ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies men's basketball team returns to the court after a nine-day break as it'll hit the road to face the Toledo Rockets tomorrow (Nov. 30) inside Savage Arena, with tip-off set for 7:00 p.m. ET.
The Golden Grizzlies (1-4, 0-0 HL) will look to get into the win column once again after it dropped its previous four games, including a close 68-64 loss on its home court against Eastern Michigan.
Buru Naivalurua led Oakland with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting, while
DQ Cole posted a double-double with 12 points and 14 rebounds. Oakland dominated the first half, shooting .700 from the field and held a 36-28 lead at the break, with 26 points in the paint.
Eastern Michigan clawed back with sharp perimeter shooting and clutch free throws, erasing Oakland's lead in the second half. Despite a late jumper from
Jayson Woodrich bringing Oakland within three, the Golden Grizzlies couldn't convert key opportunities down the stretch and fell, 68-64.
Naivalurua leads the team both in scoring and off the glass, shooting 27-of-47 (.574) from the floor for 11.8 points per game to go along with his 7.2 rebounds per game. In total, a trio of Golden Grizzlies average double-digit points as
Allen Mukeba is right behind with 11.3 points, with Cole at 10.0 points per game.
As a team, the Golden Grizzlies score 58.5 points per game off a .396 clip from the floor with an average of 5.0 threes made per game. Its opponents hit at a .449 clip with 8.2 three per game, good for its 70.2 points per game. Off the glass, the Golden Grizzlies narrowly get outrebounded, by a margin of .8, as the team brings down 34.6 boards per game.
DATE: Nov. 30
OPPONENT: Toledo
LOCATION: Savage Arena - Toledo, Ohio
TIME: 7:00 p.m. ET
LIVE STATS
LIVE STREAM: ESPN+
LIVE AUDIO
The Rockets (5-2, 0-0 MAC) enter Saturday's game coming off a loss in its final game of the Boardwalk Battle to UC San Diego, 80-45, after it rattled off five-straight wins. Toledo's only other loss from the season came in its season opener as it fell, 84-74, against Troy on the road. The Golden Grizzlies will be the third Horizon League team the Rockets will face as it beat Wright State, 86-77, followed by a 82-67 win against Detroit Mercy. Toledo will face its fourth and final Horizon League team later in December at it'll face Youngstown State.
The Golden Grizzlies are 7-12 overall against the Rockets and have faced Toledo every season since 2017, and have met in nine of the last 10 seasons. Oakland is 4-6 in its last 10 matchups against Toledo and are 2-7 on the road. Its last meeting, last year inside the OU Credit Union O'rena, the Golden Grizzlies were narrowly beaten as it fell, 69-68. Naivalurua, Cole and
Isaiah Jones all contributed, as Cole led the way between the three with eight points.
Five Toledo players record double-digit points, with four of the five being starters. Sonny Wilson leads the team, shooting 45-of-80 (.563) from the floor for 16.9 points per game. Wilson, along with Sam Lewis, pace the team with 4.7 rebounds per game as Wilson also leads the team with 27 assists.
The Rockets outscore its opponents by an average of 2.3 points, as it scores 80.3 points per game and shoots at a .470 clip. Toledo lets its opponents shoot at a .482 clip with 8.0 threes per game, as the Rockets make 7.4 from range per game. Toledo gets outrebounded by an average of 4.3 boards as it has 32.7 rebounds per game.
Tip-off from Savage Arena is slated for 7:00 p.m. ET and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
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