GAME 21: OAKLAND MEN’S BASKETBALL RETURNS HOME TO HOST UIC

Oakland University men’s basketball returns to the Blacktop to host UIC on Thursday, January 23.

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
UIC (8-12, 3-4 HL) | Thursday, Jan. 23 - 7 PM | Athletics Center O'Rena | Rochester, MI

COVERAGE BROADCAST
TV20/ESPN+ | TALENT: Neal Ruhl (PxP) and Dan Waterstradt (analyst) | RADIO: WDFN-AM (1130), iHeart Radio app | TALENT: Neal Ruhl (PxP) and Dan Waterstradt (analyst)

ROCHESTER, Michigan - The Oakland University men's basketball team returns to the O'Rena on Thursday, January 23, to host league foe UIC. It is the Golden Grizzlies first home game since falling to Northern Kentucky on January 5.

Oakland went 1-3 in its road swing through Ohio and Wisconsin over the past two weekends. The Golden Grizzlies built a double-digit lead in each of the four outings and held a halftime advantage in three of those contests.

Through seven league games, Oakland is 1-2 while playing at the O'Rena. The Golden Grizzlies opened the conference campaign with a 78-69 win over Metro Series rival Detroit Mercy on December 28.

Senior forward Xavier Hill-Mais continues to lead Oakland with 15.7 point per game. Last time out at Milwaukee, Hill-Mais notched his third 20-plus point performance of the year. The Greensboro, North Carolina, native leads the Horizon League - shooting 54.3-percent from the floor and is one of six scorers in the league with more than 100 made field goals this season.

UIC picked up its second-consecutive Horizon League victory with a 75-66 road win over IUPUI on Jan. 18. Tarkus Ferguson nearly tallied a triple-double finishing with 16 points, nine rebounds and nine assists, all team highs. He was one of five Flames in double figure, joined by Jordan Blount (14), Marcus Ottey (13), Godwin Boahen (10) and Jamie Ahale (10).

The Flames lead the conference in blocked shots per game with 4.1, while their 82 total blocks ranks second in the league. UIC's 82 blocks this year rank 53rd nationally.

UIC's Tarkus Ferguson is one of two active players in Division I basketball with at least 1,400 career points, 600 career rebounds and 500 career assists. He is joined by Merrimack's Juvaris Hayes.

On Friday, January 24, Oakland University Athletics will host the Hollie L. Lepley Hall of Honor induction ceremony. This year's ceremony will take place at the Auburn Hills Marriott Pontiac. The event is open to the public and those interested in attending can find more registration information at GoldenGrizzlies.com.

The Golden Grizzlies host IUPUI on Saturday, January 25 at 3 pm.

Inside the Series
Overall: Oakland, 15-2
At Home: 6-1
At UIC: 8-0
At Neutral: 1-1
Current Streak: Oakland, 2
Last Meeting: W, 86-72 (2/28/19 at O'Rena)
Series Note: Oakland's lone home loss came on 2/2/18, 79-73

Notes

Rashad Williams was named eligible by the NCAA on January 16, announced the League and Director of Athletics Steve Waterfield. Williams transferred from Cleveland State where he averaged 10.8 points and 1.8 rebounds per game during the 2018-19 season. In his debut as a Golden Grizzly, Williams joined the starting lineup and logged 36 minutes. He finished with 16 points, nine of which came from beyond the arc. Williams knocked down over 90 triples as a Viking a season ago.
Oakland has had at least three scorers in double figures in eight-straight outings. The Golden Grizzlies have had five double-digit scorers twice this year. The last time the Golden Grizzlies had just one double-digit scorer was against No. 16/15 Michigan State on Dec. 14.
Oakland moved up the active three-point streak list with Vanderbilt going 0-for-25 on Jan. 18 against Tennessee. The Commodores streak lasted 34 years - 1,080-straight games. The Golden Grizzlies have made at least one triple in 990-straight games. (UNLV 1,090 | Duke 1,078 | Western Kentucky 1,028 | Arkansas 1,027)
Oakland's defense sits second in the league at 67.2 points surrendered per game. The Golden Grizzlies held opponents to under 60 points four times this season. Opponents have hit just 40.8 percent of their field goals against Oakland, making the Golden Grizzlies' defense tops in the Horizon League in the category with Northern Kentucky.
Coach Greg Kampe has been going deep on his bench this season, most recently playing 10 Golden Grizzlies against Milwaukee. Kampe went 13-deep on the roster for the first time this season against Wright State and has gone 12 deep on six occasions this season and at least 10 in 17 games this season.
In the past four games, Oakland has jumped out to a double-digit lead in the first half in each contest - +10 at Milwaukee, +15 at Green Bay, +12 at Cleveland State, +13 at Youngstown State. The Golden Grizzlies took a lead into half in three of the four outings: +3 at Green Bay, +3 at Cleveland State, +4 at Youngstown State, -4 at Milwaukee. Oakland went 1-3 over the four-game road stretch. The Golden Grizzlies lost by an average of 3.3 ppg over their past three losses.