ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies men's basketball team continues Big Ten play on the road as it prepares to square off against the nationally-ranked Illinois Fighting Illini.
Oakland (0-1, 0-0 HL) is coming off a close loss against Ohio State which came down to the wire. The Golden Grizzlies took a slight lead of 35-34 as it headed into the locker room and held its own throughout the second half. However, the Buckeyes gained the lead with 8:30 to go and remained ahead for the remainder of the game as the Golden Grizzlies fell in its season opener, 79-73.
Oakland was led by
Jack Gohlke, the graduate student out of Pewaukee, Wis., who scored all 18 of his points from beyond the arc with no attempts from within (6-18 3FG). Junior forward
Trey Townsend continues his strong start to the season after he led the team in total points scored (41) in Oakland's first two exhibition games. Townsend came up one rebound short from recording his 10th career double-double and shot 7 of 16 from the field, with one 3-pointer, for 17 points on the night. Townsend also dished out the most assists for the Golden Grizzlies with four.
The Golden Grizzlies shot 44.0% (11 of 25) from the field with six 3-pointers in the first half and took a seven-point lead on three separate occasions and only fell behind on the scoreboard once with 2:05 to play. However, just over a minute later, Townsend drilled a jumper to regain the lead which was held into more than halfway through the second half.
The Buckeyes jumped ahead in the second half but struggled to put the Golden Grizzlies away. Graduate student
Blake Lampman kept Oakland in it down to the horn with a pair of three's as Ohio State tried to put the game away with free throws, but the final push was too much for Oakland and eventually fell, 79-73.
SCOUTING THE FIGHTING ILLINI
The Golden Grizzlies take on the Fighting Illini for the fourth time in program history as Oakland has played visitor for all meetings. It's been 13 years since these two faced off, with the last meeting Dec. 8, 2010, inside Assembly Hall. The No. 16-ranked Illinois avoided Oakland's upset bid, 74-63, but remained in the game throughout. Also the last time the two dueled, accidentally the first seven-plus minutes were played with a women's size six ball. After eventual protest by both teams, play quickly restarted with a size seven men's ball which is about an inch larger and two ounces heavier. To date, the Golden Grizzlies are 0-3 against the Fighting Illini by an average score of 82.33-56.67.
University of Illinois (1-0, 0-0 Big Ten) opened up its season with a win against in-state foe Eastern Illinois, 80-52, after an impressive pair of exhibition wins.
In its win against the Panthers, Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn and Terrence Shannon Jr. both scored in the double-digits with 18 and 16, respectively. Gibbs-Lawhorn shot 70.0% (7-10 FG) from the field with two baskets from beyond the arch.
Standout guard Shannon Jr. earned several preseason accolades after an impressive 2022-23 season with the Fighting Illini. This year, he was a unanimous selection to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team, was named to the 2024 Jerry West Award Watch List, the 2024 NABC Division I Player of the Year Watch List and the Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List. Shannon Jr. came off the 2022-23 season shooting 159 of 360 (.442) from the field with an average of 17.2 points per game. Averaging 4.6 rebounds per game, the 6-6 Chicago native was named First-Team All-Big Ten (coaches), Second-Team All-Big Ten (media) and was a USBWA All-District V selection.
The Fighting Illini handled its first exhibition game of the season with ease against Ottawa (Ks.) in a 116-65 win, followed by an impressive exhibition win over No. 1 ranked Kansas, 82-75. Shannon Jr. led both games in points and accounted for 28 (8-13 FG) over the nation's top team.
Tip-off from Champaign, Ill., is slated for 8 PM ET on Friday, Nov. 10.
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