Oakland led for more than 37 minutes on Thursday night in its 75-65 win over Purdue Fort Wayne at the OU Credit Union O’rena. Up by as many as 23 points in the victory, the Golden Grizzlies proved why they earned the No. 1 seed in the Horizon League Tournament.
In front of a season-best 3,721 fans, Greg Kampe’s Golden Grizzlies put on a show. Highlighted by roof-raising dunks from Osei Price and Trey Townsend, as well as an and-one 3-pointer from Jack Gohlke, the players and fans seemingly fed off the other’s energy all night.
After leading by nearly a quarter dollar, things got tight late in the second half thanks to Purdue Fort Wayne’s feisty press. The Mastodons cut the lead to six, but Oakland was able to finish the deal. Kampe admitted after the game that the team relied on the crowd.
“We worked all year to get this home game. And at the most important time, we used that crowd,” Kampe said.
Blake Lampman and Rocket Watts combined to shoot a perfect 6-6 from the charity stripe after Purdue Fort Wayne cut the lead to six to help stave off the Mastodons.
As well as Oakland played, Kampe couldn’t help but give the raucous crowd props after the game.
“I will tell you, we’ve played tournament games here before — that was the biggest crowd we’ve ever had for a tournament game,” Kampe said. “And they willed us to the win. They were fantastic. Our students, our swimming team, obviously, but the students were back. I mean, that student section in the old days was like that every game. It didn’t matter who we were playing. They were like that.”
Perhaps the strong turnout was a factor of it being the last game of the season at the OU Credit Union O’rena, or maybe it was because the Golden Grizzlies had earned the No. 1 seed in the league tournament, but there was a different energy in the building on Thursday night.
Ironically, none of Oakland’s three leading scorers — Townsend, Lampman or Gohlke — reached double figures, but rather Watts and DQ Cole carried the scoring load in the victory.
Cole’s 14-point first half and Watts’ 12-point second half kept the crowd energized and engaged throughout the night, even when it looked like the Mastodons were making a comeback.
“For many years, I didn’t realize how lucky we had it here. Because what you saw tonight is how it used to be every day. And the pandemic hit, and nobody came, and as the year went on, I think word got out about how good this group is, and that was unbelievable tonight.”
Oakland will now head to Indianapolis, where it will compete in the Horizon League Tournament semifinals against No. 7 seed Cleveland State.
Surprisingly, the top-seeded Golden Grizzlies were the only favorites to win in Thursday night’s quarterfinals. No. 7 Cleveland State upset No. 2 Youngstown State, No. 5 Northern Kentucky knocked off No. 4 Wright State and No. 6 Milwaukee defeated No. 3 Green Bay.
The path is now wide open for the Golden Grizzlies, which stand just two wins away from punching a ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2011.
Watts gave his early thoughts on the matchup against Cleveland State.
“Cleveland State’s a great team,” Watts said. “I feel like it’s gonna be a great game. We’re gonna have some good practices before we play them. We’re gonna watch film, and our scout team will do a great job, and we’re just gonna have fun out there and get a win.”
Oakland and Cleveland State will tip off on Monday night, March 11 at 7 p.m. from Indiana Farmers Coliseum in Indianapolis. The game will air on ESPNU.
