ROCHESTER, Mich. - Despite a first-half lead, the Golden Grizzlies men's basketball team fell to Northern Kentucky, 84-75, this afternoon from the OU Credit Union O'Rena.

Leading the Golden Grizzlies (10-14, 7-6 HL) was Buru Naivalurua who finished with 18 points, as DQ Cole was right behind with 15. Allen Mukeba nearly notched a double-double as he had seven boards with 14 points.

Northern Kentucky (10-13, 5-7 HL) had four players in the double-digits, as Dan Gherezgher led the game with 22.

The Golden Grizzlies came into this game looking to extend their momentum from an earlier 68-53 victory over the Norse on Jan. 11, a win that sparked a four-game win streak.

The game started off with a lot of energy from the Golden Grizzlies, as DQ Cole opened with a three-pointer, followed by Mukeba adding a layup for two, and Woodrich sinking another three shortly after. The Norse quickly responded, adding seven points to the board, making it 14-8 with 13:30 left in the first. 

The Golden Grizzlies were quick to close the gap, thanks to Christie's three, assisted by Cole, followed by Cole hitting a three of his own. This brought the team within five points of the Norse, with the score at 25-20 midway through the first half.

The game remained tight with a little over seven minutes left, until Christie hit a three to tie the score, 25-25, immediately followed by Naivalurua with a dunk, forcing Northern Kentucky to call a timeout. The Norse caught up and the game remained close, with neither team taking control, until Nassim Mashhour hit a three-pointer with only 1:54 remaining in the first half to make it 38-34.  

With the first half coming to a close, the Norse worked hard to catch up, however, the Golden Grizzlies' offense proved unstoppable as they ended the first half up, 40-39. 

After 20, Oakland held the edge off the glass with 17 rebounds, one more than the Norse. From the floor, Oakland hit eight shots from range and hit at an overall mark of .444 (12-of-27) from the floor, compared to Northern Kentucky's .455 clip (15-of-33).

Cole immediately sank a three-pointer, starting the second half off with momentum for the Golden Grizzlies; however, the Norse started to take control, gaining a four-point run against Oakland, making it 51-47, with 15:20 remaining in the game. 

As the second half progressed, Northern Kentucky continued to expand their lead, 60-49, with 11:48 remaining, forcing Oakland to play catch-up. A strong effort from Naivalurua with a layup and two good free throws from Isiah Jones put Oakland back on the board, but Northern Kentucky answered with three more points, putting them up 71-53 with 7:27 remaining in the game.

Woodrich successfully contributed a three, followed by a three from Cole and a layup from Mukeba, regaining momentum for Oakland with less than a minute in the game. With only 26 seconds remaining in the game, Naivalurua added a pair to the board with a dunk but the lead was too large, as Oakland fell, 84-75.

The Golden Grizzlies finished at a .451 clip from the floor (23-of-51) as the Norse hit at a .459 clip (28-of-61). Northern Kentucky hit one more three than Oakland, with 12, as it won the battle off the glass, 33-31.

Oakland will look to bounce back Thursday (Feb. 6) as it hosts Youngstown State with tip-off slated for 7:00 p.m. ET. Thursday's game will be streamed live on ESPN+. 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.