ROCHESTER, Mich. - Pitted against the top Horizon League team to start the new year, the Oakland Golden Grizzlies got the job done against the Milwaukee Panthers, holding Milwaukee to their lowest point total this season, with a final score of 65-49, tonight from the OU Credit Union O'Rena.

Leading the Golden Grizzlies (5-10, 2-2 HL) was the duo of Jaylen Jones and Allen Mukeba. Jones brought in six rebounds while scoring a season-high 14 points. Mukeba was incredibly efficient from the field (7-of-11) on his way to scoring 15 points while coming away with a team-high nine rebounds.

For the Panthers (10-5, 3-1 HL), Jamichael Stillwell and Themus Fulks scored the majority of the points. Stilwell finished the night with 14 points and nine rebounds, while Fulks finished the game with 14 points.

Mukeba got the Golden Grizzlies on the board first as he bullied his way to the rim with force before knocking down a short jumper. After some tough defense from Oakland that took away the Panthers' early scoring opportunities, Milwaukee got on the scoreboard with a layup from Stillwell. 

Near the halfway point of the first, Oakland's offense started to click. With a focus on attacking the paint, Jones found a bucket in the form of a layup before Deng Majak scored a layup of his own a few possessions later to put Oakland ahead, 15-10.

With the first coming to a close, the Golden Grizzlies' wear-and-tear style of play started to pay dividends. With Oakland repeatedly converting at the rim, it wore down the Panthers, who struggled to find consistency on offense as Oakland went into the break up 33-23.

At the midway point of the game, the Golden Grizzlies and the Panthers were equally effective at bringing in boards, as the teams tied for 18 rebounds each. Oakland was the more effective team from the field, shooting at a .407 mark (11-of-27) compared to Milwaukee, who shot at a .345 clip (10-of-29).

At the start of the second half, the Golden Grizzlies remained consistent on both sides of the floor. Jaylen Jones supplemented the offense with a deep three assisted by DQ Cole, while Buru Naivalurua and Mukeba continued to dominate the interior.

As the second continued, the Panthers struggled to get the lid off the basket, as the Golden Grizzlies lockdown defense proved challenging to break. On offense, Malcolm Christie kept the engine moving for Oakland, knocking down a deep three to make the score 54-39 in favor of the Golden Grizzlies with 10:14 to go.

With the game starting to wind down in the second, Milwaukee stood no chance of making a comeback. The Panthers were able to cut into Oakland's lead at times but never came close to taking it back, resulting in Oakland's second conference win of the season. Taking the win 65-49, Oakland held its opponent under 50 for the first time since Feb. 22, 2024 (vs. Robert Morris, 43).

By the end of the game, the Golden Grizzlies won the rebounding battle 36-31 while shooting at a .423 clip (22-for-52) compared to the Panthers, who converted just .370 (20-for-54) of their attempts from the field.

Next, the Golden Grizzlies will look to build on their momentum as they play the Robert Morris Colonials Saturday, Jan. 4, at the OU Credit Union O'Rena, with a tipoff set for 3:00 p.m. ET. All Oakland games this season will be live streamed through audio via 97.1HD-3, The Bet1270 AM (WXYT-AM) & the Audacy App with Neal Ruhl on the call.