The Oakland University men’s basketball team (10-18, 5-8 Horizon) lost grip of a 10-point lead in the final three minutes to lose against the Wright State Raiders (15-13, 7-6), 72-71 Sunday afternoon.

Oakland made crucial mistakes down the stretch and Wright State was able to capitalize to complete their season sweep of the Golden Grizzlies. OU made their Horizon league debut against Wright State on Jan. 2 in a 76-64 loss.

“We went from maybe one of our better defensive performances of the year, in a game we really needed to win, to a total collapse in the last two minutes,” OU head coach Greg Kampe said.

Oakland went flat in the second half and allowed the Raiders to climb back in the game after going on an almost seven-minute field goal drought in the middle of the half, and then again in the final 3:45 of the game.

With 2:13 to play, the Grizzlies led 67-57. The Raiders were able to find their offense and go on an 8-0 run fueled by forward Cole Darling.

OU junior center Corey Petros was unavailable in the final minutes after fouling out with 4:55 left in the game.

Darling started the run with a 3-pointer, along with teammates J.T. Yoho and Reggie Arceneaux, to pull them back within one.

Kampe stated that there were missed defensive assignments and costly turnovers that crippled his squad at the end.

“We made five, maybe six major mental mistakes in the last two minutes,” he said. “As a coach, it’s your job for a team not to do that.”

Darling would eventually go on to hit two free throws to give Wright State their first lead of the second half with 21 seconds remaining. Darling finished with a game-best 21 points.

Senior guard Duke Mondy scored the Grizzlies’ final nine points, the final seven of which came from the free throw line. Mondy hit two free throws with 13 seconds left to give Oakland a 71-70 lead. 

Mondy was the leading scorer for OU with 20 points. He added seven rebounds, seven assists and five steals, but also committed five turnovers.

Wright State took advantage of Petros’ absence and attacked the basket with their 6-foot-10 center A.J. Pacher, who made a layup over Grizzly backup Joey Asbury with two seconds left on the clock.

OU was unsuccessful on a full court heave at the end of the game, and the fans went silent.

A bright spot for Oakland was forward Ralph Hill, who led all scorers at the half with 10 points and finished the game with 15. Hill topped his career-high of 11 points just two days prior against Detroit Mercy.

OU senior guard Travis Bader struggled from the field for the Grizzlies, going 1-of-10 from the field, including 0-of-3 from 3-point range. Bader finished the game with nine points, all of which came in the first half.

Oakland takes to the road to play the University of Illinois at Chicago this Friday, Feb. 21 at 8 p.m. The game can be seen on the Horizon League Network or ESPN3.