The Oakland men’s basketball team is set to begin its preseason scrimmages in just over three months as the team looks to rebound after a subpar 2022-23 campaign. The 2023-24 season will mark head coach Greg Kampe’s 40th season at the helm of the program, a mark that, since Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim’s retirement, stands alone as the longest active head coaching streak in Division I basketball.
Despite finishing with an 11-9 conference record and earning the No. 5 seed in the league tournament, the Golden Grizzlies bowed out of the conference tournament in their opening game.
With an unimpressive regular season and a first-round exit in the Horizon League tournament, Kampe and Oakland missed out on their 11th consecutive NCAA Tournament.
It’s now been more than five years since Oakland’s last regular-season Horizon League title, and the program has never finished higher than third place in the league in that timeframe.
But 2023-24 will signal a new opportunity for Kampe and Oakland. In his 40th season, Kampe boasts one of the most talented rosters he’s had during his time with the Golden Grizzlies.
The team will begin its season with several scrimmages and nonconference games before it heads south to compete in the Cayman Islands Classic, a preseason tournament that is set to take place from Nov. 19-21.
OU will face some stiff competition in the tropical country. Drake and Utah State, two teams that participated in last year’s NCAA Tournament, will be featured in the tournament, along with Loyola Marymount, Stephen F. Austin, Marshall, Utah State, Akron and Florida International.
The trip to the Cayman Islands will be Oakland’s third tropical trip in as many seasons, and the program’s fourth in five years.
“I am really excited to take my team to the event in the Cayman Islands,” Kampe said. “This tournament has a great reputation, a great field, and an elite venue. Having a chance to compete here will be a special week.”
Last season, Kampe took his team to Nassau, Bahamas. Two seasons ago, OU traveled to Estero, Florida, where it won the Gulf Coast Showcase with wins over the University of Vermont, Rice University and the University of Delaware.
In 2019, the Golden Grizzlies traveled to Kissimmee, Florida, where they competed in the Sunshine Slam.
This season, Oakland’s visit to the Cayman Islands will be its southernmost trip yet. The Golden Grizzlies will open the tournament against Drake, a 2023 NCAA Tournament No. 12 seed.
The tournament opener will be at 11 a.m. on Sunday, Nov. 19. If Kampe’s squad wins, it will take on the winner between Loyola Marymount and Stephen F. Austin. If Kampe’s squad falls, it will take on the loser of the same contest.
All eight teams in the tournament are guaranteed to play three games, and all the contests will be played over three consecutive days.
Oakland’s full 2023-24 schedule has yet to be released.
