March 24, the school hired former Georgia and Western Kentucky head coach Dennis Felton.[2]
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gavin Peppers | 2 | G | 6'2" | 190 | Junior | Graduate transferred to Central Michigan | ||
| 3 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Sophomore | Transferred to Arizona State | |||
| 5 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Sophomore | Transferred to North Carolina Central | |||
| Nelson Maxwell | 13 | G | 6'0" | 170 | Sophomore | Transferred to Mercyhurst | ||
| Tim Hasbargen | 21 | G | 6'4" | 200 | Junior | Graduate transferred to Babson College | ||
| Demonte Flannigan | 33 | F | 6'8" | 240 | Senior | Graduated | ||
| P. J. Posey | 35 | C | 6'8" | 275 | Senior | Graduate transferred to William Jessup | ||
| Andy Lucien | 41 | F | 6'7" | 190 | Freshman | Transferred to Walsh | ||
| Daniel Levitt | 55 | G | 6'1" | 170 | Sophomore | Walk-on; left the team for personal reasons |
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dontel Highsmith | 3 | G | 6'2" | 200 | RS Senior | Dowagiac, MI | Transferred from Northern Illinois. Will eligible to play since Highsmith graduated from Northern Illinois. | |
| Al Eichelberger | 24 | F | 6'7" | 251 | Sophomore | Transferred from DePaul. Under NCAA transfer rules, Eichelberger will have to sit out the 2017–18 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility. |
|-!colspan=9 style=| Exhibition|-!colspan=9 style=| Non-Conference regular season|-!colspan=9 style=| Horizon League regular season|-!colspan=9 style=|Horizon League tournament