Oakland Hangs on Against Milwaukee, Earns Bid to NCAA Tournament

Oakland has proven to be the Horizon League’s top team over the course of the regular season, but to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, they would need to double down and win the Horizon League tournament. As the number one seed, they had a favorable path ahead of them to the championship but had to win three straight to be crowned the champs. The Golden Grizzlies did just that, defeating the sixth-seeded Milwaukee Panthers by a score of 83-76 behind a spectacular performance by junior forward Trey Townsend, who poured in a career-high 38 points. The 38 points was eight better than his previous career high which he achieved in the 2022-23 season. 

In the two tournament games prior, Townsend shot a combined 6-19 from the field and had seven turnovers. Tonight, Townsend shot 12-22 (14-18 from the free-throw line), grabbed 11 rebounds, and dished out five assists to only two turnovers. He was the only Oakland player to be on the court for all 40 minutes. The rest of the Golden Grizzlies combined for 45 points, just seven more than Trey Townsend’s output alone. Milwaukee’s scoring was much more balanced, with their leading scorer being junior guard Erik Pratt with 16 points. Seven Panthers scored at least six points in this one, but the team shot just 4/19 (21%) from the three-point line. 

The Golden Grizzlies will now go dancing for the first time since 2011 when they were in and won the Summit League. They currently project to be either a 13 or 14 seed in the NCAA tournament and will certainly be a tough draw for any 3 or 4 seed that is awaiting. With Trey Townsend being a legitimate threat to score 30 along with three other Golden Grizzlies averaging double digits in points, they can put up points in a hurry, and that is something that can ignite a win streak. If they get matched up against a team such as Iowa State or Alabama, watch out for Oakland because there will be no answer for Townsend’s physical presence down low.