ROCHESTER, Mich. – The Keeps 2022 Horizon League Men's Basketball Tournament gets underway on Tuesday, March 1 with first round action as the No. 5 seed Oakland University Men's Basketball hosts No. 12 seed IUPUI at the Athletics Center O'rena at 8:30 p.m.
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INSIDE THE SERIES
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Overall: Oakland 22-17
At Home: 14-3
On the Road: 7-11
Current Streak: Oakland, 1
Last Meeting: W, 78-45 (12/4/2021)
Series Note: Oakland looks to continue homestand
IUPUI's only NCAA Division I win came in a ten-point upset against Robert Morris on February 17 by a score of 66-56 with the other two wins coming against Spalding University (Ky.), NCAA Division III, and East-West University (Ill.), USCAA. The Jaguars sit 12th in the league standings with the honor of playing Oakland on the road.
The Jagas currently hold a -14.7 scoring margin as only one student-athlete averages double-digit scoring in BJ Maxwell at 12.4 points per game. Nathan McClure is IUPUI's leading rebounder with an average of 5.2 per contest.
Jamal Cain leads the team in scoring at 20.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, respectively, as the grad senior comes off a senior day victory against Cleveland State with his fifteenth double double of the year at 20 points and 13 rebounds. Cain was named #HLMBB Co-Player of the Year Monday afternoon, naturally on the All-League First Team list.
Jalen Moore is second in the nation in assists per game at 7.9 following his two assists he dished out against Cleveland State with 16 points. Moore is second on the team in scoring per game at 15.4 points while also taking away a team high 58 steals. Moore was also named to the All-League Second Team.
Trey Townsend stays steady at 13.6 points in his 29 games played to shoot 53% (44-119) from the field for second in the Horizon League. Micah Parrish has had six-straight double digit performances coming off of a career-high tying 20 against Cleveland State as the freshman was named All-League Defensive Team.
Cain is second and first in the league when it comes to scoring and rebounding as the only league player to average a double double while Moore is naturally the conference's leader in assists while also doubling down on his defensive efforts at third in steals (2.0/game).
OU is 153rd in the NCAA NET Rankings with a 1-3 quad one record and an 11-6 quad four record ahead of teams like Boston College, Missouri, and Nebraska. In the NCAA RPI according to CBS Sports, the Golden Grizzlies march up two spots to 118th.
The Golden Grizzlies are now 175th according to kenpom with the fifteenth-best out of conference record to their credit.
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NOTES
NATIONAL TALENT
Once again, Jamal Cain sees himself in the mix of national attention with the grad student from Pontiac in more than one category.
Category - Place (Total/Average) // NCAA Last Updated Feb 28
Double Doubles - Tied-10th (15)
Defensive Rebounds Per Game - Tied-19th (7.07)
Rebounds Per Game - 13th (10.2)
ONE THE BEST IN THE NATION
Moore is second in the NCAA in assists per game at 7.9 with a total of 221. Moore is just shy of Yuri Collins of Saint Louis in first. Moore was the 2020-21 national leader in assists per game.
OAKLAND WHEN IT'S TOURNEY TIME
In its last four tournaments, Oakland is 3-1 in first round matches while the Golden Grizzlies made a run to the 2021 Horizon League Men's Basketball Championships where it fell to Cleveland State in Indianapolis 80-69.
OAKLAND WHEN….
OU is now 16-5 when winning at halftime while posting a 6-7 record when scoring 74 points or less as the Golden Grizzlies' chances improve when scoring 75 or above at 13-4. When Jamal Cain is the leading scorer, Oakland is 10-6 and 15-7 when the Pontiac native is the leading rebounder. For Moore, OU is 8-1 when the guard has double-digit assists.
ALL-LEAGUE HONORS
Cain was named #HLMBB Co-Player of the Year while also being tabbed to the All-League First Team. Moore was named All-League Second Team while Parrish was placed on the All-League Defensive Team.
WEAR THE COLORS
Oakland is 8-3 when wearing white during the season with the most recent win coming against Detroit Mercy as the two losses in that uniform set came in neutral site action against Michigan State at Little Caesars Arena, Wright State, and Purdue Fort Wayne. When wearing gold, the team is 5-2 with both of the uniforms' losses coming to Northern Kentucky.
PRICE + LAMPMAN FROM DEEP
Osei Price is shooting 41.0% (25-61) while Lampman shoots 34.9% (60-172) with the most attempts. These two are the team's scoring leaders off the bench with 4.2 and 7.2 points per game, respectively. Oakland has one of the longest three-point scoring streaks in the NCAA at 1,063 games.
MINISTER OF DEFENSE
Micah Parrish has 47 takeaways with seven blocks total on the year from the Detroit native with an average of 6.0 rebounds and 11.9 point per game, respectively. As previously mentioned, Parrish was named All-League Defensive Team on Monday.
MID-MAJOR SUCCESS
Oakland dropped out of College Insider's Mid Major Top 25 to be in the receiving votes.
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LAST FOUR
(vs) Cleveland State, February 27, W, 65-57
On senior day, Cain and Parrish led the Golden Grizzlies with 20 points apiece as Oakland took down the Vikings at home. Cain tallied his fifteenth double double this season while Moore sat just behind with 16 points.
(vs) Purdue Fort Wayne, February 24, L, 81-70
For the third-straight game, Oakland fell to Purdue Fort Wayne inside the Athletics Center O'rena as Moore finished with 19 points as Parrish was just behind with 18. Cain grabs his 14th double double of the year with 12 points and 14 rebounds.
(vs) Northern Kentucky, February 20, L, 77-61
Oakland lost 71-66 to the Nores as NKU completed the season sweep, jumping up to third in the Horizon League while the Golden Grizzlies dropped to fifth with two games to go. Cain finished 37 minutes with 22 points to his name with eight boards.
(vs) Wright State, February 18, L, 78-74
On ESPN2 in Horizon League after dark action, Oakland dropped its second game of the season to Wright State at home in front of the largest crowd in the O'rena in the 2021-22 campaign as OU Men's Basketball Alum, Kendrick Nunn, had his banner hung in the rafters.
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NUNN BETTER
On February 18, Oakland University Alum and current Los Angeles Laker, Kendrick Nunn, had his jersey with the No. 1 hung in the rafters of the Athletics Center O'rena. Nunn was NBA Rookie of the Year runner up to Ja Morant while with the Miami Heat before joining the Lakers in August.
MID-MAJOR BASKETBALL'S SEXIEST COACH?
Yes, really. According to SB Nation's Mid Major Madness, Oakland Head Men's Basketball Coach, Greg Kampe, earned 35% of the staff's and fan's vote on the website published on February 14. Kampe is ahead of the only other Horizon League coach named on the list, Will Ryan of Green Bay, by eight spots.
PRICE IS "MR. PERFECT"
According to Stats by STAT, Osie Price's 7-7 FG, 5-5 3PT, and 8-8 FT stat line from Oakland's game against University of Michigan-Dearborn makes him the only person in the last 20 years in the NBA, WNBA, NCAA Division I, II, and III to finish 100% from the field with at least five attempts in each category.
1000 POINT CLUB
Cain tallied his 1,000th point in his collegiate career with his 26 scored in the win over UIC on Saturday, January 29. Cain's thousand points carry over from his time at Marquette University as the grad transfer finishes his collegiate playing career at Oakland,.
A SPECIAL FRIDAY NIGHT
Chris Conway's previous career high in points was two points ahead of OU's game with Ohio Christian. The Naperville, Illinois native earned his first career double double with 22 points and ten rebounds as Townsend got his second double double of the year with 26 points (a career high) and 10 rebounds as well. Emmanuel Newsome made his first start of the season Friday as well tallying eight points, five rebounds, and a steal.
BATTLE IN LITTLE CAESARS ARENA
Moore tallied a double-double in the team's 90-78 loss to Michigan State University with 25 points and 11 assists to his name as Cain notched his second straight contest with 20 or more points, his sixth overall of the season. The squad shot 43.9% (25-57) from the field as the team faced its first, and albeit short, losing streak of the season at two games.
FUN IN THE SUN
Oakland secured the Gulf Coast Showcase title with wins over Vermont, Rice, and Delaware. All three of OU's victories were decided by eight points or less. The tournament took place at Hertz Arena in Estero, Fla. and featured eight mid-major teams. The winner of the MTE has advanced to postseason play in six of its eight years of existence.
UPSET IN STILLWATER
The Golden Grizzlies earned a 56-55 victory at Oklahoma State in their second game of the season. Moore scored the final seven points for OU in the win. The upset was Oakland's 12th career win over a Power 5 program.
GET YOUR TICKETS
Season tickets can be purchased through the Athletics Ticket Office by calling (248) 370-4000 or emailing outickets@oakland.edu. Single-game tickets and mini-plans are also available for the 2021-22 basketball season. Click here for more information.
NEW HOME FOR OAKLAND BASKETBALL
Oakland recently announced a partnership with Audacy that made 97.1 The Ticket HD3 and The Bet 1270AM (WXYT-AM) the official radio providers for the department. With this new partnership, 97.1 The Ticket HD3 and The Bet 1270AM (WXTY-AM) will provide coverage for all Oakland men's basketball games as well as the Greg Kampe Radio Show.
BACK FOR ANOTHER RUN
Kampe enters his 38th season at the helm of the Oakland men's basketball program. He is the third-longest tenured active coach in Division I, only behind Jim Boeheim (Syracuse, 45 seasons) and Mike Krzyzewski (Duke, 41 seasons). Kampe's 650 career wins rank 12th among active Division I coaches.
PUTTING OAKLAND ON THE MAP
Kampe joined Oakland in 1984 after six seasons as an assistant coach at Toledo (1978-1984). Formerly known as the Pioneers, OU had only six winning seasons in 16 years of competition before his arrival.
