Oakland became the country’s newest “Cinderella” with a shocking 80-76 win over No. 3-seeded Kentucky on Thursday.
There was no secret in how it happened — former Division II guard Jack Gohlke went 10 of 20 on three-pointers for 32 points in the victory. That combined with Grizzlies’ stingy zone defense and 40-year veteran coach Greg Kampe will keep on dancing.
Oakland topped Xavier 78-76 on Nov. 27, but also had losses against Ohio State, Illinois, Drake, Michigan State, Toldedo and Dayton. The Grizzlies head into today winning nine of their last 10 games.
NC State (23-14) took care of business in its own game, topping No. 6-seeded Texas Tech 80-67 on Thurday. NC State and Oakland (24-11) will play at approximately 7:10 p.m. today in Pittsburgh, Pa., on truTV.
Overview
Oakland relies on four main players, in Gohlke, junior power forward Trey Townsend, junior center Chris Conway and junior guard DQ Cole.
With Gohlke coming off the bench, sophomore forward Isaiah Jones and senior guard Blake Lampman are currently in the starting lineup.
Rankings
Oakland is No. 126 in the NET rankings, and NC State is No. 63.
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Grizzlies ranked No. 125 overall, and the Wolfpack are No. 47.
KenPom.com has Oakland at No. 132, and NCSU checks in at No. 54 this season.
Shooting
Oakland is averaging 76.5 points per game and shooting 44.9 percent from the field, 35.6 percent on three-pointers and 75.2 percent from the free-throw line.
Gohlke is shooting a team-best 37.8 percent from three-point range, and has 131 made three-pointers. Lampman has 84 three-pointers made and is shooting 36.5 percent, and Cole is at 36.8 percent.
Rebounding
The Grizzlies are averaging 35.9 rebounds per game and have a plus-1.6 rebounding margin. Oakland has 354 offensive rebounds and Townsend has a team-high 73 offensive rebounds.
Townsend is averaging 7.9 rebounds per game, and Jones is chipping in 4.4 boards a contest.
Defense
Oakland is allowing 73.0 points per game, with opposing teams shooting 43.7 percent from the field and 33.8 percent from three-point land.
Junior forward Tuburu Naivalurua leads the team with 23 blocks coming off the bench., and Townsend has 47 steals.
Depth
Gohlke is obviously the big gun off the bench, but Mark “Rocket” Watts also has a key role on the team.
Watts was ranked No. 38 overall in the class of 2019, and stayed home by signing with Michigan State. After two years with the Spartans he transferred to Mississippi State, where he had a small role for a year. Watts then transferred to Oakland is averaging 7.8 points in 17.2 minutes per game this season.
The aforementioned Naivalurua is averaging 3.4 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, and guard Tone Hunter has played in 29 of 35 games this season.
Star Watch
One could call Oakland senior guard Jack Gohlke as a Joe Girard player, but with little conscious. Three years ago, he was averaging 2.0 points per game as a redshirt sophomore at Hillsdale College in Division II.
NC State has played against Girard for years between his first four years at Syracuse and this season at Clemson. However, even Girard would appreciate going 10 of 20 on three-pointers for 32 points against Kentucky on Thursday.
Gohlke has tried 355 field-goal attempts this season and 347 of them have been from beyond the arc, making 37.8 percent of his attempts. Gohlke has averaged 12.8 points and 4.0 rebounds per game this season. He's tried at least 10 three-pointers in 16 games this season.
The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder from Pewaukee, Wis., where he played with former Wright State and Virginia Tech power forward Grant Brasile.
Gohlke attended Hillsdale College and was named first-team all-conference in 2022-23. He averaged 14.2 points per game and shot 40.0 percent on three-pointers that season. He was a career 38.2 percent three-point shooter at Hillsdale.
Likely Starters
NC State
PG — 12 Michael O'Connell (6-2, 195, Sr., 5.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.1 apg)
SG — 0 D.J. Horne (6-1, 175, Sr., 16.9 ppg, 16.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.4 spg)
G — 14 Casey Morsell (6-3, 200, R-Sr., 11.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.1 spg)
PF — 23 Mohamed Diarra (6-10, 215, Jr., 6.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 0.6 apg, 1.0 bpg)
C — 30 D.J. Burns (6-9, 275, R-Sr., 12.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 2.7 apg)
Oakland
PG — 11 Blake Lampman (6-3, 184, Sr., 12.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.2 spg)
SG — 10 DQ Cole (6-3, 189, Jr., 8.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.1 apg)
SF — 7 Isaiah Jones (6-7, 213, Soph., 5.1 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.6 apg)
PF — 4 Trey Townsend (6-6, 228, Jr., 16.9 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 3.1 apg, 1.3 spg)
C — 2 Chris Conway (6-9, 221, Jr., 10.0 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.3 apg)
Numbers Of Note
5 Players who have made the NBA from Oakland — Keith Benson, Jamal Cain, Kay Felder, Rawle Marshall and Kendrick Nunn.
19 Years ago when Oakland reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 2004-05. The Grizzlies have made the Big Dance four times.
699 Career wins for Oakland coach Greg Kampe, who took over the program in 1984, when it was in Division II
Game Within The Game: Oakland's Trey Townsend vs. NC State's Mohamed Diarra
Oakland guard Jack Gohlke stole the show, but junior power forward Trey Townsend has been the MVP of the Grizzlies.
The 6-6, 228-pounder is averaging 16.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game this season. The four-year starter has been rock solid for Oakland, averaging 13.9 points and 6.8 rebounds in 128 career games, all starts. He is shooting 50.1 from the field and 73.8 percent at the free-throw line in his career.
Townsend had 17 points and 12 rebounds in the big win over Kentucky. He propelled Oakland into the NCAA Tournament with 38 points and 11 rebounds in a 83-76 win over Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the Horizon League title game March 12.
Townsend had nine double-doubles for points and rebounds this season. He had 28 points in three different games — vs. Wisconsin-Green Bay on Jan. 6, vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Jan. 4 and at Xavier on Nov. 27.
Townsend will be battling NC State junior power forward Mohamed Diarra, who is averaging 6.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. The 6-10, 215-pounder has 36 blocks this season.
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