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UNLEASH THE GRIZZ

Oakland University Athletics

Scoreboard

WBB vs MIA
79
Northern Ky. NKU 2-9,0-2 Horizon
89
Winner Oakland Oak 5-6,1-2 Horizon
Northern Ky. NKU
2-9,0-2 Horizon
79
Final
89
Oakland Oak
5-6,1-2 Horizon
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Northern Ky. NKU 13 18 32 16 79
Oakland Oak 22 19 20 28 89

Game Recap: Women's Basketball | | Jordan Nelson

Oakland Scores First League Victory of the Season over NKU

Rochester, Mich. - Oakland pulled through for their first conference victory of the season as they hosted NKU in their final game of 2023.

Oakland made it a point to set the tone from the start. After NKU scored the first points of the game, the Golden Grizzlies opened up an early 11-0 run, catapulted by Markyia McCormick's seven straight points. A steal off an inbound pass leading to an easy Alexis Johnson layup capped off this run as Oakland took the lead 11-2 with 6:02 left in the opening quarter.

Oakland's staunch defense made everything tough for NKU. The Golden Grizzlies forced tough shots, and used opportunities in transition to kick the ball to the wings for easy, open triples. The benefactor of those triples was largely Johnson, who scored eight first quarter points including two transition shots from deep (2-4 3FG).

Oakland was also dominant on the boards in the early going. They out-rebounded NKU 17-5, and snagged nine offensive rebounds. Miriam Ibezim grabbed seven of her game-high 13 rebounds in the first quarter, including five offensive rebounds in the first quarter, leading Oakland to a 22-13 lead going into the second quarter.

Oakland continued to hold the momentum at the start of the second quarter, bursting into a 6-0 stint, ended by a quick blow-by layup from Johnson to put Oakland up 30-18 with 6:32 remaining in the half.

As the quarter went on, NKU seemed to settle down, effectively swinging the ball around the perimeter and finding open threes amid Oakland's scrambling and rotating defense. After hitting just one three in the opening quarter (1-4 3FG), the Norse were able to knock down three (3-8 3FG) in the second frame.

Oakland was able to set the pace offensively, shooting above 35 percent on threes (5-14 3FG) and overall field goals (14-37 FG) in the first half. Alexis Johnson had an amazing scoring performance in the first half, tallying a game-high 14 first half points (5-8 FG), including a steal and score in the final seconds of the first half. McCormick also had a hot first-half, scoring 12 points (5-11 FG).

The scoring tandem led Oakland to a double-digit lead after one half, heading into the locker room with a 41-31 lead.

The Norse came out the half with a more aggressive mindset, riding the offensive rhythm they picked up in the second quarter. They jumped out to a 7-3 run to start the quarter, ended by a layup from Kennedy Igo to cut the Oakland lead to just six (38-44) with 8:37 left to play in the quarter.

Oakland would respond as McCormick kept her hot hand, scoring five straight points for the Golden Grizzlies to make the score 38-46 with 8:17 left in the quarter.

NKU continued to battle back, and pulled the game even closer as a triple from Kailee Davis brought NKU as close as they had been until that point, as Oakland led by just two (48-46) with 6:20 remaining in the quarter.

Oakland bounced back with a 6-0 run of their own, showing elite team chemistry and ball movement as Brooke Quarles-Daniels and Maddy Skorupski connected on a give-and-go play that turned into an and-one conversion for Quarles-Daniels, opening Oakland's lead back up to eight (46-54) with 4:57 left in the third quarter.

The teams continued to trade buckets, as the game took on a fast pace. NKU's Davis continued her 10 point quarter, as she hit a turnaround jumper to tie the game at 57 each with 2:05 left in the third quarter. 

She was unable to out-duel Quarles-Daniels, who took the reins of the Oakland offense in the quarter, scoring 10 points and seemingly having an answer for every NKU bucket. Her aggressiveness hindered the NKU defense and offense. Quarles-Daniels shot seven free throws (4-7 FT) in the quarter, getting NKU's leading scorer on the season, Khamari Mitchell-Steen, in foul trouble as she committed her fourth fouls halfway through the third quarter, scoring just one point on 0-2 FG shooting up to that point.

Despite this, NKU was able to take a two-point lead (63-61) going into the final quarter of play, putting Oakland in their second straight game that was decided in the final quarter.

With memories of falling in a close game their last time out, Oakland did their best to put those chances to bed, as they leapt into a 12-0 run halfway through the final quarter as Linda Van Schaik hit her first shot from deep of the game to cap off the run and give Oakland a more comfortable 73-66 lead with 6:31 left to play.

With the clock winding down inside of three minutes, Oakland got some clutch scores from key players, as Johnson knocked down her fourth triple of the game with 2:49 left, and was immediately followed by a huge and-one layup from Ibezim as Oakland raised their lead once again, going up 83-75 with 2:26 remaining, leaving very little time for NKU to make a comeback.

As the Norse implemented some full-court pressure as a last-ditch hope, it was not enough as Oakland got into the bonus and used free throws down the stretch to notch their first Horizon League victory of the season 89-79.

Oakland's offense was at their usual top-of-the-league level, especially in the second half. The Golden Grizzlies shot 14-28 FG (.500 FG%). Their hard-nosed and aggressive play style took its toll on the Norse, as the Golden Grizzlies took 31 free throws, nailing 24 of them in the game. 

Johnson's season-high 21 points (8-13 FG), four rebounds, and two steals stood out as the top offensive performance, but several Golden Grizzlies made their mark on this game. Quarles-Daniels' second half continued her recent stretch of offensive success, netting her 18 points (10-15 FT), three steals, four assists, and seven rebounds. McCormick ended with 20 points (4-9 3FG), and Ibezim nearly reached a double-double with nine points (3-6 FG) and a career-high 13 rebounds.

Ibezim was a large reason why Oakland led on the boards NKU 38 to 29, including a 16 to 5 offensive rebounding margin.

I think that (Ibezim's rebounding) set the tone for everyone. We talked about it early on being one of our keys. We had to start rebounding more, and better, and I think she (Ibezim) took that to heart and as a challenge," said Oakland Acting Head Coach Deanna Richard after the win

"I'm so happy for the ladies. They earned it and fought until the end. They worked their tails off tonight," said Richard. 

Oakland head's on the road for the first time since Dec. 3 as they welcome in 2024 with a three-game road trip, starting at Youngstown State on Wednesday, Jan. 3



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