The opponent — South Dakota State (9-13, 4-6 Summit) enters Saturday’s game in the mix to make the conference tournament, which is in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Jackrabbits, 76-70, win over IPFW put them in a four-way tie for fifth place and one game ahead of the Mastodons, who at 3-7 is in ninth place in the league.

SDSU has been a much stronger team at home than on the road. The Jacks are 7-3 at home and 1-9 on the road this season, with their lone win being at Iowa State. SDSU is 1-1 on a neutral court this season. The Jacks have not won a Summit League road game since joining the conference last season.

The Jacks had five players scored in double figures in the win over IPFW led by 22 points from junior Garrett Callahan, who averages 17 points a game this season and 18.9 in league play. Garrett Callahan’s 2.7 3-pointers per game is second in the league to Oakland’s Erik Kangas (3.8 per game).

Sophomore forward Anthony Cordova added 15 points and 11 rebounds against the Mastodons for his fourth double-double of the year. The 6-foot-7 Cordova is the tallest starter on the Jacks and averages 10.9 points and 6.9 rebounds per game.

Sophomore guard Clint Sargent is SDSU’s second leading scorer at 14.7 per game and is fourth in the league in 3-pointers per game at 2.5. Junior forward Kai Williams (6-foot-6) could be the Jacks best player and is the most versatile. Williams struggled early this season. He is averaging 9.8 points and 7.0 rebounds per game this season down from the 14 points and 7.8 rebounds he averaged last season.

The Jacks fifth starter has been a revolving door with sophomore guard Payton Tivis (1.2 points and 1.2 rebounds) making eight starts and starting the win over IPFW. Senior Mackenzie Casey (3.2 points) has made 10 starts. Freshman Griffan Callahan (the younger brother of Garrett) is the Jacks top reserve and averages 7.1 points and 3.5 rebounds. Griffan Callahan has started three games this season.

Sophomore Dale Moss (4.7 points, 3.0 rebounds), freshman Josh Cassady (3.6 points and 3.2 rebounds), sophomore Michael Palarca (2.5 points) and junior Mark Engen (2.0 points) each made two starts this season, while coach Scott Nagy was toying with different lineups and trying to motivate his starters.

Saturday’s game is South Dakota State’s 37th annual Pork Classic, add that to the fact that the women’s team is hosting a big game against the Oakland women and you have a scenario where the crowd will likely be bigger than normal.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Erik Kangas vs. SDSU’s Garrett Callahan. A matchup between two of the league’s top shooters. Both players are also their team’s leading scorers. Kangas scored 13 points and shot 3-for-10 from 3-point range in Oakland’s loss at North Dakota State. Kangas averaged 33 points a game during the Grizzlies three-game winning streak prior to the loss to NDSU. Kangas scored 20 points in Oakland’s win over SDSU on New Year’s Eve and hit four 3-pointers. Garrett Callahan scored 24 points and hit seven 3-pointers for the Jacks, who hit a school record 15 3-pointers against Oakland. Whoever has the hotter hand between Kangas and Garrett Callahan could determine the outcome of the game.

Matchup history — Oakland is 3-0 all-time against the Jacks, including a 86-81 victory at home earlier this season. The Grizzlies had five players in double figures in the win. Kangas had 20, Keith Benson added 19 points and nine rebounds, Drew Maynard had 14 points and Dan Waterstradt and Will Hudson each scored 10 points. Johnathon Jones had nine point and six assists. All five of the Jacks starters scored in double figures and all but Cordova hit at least two 3-pointers.
The Grizzlies won their only meeting in Brookings last season, 73-72, on a jumper by Brandon Cassise with 15 seconds left.

The skinny — The Grizzlies are likely out of the race for the regular-season league title, but still have an outside shot at the two seed and an excellent shot at the third seed. Oakland leads Centenary, which was idle Thursday and hosts Oral Roberts Saturday, by a half game for third place. A win Saturday would set the Grizzlies up nice to make a run with five of its last seven at home. Oakland could very well meet SDSU in the first round of the tournament depending on how things play out, a matchup that would be tougher than usual considering the tournament is in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The key to the game for the Grizzlies will be establishing their inside presence with Benson and Hudson, but at the same time not allowing the Jacks to hit uncontested 3-pointers. SDSU’s biggest strength is it’s outside shooters, especially Garrett Callahan and Sargent. Oakland has to decide early if it’s going to defend man-to-man with a smaller lineup or if it’s going to try and exploit SDSU’s lack of height with both Hudson and Benson. If the Jacks get going from the outside early and build a lead it could be a long night for the Grizzlies. Oakland also needs to get more out of its bench, which scored just three points against NDSU and played a combined 31 minutes.

For my preview of the women's game against SDSU in today's paper click here.

Well I paid eight dollars so I could watch the on-demand video of the Oakland-North Dakota State game when I got home from work Thursday night and it was never loaded on the on-demand portion of gobison.com and as of 5 p.m. today before I had to come into the office it still wasn’t loaded. So I’m a little annoyed and still haven’t seen the actual game.

I thought I would give some of my thoughts from looking at the box score and reading the postgame quotes. First off it was a good effort on the road by Oakland and it appears they ran out of gas. It was tied at 64 with 6:35 left when the Bison went on a 13-0 run. The Grizzlies have just eight scholarship players and are getting nothing out of Matt Samuels right now.

Expecting Johnathon Jones and Erik Kangas to play 40 minutes a night is tough to do, but at the same time I can’t blame Oakland coach Greg Kampe for doing it.
Samuels shows flashes of potential, but can’t be trusted to not make a turnover or take a bad shot. He seems almost too eager to prove himself and part of that is because he knows he’s not going to get many minutes. It’s the chicken and egg kind of thing. Do you wait until he plays good to give him more minutes or give him minutes and hope he calms down and plays within the gameplan? I don’t have the answers, but I do know this the chances of a league title aren’t very good so resting your stars and giving the freshman some minutes as well as John Kast might not be a bad idea. At least you will know what you have come tournament time and won't kill your studs during the regular season by playing them 40 minutes.

My other thought and Kampe mentioned this in the postgame quotes, is beating NDSU three times in a year would be hard to do. Now the Bison don’t have that extra motivation should the two teams meet in the tournament. Not that the four fifth-year seniors need anymore motivation, but still I think it's a good thing to get that first win out of the way for them. Also no offense to either of them, but I don’t think Lucas Moormann is going to shoot 5-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from the free-throw line and Michael Tveidt is going to shoot 4-for-7 and 2-for-2 on too many nights. The Bison’s role players had good nights Thursday and the Bison, who are shoot 75 percent on the season, shot 95 percent from the free-throw line. Part of that can be playing at home. I am just hoping their is a third game between the two teams on a neutral floor because I expect it would be another good one.

The Oakland Press' Dave Pemberton sits down with senior Ricky Bieszki and Erik Kangas.

For my preview in today's paper click here.

The opponent — North Dakota State (14-5, 8-1) has won six-straight since Oakland defeated the Bison back on Jan. 2 on a late Erik Kangas 3-pointer. NDSU’s 8-1 league start is its best in 35 years, dating back to its days in the North Central Conference. The Bison also earned their first road sweep since joining the Summit League a couple weeks ago. NDSU was 3-6 on the road last year, but is off to a 4-1 start on the road in league play this season.

The Bison have been quite strong at home, going 8-0 and winning their home games by an average of 22.3 points. NDSU lost just two home games last season, the last to IUPUI on Feb. 9, 2008 and the other to Oakland on Jan. 5.

Preseason Player of the Year Ben Woodside has lived up to his billing. He leads the league in scoring (24.2 per game) and is second in assists (6.4 per game). Teammate Brett Winkelmann is second in the league in scoring (19.1 per game) and second in rebounding (7.3 per game).

The two fifth-year seniors are joined in the starting lineup by fellow fifth-year seniors Mike Nelson (11.3 points, 4.2 rebounds) and Lucas Moormann (4.3 points and 4.2 rebounds), and sophomore Michael Tveidt (8.7 points and 3.3 rebounds).

The Bison have been quite healthy this season, with the same starting five in all 19 games and their top three subs off the bench (junior Dejuan Flowers, junior Josh Vaughan and freshman Eric Carlson) have played in all 19 games.

NDSU is currently ranked in the mid-major Top 25, checking in at No. 25. The Bison are the only Summit League team that received votes in the latest poll.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Johnathon Jones vs. North Dakota State’s Ben Woodside. This will be the fourth matchup between two of the Summit League’s elite guards and should be another good one. Jones has averaged 18.3 points and seven assists in three games against the Bision, while Wooside has averaged 13 points and 5.7 assists. North Dakota State’s entire offense runs through Woodside and Jones will certainly play a key role in trying to contain him. Jones can help his cause defensively by attacking Woodside on the other end, while still getting his teammates involved.

Matchup history — Oakland is 4-0 all-time against NDSU and have won the last three on last second shots, including two Kangas 3-pointers. Sophomore Keith Benson led Oakland with 17 points and nine rebounds on Jan. 2, while Drew Maynard added 15 points, Will Hudson had 11 points and six rebounds, Jones finished with 13 points and nine assists and Kangas had seven points in just 25 minutes after he suffered a cramp in his calf. Winkelmann led the Bison with 33 points and 14 rebounds, while Woodside was the only other player in double figures with 14 points and six assists. Michael Tveidt added nine points, while Mike Nelson was held to three points and without a field goal.

The skinny — The Bison have likely been counting down the days until this game after falling victim for the third straight time to a last second shot. Woodside commented after the Jan. 2 game that it was a lot of fun, but he’d like to come out on the winning side once. He will get his chance Thursday. The fans are dying to see NDSU beat Oakland and will likely be out in full force. Oakland’s start in the the hostile environment will be crucial. The Grizzlies need to get the ball inside to Benson and Hudson and try to build a lead or keep it close. If Oakland falls behind, coming back to win in Fargo may be too much to ask.

For all intents and purposes if Oakland has any chance at the regular-season league title it has to win this game. In the end it is all about those few days in March, but a win here and the Grizzlies can still consider themselves in the hunt with five of their last eight at home. Oakland would also improve its chances of earning a No. 2 seed, which comes with the all important off-day at the conference tournament.

As Keith Benson and Will Hudson continue to emerge as low-post threats for Oakland I thought it would be a good time to come up with a nickname for the duo. So get out your creative hats and submit your ideas. My first suggestion is Chilli Cheese. Chilli for Benson, who is a pretty laid back (chill) guy and cheese for Wisconsin native Will Hudson. Now I know someone can come up with a better one so let's hear it.

Things just continue to get worse for UMKC. The Kangaroos lost one of their best players in sophomore guard Reggie Hamilton, who asked and was granted a release from his scholarship. Hamilton was second on the team in scoring at 12.6 points per game. Hamilton was one of UMKC coach Matt Brown's first recruits and averaged 11.7 points a game last season as a freshman. The last-place Kangaroos (6-16, 2-7) chances of making the conference tournament are now even longer without Hamilton.

I'm assuming Hamilton will try to transfer somewhere. The Harvey, Ill. native is a talented player and in my opinion was a future all-conference player. Fans on the UMKC message board have blamed Brown for running off Hamilton as well as other players. I don't know how true or untrue that is, but losing Hamilton is a big blow for UMKC. He was just a sophomore and looked like he had a bright future ahead of him along with Spencer Johnson

1. North Dakota State (14-5, 8-1) — One of the signs of a championship team is that it wins games it probably should have lost. The Bison displayed this quality once again in a victory at South Dakota State Friday. Now NDSU turns its attention to Oakland, a team that has won three straight nail-biters over the Bison the past two years, including one in Fargo last season. The Bison are 8-0 at home this season, but have beaten just one Division I team with a winning record at home (Utah Valley).
2. Oral Roberts (10-11, 8-1) — The Golden Eagles have won seven straight, are undefeated in 2009 and are now one win away from being .500 for the first time since Nov. 22. Junior Kevin Ford continues his streak of highlight-reel dunks and earned the No. 1 play on ESPN’s Top 10 plays list last week, his fourth time making the list and first as No. 1. Oral Roberts begins the second half of league play with three-straight on the road, starting at red-hot Centenary Saturday.
3. Oakland (13-9, 6-3) — The Golden Grizzlies didn’t just protect their homecourt last week, they dominated at home. Senior Erik Kangas has hit 23 3-pointers in his last three games and is now the school’s all-time leader in 3-point field goals. He picked up his second straight Player of the Week award for his efforts. Junior Johnathon Jones had two straight double-digit assist games last week and is now 12th in the nation in assists per game (6.2 per game). The Grizzlies have a huge week as they travel to the Dakotas and need a win Thursday at NDSU to keep their regular-season title hopes alive.
4. Centenary (7-14, 5-4) — The Gents didn’t just win two home games last week, they dominated, topping UMKC by eight and Southern Utah by 25. Centenary has now won four straight and five out of their last six. The big test for the Gents will come this week when they host Oral Roberts, which has won seven straight. Freshman guard Maxx Nakwaasah has averaged 12 points a game since moving into the starting lineup three games ago.
5. IUPUI (10-10, 3-6) — The Jaguars halted their five-game skid with a dominating 84-57 win at IPFW Saturday. IUPUI shot 59.6 percent from the field, while holding IPFW to 38.1 percent shooting. It was a much better performance than the Jaguars’ 18-point loss at Oakland. IUPUI has held opponents to an average of 61.5 points (1st in the league) and 42.5 percent shooting (2nd in the league) in league play.
6. South Dakota State (8-13, 3-6) — The Jacks have nobody to blame but themselves for their overtime loss at home to North Dakota State. Anthony Cordova had a stellar game shooting 10-for-12 from the field and finishing with 21 points and eight rebounds. Garrett Callahan scored 22 points, but took 22 shots. SDSU continues to lose close games, but is a young team with just one scholarship senior. The Jacks need to protect their homecourt this week to stay in the race for the final few conference tournament spots.
7. Southern Utah (6-14, 4-5) — Lucky for the Thunderbrids, they return home for three straight games after they got abused in two road games last week. Southern Utah fell by 16 at Oral Roberts and by 25 at Centenary. Davis Baker failed to reach double digits for just the third time this season in the loss to Oral Roberts, where the Thunderbirds scored just 51 points.
8. IPFW (8-12, 3-6) — The Mastodons are up and down offensively this year, they can score 80 points one night and then 57 the next. The problem is IPFW has to rely on its offense to win games, because its defense has really struggled, allowing their opponents to shoot an average of 48.6 percent in league play. Things don’t get any easier as IPFW heads to the Dakotas this week starting with SDSU, which is likely looking forward to avenge its embarrassing loss at IPFW earlier this year.
9. Western Illinois (6-14, 3-6) — The Leathernecks have now lost six-straight after starting league play 3-0 and got absolutely embarrassed at Oakland by 40 points. Western Illinois relies too much on senior David DuBois and its lack of size inside really hurt it against Oakland. The Leathernecks have two more road games this week and if they don’t turn things around soon they might never make it to Sioux Falls.
10. UMKC (6-16, 2-7) — The Kangaroos have really dug themselves a hole and have lost six of seven since league play restarted. UMKC had one of the better non-conference seasons, but has not been able to translate that success into league play. Senior Dane Brumagin failed to reach double figures in both losses last week, just the third and fourth time he has done so all season.


All-conference ballot
First team
Ben Woodside, North Dakota State
Erik Kangas, Oakland
Marcus Lewis, Oral Roberts
Brett Winkelman, North Dakota State
Johnathon Jones, Oakland
Robert Jarvis, Oral Roberts

Second team
Nick Stallings, Centenary
Robert Glenn, IUPUI
Garrett Callahan, South Dakota State
Davis Baker, Southern Utah
David Carson, IPFW

Honorable mentions
Dane Brumagin, UMKC
David DuBois, Western Illinois
Keith Benson, Oakland
Anthony Cordova, South Dakota State
Gary Patterson, IUPUI

The most encouraging thing to me from the Western Illinois win was the dominant inside play of Keith Benson and Will Hudson. When you get to the conference tournament it tends to turn into a half-court game and having a dominant inside game is huge in that type of environment. Teams that are guard-orientated might struggle to score if their shots aren’t falling, but big men tend to take high-percentage shots so they are less likely to have an off night. And it’s not like Oakland’s guards are chop liver. Anybody in the league would love to have Erik Kangas and Johnathon Jones. And Drew Maynard continues to improve and is always a threat to go for 12-18 points with his outside shot and athleticism.

Mr. Unselfish
Jones could be one of the most unselfish players I’ve ever seen. A lot of guys say they will do whatever it takes to win and they don’t care about their numbers, but Jones doesn’t say it, he does it. Here is a guy who scored 32 points at Oregon at the beginning of the year, but has no problem scoring one point and dishing out 11 assists against Western Illinois. Oakland landed a gem when they signed Jones and a gem both on and off the court. He brings leadership to the team and is the perfect guy to run the offense. He can score when he needs to and he gets his teammates involved. I don’t know the exact number of Kangas 3-pointers Jones has assisted on, but I’m sure it’s a lot.

What a crowd
The crowd on Saturday was one of the biggest I’ve seen. I’m not really sure why so many people showed up for Western Illinois, but I think any casual fans that wandered in will likely come back. It was a fun game even though it was such a blowout. Oakland coach Greg Kampe talked about the crowd at the post-game press conference and said he thought Oakland games were becoming events. This team has talent and a bright future so hopefully the community can get behind them.

NOTE: For those of you that enjoyed the free Pitas at the Pita Pit after the game Saturday you can thank my little brother Mike. He was the one who hit the halfcourt shot and won free pitas for one year for himself in the process. I couldn’t believe he made it, but I had to heckle him for missing the free throw.

The Summit League conference season is half-over and it’s safe to say it’s a three-team race. North Dakota State and Oral Roberts sit atop the league at 8-1, with Oakland two games back at 6-3.

The Golden Grizzlies for all intents and purposes have to win Thursday night at North Dakota State to stay in the race. A loss would give Oakland four league losses and it can’t expect NDSU and Oral Roberts to each lose at least three out of their nine remaining games.

All three teams are undefeated at home. Oakland and North Dakota State each have five home games left, while Oral Roberts has four. Oakland and North Dakota State have four common games (at IUPUI, at Western Illinois, home Southern Utah, home UMKC). Oakland and Oral Roberts have none. North Dakota State and Oral Roberts one game (at Centenary).

A look at the first-half of league play
Oral Roberts lost at North Dakota State (an eight-point loss) and survived at home against Oakland in overtime. But the Golden Eagles have dominated the rest of the league, winning all seven games by at least nine points and by an average of 18.4 points.

North Dakota State has had several close calls. The first a three-point win at home against IUPUI, where the Bison trailed by six with 1:34 left. The second was a 65-60 win in overtime at UMKC and the third an 87-77 win at South Dakota State in overtime.

Oakland has two double-digit road losses, at Southern Utah and at Centenary. Neither game was close from the start and the Grizzlies, who average 76.9 points a game in league play, scored exactly 60 points in each loss.

Common games and results
At IPFW
Oakland win, 93-88 (+5)
North Dakota State win, 67-60 (+7)

IUPUI home
Oakland win, 75-57 (+18)
North Dakota State win, 55-52 (+3)

Western Illinois home
Oakland win, 86-46 (+40)
North Dakota State win, 81-64 (+17)

At Southern Utah
Oakland loss, 82-60 (-22)
North Dakota State win, 76-53 (+23)

At UMKC
Oakland win, 84-78 (+6)
North Dakota State win, 65-60, OT (+5)

Centenary home
North Dakota State win, 68-53 (+15)
Oral Roberts win, 82-59 (+23)

At South Dakota State
Oral Roberts win, 85-76 (+9)
North Dakota State win, 87-77, OT (+10)

Head-to-head
Oakland d. North Dakota State, 77-76
Oral Roberts d. Oakland, 68-65 (OT)
North Dakota State d. Oral Roberts, 83-75

The opponent — Western Illinois (6-13, 3-5 Summit) is another team coming to the O’Rena desperate for a victory. The Leathernecks have lost five straight after starting off the conference season 3-0.

Jim Molinari is in his first year as Western Illinois’ head coach. He has 28 years of Division I coaching experience and most recently was an assistant coach at Ball State last season and the interim head coach at Minnesota during the 2006-07 season.

Senior guard David DuBois (6-foot-5, 225) is the heart and soul of the Leathernecks team. He leads the team in scoring (18.1 points) and rebounding (5.7). In conference games only, he is second in the league in scoring at 20.3 points per game.

Senior guard Josh Rivers (11.2 points, 2.9 assists) is the only other Western Illinois player scoring in double figures and is the team’s leading 3-point shooter (2.1 per game). Junior guard David Nurse (8.6 points, 2.9 assists) is another quality shooter for the Leathernecks and averages 1.6 3-pointers per game. Freshman guard Tommie Tyler (3.3 points) has started 16 games.

Western Illinois has tinkered with its starting lineup all season. Sophomore forward James Granstra (2.5 points) and freshman guard Ceola Clark (5.5 points, 3.3 rebounds) started for Western Illinois in its loss at IPFW Thursday, with Nurse coming off the bench.

Junior guard Quenton Kirby (6.3 points) has been the Leathernecks most effective player off the bench and has made four starts. He had 11 points off the bench against the Mastodons. Junior Rodney Williams, Jr. (4.8 points) has also contributed off the bench and has made seven starts.

Western Illinois’ main weakness appears to be inside. The Leathernecks have gotten outrebounded by an average of 31.1 to 27.7 and have just 33 blocks as a team.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Erik Kangas vs. Western Illinois’ Josh Rivers. Kangas has been on an absolute tear the past few games and doesn’t show any signs of slowing. The Leathernecks will likely key in on Kangas and try to shut him down. The senior sharpshooter is used to the attention and typically finds ways to get open. Kangas is just seven 3-pointers away from breaking Jason Rozycki’s school-record of 292 career 3-pointers.

Rivers came off the bench in the Leathernecks last game, just the second time he has done so all season. Rivers has the ability to get hot quick, he hit six 3-pointers against Eastern Illinois earlier this season. Shooters have seemed to find their stroke against Oakland this season so shutting down Rivers will have to be a priority.

Matchup history — Oakland leads the all-time series 18-4 and has won the last four. Oakland is 8-2 all-time at home against Western Illinois. The Golden Grizzlies beat Western Illinois three times last season, including in the first round of the conference tournament. Kangas scored 26 points, including six 3-pointers in Oakland’s 80-66 win in the tournament. Derick Nelson added 17 points and nine rebounds and Johnathon Jones had 14 points and four assists. The Grizzlies won the other two meetings last season, 91-82, at home and 85-71 in Macomb, Ill.

The skinny — Oakland has done a nice job of protecting its homecourt and needs to kept it going by staying focused Saturday. The Grizzlies can’t afford another hiccup, especially with their trip to the Dakotas coming next week. Oakland should try to use its size early with Keith Benson and Will Hudson. Oakland point guard Johnathon Jones has done a nice job getting those guys involved as well as hitting Kangas perfectly so the senior can get his shot off. Jones can affect the game in so many different ways, which is a large reason why he deserved the preseason mid-major All-American tab.

A win over the Leathernecks and Oakland will still be in decent shape in the league race heading into the second half of league play. It will be interesting to see if freshman guard Matt Samuels, who has not played in the last two games, sees any minutes. Oakland coach Greg Kampe said he wants to get Samuels back in the rotation and the team can’t afford to have just a seven-man rotation.

The opponent — IUPUI (9-9, 2-5 Summit) enters Thursday's game on a four-game losing streak and lost two at home last week, one on a buzzer-beater to Centenary. The losing streak has left the Jaguars in a three-way tie for last place in the Summit League and desperate for a win. The four-game losing streak in conference play is IUPUI’s first since the 1999-2000 season. Head coach Ron Hunter has guided the team to seven consecutive seasons with a .500 or better record.

Freshman Alex Young is the team's leading scorer at 12.8 points per game, but has struggled recently. Young scored in double figures in 14 consecutive games to start the year, but has failed to do so in three of his last four. He came off the bench for the second time this season in the loss to Centenary.

Junior college transfer Robert Glenn (6-foot-7, 195) has really come on as of late and has proved to be a huge addition for the Jaguars. Glenn averages 12.2 points and 5.4 rebounds (16.7 points and 6.3 rebounds in league play). Glenn has led the team in scoring and rebounding in four of its last six games.

Senior guard Gary Patterson is one of two starters back from last year’s team that won 26 games. Patterson’s numbers are down from last year. His scoring is down to 9.9 per game from 12.9 last year and he is hitting 1.8 3-pointers a game this year, down from his 2.8 last year. But Patterson's assists are up to 3.4 compared to 2.6 last year and he is still shooting 42 percent from 3-point range.

Junior forward Billy Pettiford (6.1 points, 6.2 rebounds) is the other returning starter and only IUPUI players to start all 18 games this season. Sophomore guard Leroy Nobles (9.0 points, 3.8 rebounds), junior forward Jon Avery (8.1 points, 6.0 rebounds) and John Ashworth (4.2 points) have all started over seven games for the Jaguars, who have used nine different starting lineups this year.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Will Hudson vs. IUPUI's Robert Glenn. Hudson is coming off his best game of the season a 16-point, nine rebound performance at IPFW. Hudson's 67.6 field goal percentage in league play is the best in the conference and he is eighth in offensive rebounds (2.6 per game). Hudson will have to help keep Glenn (whose 3.1 offensive rebounds per game in league play is third in the league) off the offensive glass. Glenn is averaging 16.3 points a game in league play and has been the Jaguars most consistent player during their four-game skid. If Hudson can stay out of foul trouble and help contain Glenn then IUPUI will have to rely on its struggling perimeter players to win the game.

Matchup history — Oakland leads the overall series 17-12 and is 11-3 at home. The Grizzlies and IUPUI split their regular-season meetings. IUPUI defeated Oakland, 80-65, in the Summit League tournament semifinals before falling in the championship game to Oral Roberts. IUPUI junior George Hill (a first-round NBA draft pick, who is now with the San Antonio Spurs) had 32 points, 13 rebounds and five assists in the tournament game. The Grizzlies won the meeting at the O’Rena last year, 84-69, led by 19 points from Derick Nelson and 15 points and seven assists from Johnathon Jones. The Jaguars won the meeting in Indianapolis, 82-69.

The skinny — The game will be a matchup of wills. Oakland’s will to stay in the league race and protect its homecourt vs. IUPUI’s will to end its losing streak and pull itself out of the league cellar. The Grizzlies must play better defensively than it did at IPFW, where their offense won the game. The Jaguars aren’t a strong perimeter team, shooting 31.3 percent from 3-point range as a team and doesn’t have one player averaging two 3-pointers a game, but teams have seem to find their shooting stroke against the Grizzlies this season. Case in point was IPFW’s Ben Botts scoring 22 points against Oakland after being held scoreless the previous game at Centenary.

Offensivley, Oakland will once again need senior Erik Kangas and junior Johnathon Jones to carry the load and hopefully being at home will help freshman Drew Maynard and Blake Cushingberry build some confidence as the second-half of league play approachs. The frontcourt duo of Keith Benson and Will Hudson has shown flashes of being dominant and should continue to build on their success in this two-game homestand.

1. North Dakota State (12-5, 7-1) — The Bison trailed by as many as 12 in the second half at UMKC before rallying to win in overtime. The most impressive part of NDSU’s win was it held the Kangaroos scoreless in overtime and to just four points in the final three minutes of the second half. The Bison are second in the league in scoring defense in league games, holding opponents to 61.8 points per game. NDSU plays at rival South Dakota State Friday night.
2. Oral Roberts (8-11, 6-1) — The Golden Eagles have won five straight since the restart of league play. Oral Roberts leads the league in scoring margin during league play winning by an average of 10.4 points. Oral Roberts won road games at IUPUI and Western Illinois each by double digits. Oakland is the only team to score over 60 points against the Golden Eagles during their winning streak and Oakland did so in overtime. Senior Marcus Lewis joined the 1,000-point club last week.
3. Oakland (11-9, 4-3) — Senior Erik Kangas put on a display in the Golden Grizzlies win at IPFW, scoring 39 points and making the most difficult shots look easy. Oakland leads the league in scoring offense in league play, averaging 75.9 points, but is last in scoring defense giving up an average of 79 points. The Grizzlies need to protect their homecourt in league games against IUPUI and Western Illinois this week if they hope to stay in the league race.
4. Southern Utah (6-12, 4-3) — Thunderbirds head coach Roger Reid continues to get the most of his players and his squad is one of four teams with a winning league record. Southern Utah really struggled offensively against NDSU, scoring just 53 points in a 23-points loss, but turned things around against SDSU. Davis Baker (20.3 points per game) is one of three players averaging over 20 a game in league play.
5. Centenary (5-14, 3-4) — No that’s not a misprint, the Gents are one of the hot teams in the Summit League right now and have won three of their last four. Centenary swept its first road trip since entering the Summit League last week thanks to freshman Maxx Nakwaasah’s put-back with one second left that lifted Centenary over IUPUI. The play made SportCenter’s Top 10 list, which also showed Ron Hunter shoeless. The Gents host three straight league games starting with Southern Utah and UMKC this week.
6. Western Illinois (6-12, 3-4) — The Leathernecks have lost four straight after starting off league player 3-0. Things won’t get any better for WIU if David DuBois, who missed Saturday’s loss to Oral Roberts, misses an extended period of time. The Leathernecks, who are 1-7 on the road this season, have two road games this week and a pair of losses could put them at the bottom of the league standings. Wonder how many 'experts' are projecting them to make the NCAA tournament now?
7. South Dakota State (8-12, 3-5) — The Jackrabbits came close twice, but still have not won a road Summit League game. Kai Williams had a chance to force overtime at UMKC, but missed a point-blank layup. The Jacks then appeared to have a 'W' in the books at Southern Utah when Garrett Callahan hit a 3-pointer with three seconds left to give his team a 3-point lead, but Southern Utah’s Jake Nielson hit a 30-footer at the buzzer to force overtime. SDSU scored just five points in overtime to fall to the Thunderbirds.
8. IUPUI (9-9, 2-5) — The Jaguars are reeling after losing their fourth straight game. After scoring in double figures in the first 14 games of his career freshman Alex Young has failed to do so in three of his last four. Young scored just two points in 11 minutes against Oral Roberts and had five points off the bench against Centenary. Junior college transfer Robert Glenn has been IUPUI’s most consistent player as of late and is averaging 16.3 points a game in league play.
9. IPFW (7-11, 2-5) — The Mastodons shot 58.2 percent from the field, including 62.5 in the second half and a sizzling 53.8 percent from 3-point range (14-for-26) against Oakland, but still lost because they allowed Oakland to shoot 58.9 percent (66.7 in the second half) and 52.2 percent from 3-point range. Head coach Dane Fife said he challenged his team in the locker room after the loss to Oakland so it will be interesting to see how they respond. The Mastodons host two league games this week.
10. UMKC (6-14, 2-5) — The Kangaroos find themselves in a three-way tie for last place in the league, but just two games out of third-place. UMKC is 2-8 in its last 10 and narrowly defeated South Dakota State. The Kangaroos had every chance to hand NDSU its second league loss, but fell apart down the stretch and couldn’t even score in overtime. Things don’t get any easier as UMKC heads to Oral Roberts, which has lost a home league game since 2005 and then to red-hot Centenary.

The opponent — IPFW (7-10, 2-4) enters Saturday’s game against Oakland in a four-way tie for sixth place or last place depending on your point of view. The Mastodons have experienced the ups and downs of having a young team, with just two seniors on their roster. IPFW’s three juniors are all transfer students playing their first season on the team.

The Mastodons are led by former Oakland player David Carson, who is averaging 14.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game this year. Carson was a freshman and key member on Oakland’s 2005 NCAA tournament team, but left Oakland after two years because of a lack of playing time. He has proven to be one of the league's elite players this season and is averaging 17.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in league play.

IPFW’s second leading scorer is sharp-shooting sophomore Ben Botts (9.8 points). Botts didn’t even score in IPFW’s win at Centenary last time out, but he can get hot in a hurry and is a dangerous player.

Another dangerous player is junior forward Deilvez Yearby, a transfer from Kansas State. Yearby averages 8.7 points and leads the team in rebounding at 6.8 per game and blocks (1.76 per game), but he has been in and out of the starting lineup, starting nine of 17 games.

Junior Nick Daniels, a transfer from Central Michigan, is another solid outside shooter and is averaging 7.1 points a game. Sophomore Zach Plackmeier (6.8 points) and freshman Trey McCorkle (3.7 points) have started over 10 games each for the Mastodons. Freshman Jeremy Mixon (5.6 points) has been a key player off the bench and is coming off a career-high 20 points against Centenary.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Drew Maynard/Blake Cushingberry vs. IPFW’s David Carson. Oakland coach Greg Kampe admitted Carson is a tough guard, especially without Derick Nelson. Maynard and Cushingberry will likely have to guard Carson if the Grizzlies go man-to-man. Carson (6-foot-7, 220) can go inside and score, hit the outside shot and beat people off the dribble. Limiting him will be key for Oakland, but not at the expense of leaving IPFW’s shooters open. The Grizzlies freshman can’t be expected to shut down Carson, but must limit him as much as possible and also contribute offensively. Both Maynard and Cushingberry failed to score in an overtime loss at Oral Roberts and Kampe admitted they are likely hitting the freshman wall, but added he hopes this is a bounce back week for them.

Matchup history — Oakland leads the all-time series 6-3, but IPFW won both matchups last season its first in the Summit League. The Grizzlies are 2-2 all-time at IPFW, with its last win being back on Nov. 26, 1983. The Mastodons won both meetings last season, but had huge contributions from Jaruan Burrows (40 points in two games) and DeWitt Scott (29 points in two games), who both graduated. IPFW is a mere three hours from Oakland, which makes it by far the closest league opponent and a potential rival. Oakland for the second straight year will be sending several buses full of fans to the game.

The skinny — There is no sugar-coating it, if Oakland is to have a shot at the regular-season league title then winning at IPFW is a must. North Dakota State (6-1 Summit) and Oral Roberts (5-1 Summit) both won road games Thursday and sit ahead of the Grizzlies in the league standings. Oakland (10-9, 3-3) is in a three-way tie for third with Southern Utah and Western Illinois.

“It’s really important for us in terms of getting back in the Summit League race and the regular season championship,” Oakland senior Dan Waterstradt said of Saturday’s game. “I don’t think we should have lost either of those games on that road trip (last week). We had a team goal to sweep Oral Roberts this year, obviously that’s not going to happen now. Some things didn’t go our way. But going down to IPFW and getting a win is something we need to do, especially with the way we practiced last week. It wasn’t very good. The way we are starting off this week it’s kind of the same.

“We have to get guys mentally ready and back in the swing of things with classes starting. We need to realize we need to go out and play on emotion against IPFW because they are a team that’s pretty dangerous. They can get some things going for them. Some nights they are going to score 100 points like they did against South Dakota State and other nights they are only going to score 58 or 60. They are a scary team like that. We just need to go out there and play hard.”

Another big key to Saturday’s game will be the performance of Oakland’s freshman. The Grizzlies have gotten huge contributions out of their freshman this year, but didn’t get much last week in a pair of road losses. Kampe said it’s likely they have hit the freshman wall and knows it will be key to see how they respond.

“We’ve played 19 games and a high school season is 20,” Kampe said. “You play 20 in high school then the tournament. We’ve played 19. The difference is we’ve traveled across the country three times doing it. You stay in rooms and we are gone from Wednesday on. It’s starting to wear and tear on them and they are really struggling. Cushingberry and Maynard haven’t made a shot in a week. But that happens to everybody and they have to learn to get through it. That’s one of the problems for your team though when you’re so reliant on freshman. You know these days are coming and that’s what we’ve run into.”


For my preview in Saturday's paper click here.

The Oakland Press' Dave Pemberton sits down with Oakland sophomore Will Hudson and assistant coach Saddi Washington.

1. North Dakota State (10-5, 5-1 Summit) — Senior Brett Winkelman scored the final seven points of the game to lift the Bison over IUPUI, 55-52. Ben Woodside scored 26 points in a season-low 25 minutes in NDSU’s 17-point win over Western Illinois. The first-place Bison can give themselves some cushion in the league race and answer questions about their road toughness with games at Southern Utah and UMKC this week.
2. Oral Roberts (6-11, 4-1) — The Golden Eagles won their 30th straight conference home game with an overtime victory over Oakland Saturday. Oral Roberts has won three straight to double its win total on the season. Marcus Lewis picked up his fourth double-double of the season with 17 points and 11 rebounds against Oakland, while Kevin Ford missed getting his fourth straight double-double finishing with seven points and seven rebounds. The Golden Eagles have a pair of road games this week, at IUPUI Thursday and at Western Illinois Saturday
3. Oakland (10-9, 3-3) — The Golden Grizzlies responded to an embarrassing 20-point loss at Centenary by nearly ending Oral Roberts’ conference home game winning streak before falling in overtime. Oakland has dug itself in a bit of a hole in the league race and will have to run off some wins to get back in it. The Grizzlies can start at IPFW Saturday. Oakland is playing short-handed with just eight scholarship players and three (freshmen Blake Cushingbery, Drew Maynard and Matt Samuels) failed to score against Oral Roberts.
4. Western Illinois (6-10, 3-2) — The Leathernecks suffered their first two league losses last week, falling at SDSU and NDSU. David DuBois had 24 points against the Bison and 21 against the Jacks, while Josh Rivers had 16 against NDSU and 15 against SDSU. No other Western Illinois player scored in double figures in either game. Western Illinois hosts Centenary and Oral Roberts this week.
5. IUPUI (9-7, 2-3) — The Jaguars nearly upset North Dakota State on the road, but then got embarrassed at South Dakota State. IUPUI is experiencing the ups and downs of a young team. Freshman Alex Young entered the week averaging 15 points a game, but scored just three against NDSU, which was just the second time all season he failed to reach double figures. Young then came off the bench for the first time all season against SDSU and had 10 points in the 20-point loss.
6. Southern Utah (5-11, 3-2) — The Thunderbirds three league wins have all come by exactly 16 points. Davis Baker and Tyler Quinney each scored 24 points in the Thunderbirds win at UMKC. Baker (18 points per game this season, 6.7 last season) has nearly tripled his scoring averaging from last year and Quinney (15.3 this season, 6.4 last season) has more than doubled his. Quinney earned player of the week honors for his efforts.
7. South Dakota State (8-10, 3-3) — Figuring out what Jackrabbits team will show up on a nightly basis is like trying to predict the weather. SDSU responded from its 34-point loss at IPFW last week with two dominating home victories. The first over then first-place Western Illinois, 64-55, and then a 20-point win over IUPUI. Both wins were at home and the Jacks remain winless all-time in Summit League road games, but something tells me the Jacks end that streak this week.
8. IPFW (7-10, 2-4) — The Mastodons held on for a win at Centenary on Saturday, but didn’t have a field goal in the final three minutes. IPFW hit four free throws in the final 20 seconds to hold on for the win. Freshman Jeremy Mixon had a career-high 20 points in the win. The Mastodons scored just 46 points in their loss at Oral Roberts and had just 19 at halftime. IPFW hosts Oakland, which is swept last season, on Saturday.
9. UMKC (5-13, 1-4) — The Kangaroos have lost four-straight league games after topping IPFW in their conference opener. Senior Dane Brumagin had 20 of UMKC’s 50 points in its 16-point home loss to Southern Utah. No other player had more than seven. The Kangaroos have to start turning things around if they want to make the league tournament and can start with two home games this week.
10. Centenary (3-14, 1-4) — The Gents put on an offensive display in their first home game of the season, a 20-point win over Oakland. Nick Stallings scored 20 points in the first half, which Centenary dominated 45-24. Stallings finished with 26 points in the win. The Gents trailed IPFW, 63-49, with just over three minutes left and went on a 13-1 run to pull with two, 64-62, but the Mastodons were able to hold on.

The opponent — Oral Roberts (5-11, 3-1 Summit) looks to be hitting its stride with the conference season in full swing. The four-time defending regular season champion and three-time defending conference tournament champion Golden Eagles really struggled during their brutal non-conference schedule, but have won two straight at home and sit a half-game out of first place in the Summit League.

Senior guard Robert Jarvis (17.1 points) and senior forward Marcus Lewis (12.4 points and 6.6 rebounds) provide Oral Roberts with veteran leadership. Both were named to the preseason all-league team, Jarvis to the first team and Lewis to the second team.

Newcomers Kevin Ford (transfer from College of Southern Idaho) and freshman Dominique Morrison (10.5 points) have helped fill the void left by graduation. Ford is averaging 11.3 points and 9.1 rebounds in the eight games since he became eligible.

Senior guard Kelvin Sango (3.8 points) rounds out the starting lineup with sophomore Andre Hardy (8.0 points, 6.1 rebounds) and freshman guard Kyron Stokes (7.0 points, 4.4 rebounds) key players off the bench.

Head coach Scott Sutton was the Summit League Coach of the Year last season and has led the Golden Eagles to 93 victories in the last four years. Oral Roberts has won 29-striaght conference home games dating back to 2005. The Golden Eagles last home lost in conference play was to UMKC back on Jan. 29, 2005. Oral Roberts has won its two home conference games this season by an average of 25 points.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Johnathon Jones vs. Oral Roberts’ Robert Jarvis. Jones has consistently scored between 9-16 points over the past couple months, but is due for a game where he goes off like he did at Oregon. Time will tell when that will happen, but Oakland needs Jones’ passing (5.9 assists per game) and defense more against the Golden Eagles, especially on Jarvis. Oral Roberts’ senior guard can single-handily shoot his team in or out of games. Jarvis is averaging 16 shots a game and is shooting 38.3 percent from the field. He has hit an average of three 3-pointers per game, while no other Golden Eagles player is averaging more than one per game. Both Jarvis and Jones play a ton of minutes, Jones leads the league at 37.7 per game and Jarvis is sixth at 34.8.

Matchup history — Where should do you start? Over the past four or five years these two teams have developed one of the best rivalries in the Summit League. Oral Roberts leads the all-time series 15-7 and has won the last three meetings, which includes the 2007 Mid-Con championship game. Oakland defeated the Golden Eagles in the championship game in 2005 to earn its only Division I NCAA Tournament berth. Oral Roberts has dominated the matchup at the Mabee Center, going 9-1 and winning the last eight. The Grizzlies last won at the Mabee Center back on Jan. 20, 2000.

Last season the Golden Eagles won the first meeting, 66-60, at the O’Rena behind 20 points from Jarvis. Derick Nelson, who is redshirting this season, lead Oakland with 20 points and nine rebounds, while Jones added 15 points and nine assists. Oral Roberts won the second meeting, 60-53, with Jarvis leading the way with 14 points. Marcus Lewis scored just two points, but had 13 rebounds. Nelson led Oakland with 13 points, while Jones and Erik Kangas each scored 12.

The skinny — Oakland (10-8, 3-2 Summit) has dug itself a hole in the league standings after a 20-point loss at Centenary on Thursday. It was the Grizzlies second loss to a team in the lower half of the standings. Oakland can begin to dig itself out of the hole with a win at Oral Roberts, which Oakland coach Greg Kampe accurately described as a game that is worth two, in that it not only is a win for your team, but a loss for another contender. The Golden Eagles protect their homecourt and will likely have a nice crowd on hand. Oakland needs to have a good start and play a complete game. Having just eight scholarship players won’t help, but the Grizzlies have to play the hand their dealt. A big part of the Golden Eagles gameplan will be to stop Kangas so other players need to help shoulder the scoring load.

Oakland’s two weaknesses defensively have been allowing open 3-pointers and offensive rebounds. Other than Jarvis, Oral Roberts doesn’t have another great 3-point shooter, but it does have rebounders. The Grizzlies will need to protect the glass and limit the Golden Eagles’ second chance points.

For my preview in today's paper click here.

My work schedule did not allow me to watch Oakland's loss to Centenary, but I did talk to Oakland coach Greg Kampe for a preview for Saturday's game at Oral Roberts. Here are some of the things he had to say about the loss.

In your mind what was the difference in the Centenary game?

I don’t know if I have an answer for that. They kicked the crap out of us. I have no idea why. At one point in the game they were shooting 70 percent from the floor and we were shooting 10 percent. I think they made 11 straight shots during the game. We played zone, we played man, we played box-and-one, we played every defense we know. We played zone probably a third of the game, not even a third of the game. We played man two-thirds of the game, then a mix of zone and box-and-one the rest of the time. Everything we had we tried and we couldn’t stop them. In the second half we started in a box-and-one and Stallings, who had 20 at halftime, only had six in the second half. We played the second half fairly even. We couldn’t guard them. We couldn’t keep them in front of us. They just went by us.

They went real small during that run they made. The game started out pretty sloppy by both teams and then Stallings made a 3 and we turned it over a couple times and gave them some transition baskets. Then they just made 10 or 11 straight shots. They just flew by us, kicked the ball around, found open guys and made shots.

At the other end we looked like we hadn’t seen a basketball court in a year. We just played terrible. I think we tried. I think we played hard. I think we tried, but I’ve been a coach a long time and I’ve never seen anything like it. I can’t offer any explanation. I don’t know what happened. I know we missed layups, we missed open shots, we made bad plays, we made stupid plays, we turned the ball over, we didn’t pass the ball very well, obviously we only had four assists the entire game, that’s unbelievable in itself. In a nutshell, I don’t know what happened. I really don’t. I wish I was smarter and I could figure it out. All I know is we were down 30 points to Centenary on the road and they beat us. They just kicked the crap out of us. They kicked the crap out of us in every category there is, except rebounding. And I would hope if your playing five guys, 6-foot-2 or less, we would at least be able to rebound.

What is your team's mindset after the tough loss and entering Oral Roberts on Saturday?

I think at this time of the year, it’s January, bad things happen, good things happen, you have to let them both go. We are not even going to watch tape from Centenary because I watched the tape after the game and there is nothing to be learned. We are just going to take that and throw it away, well we won’t throw it away, we’ll hold on to it until the next time we play them.

Oral Roberts is one of those games that we talked about the other day, it’s worth two, not one. It’s an important game. We lost to a team that didn’t have a league win. That’s not good. We got two of those losses. We got to stay on the path, stay focused on what our goals are and realize it was just one game and get ready to play Oral Roberts.

We haven’t won there since the first year we were in the league, the year we won the title outright. That was nine or 10 years ago. We haven’t won (there) since then and it’s always been something. What we have to do is defend them and we have to rebound. We have said that since Day 1 this year, we are pretty talented offensively, but we are going to be up and down because we are young.

I will say this about last night, that it was the first time all year where I saw our young kids play like young kids. A lot of it had to do with, well JJ didn’t have a very good game and Kangas was OK. Benson was 3-for-9 from the floor and he only took one jump shot, everything else was a layup. We missed point-blank shots. We missed wide-open shots. We panicked when we got in trouble. All year long, we have had bad things happen to us and we have been able to get through it. We are at Oregon and we get a bad call at the end of the game and we win in overtime. We are at Green Bay and we have 10-point lead with two and a half minutes to go and they come back, and we win overtime. We never folded. We never did anything all year that looked like a young team, which has kind of surprised me. (Thursday) we looked like a young team. We weren’t able to overcome adversity. That was a first for them. We are going to see adversity (at Oral Roberts) and we have to be able to overcome it. We have to be able to guard them and rebound. If we don’t do that we aren’t going to win.

The Oakland Press' Dave Pemberton sits down with Derick Nelson and has a second edition of Trivia Time with Nelson, Dan Waterstradt and Ricky Bieszki.

The opponent — Centenary (2-13, 0-3 Summit) enters its matchup with Oakland on an eight-game losing streak. The Gents will be playing their first home game after playing 15-straight on the road to start the season, while their home arena underwent renovations.

Head coach Greg Gary, who was an assistant at Duquesne last season, is in his first year as the Gents’ coach.

Centenary’s strength is its backcourt of senior guard Nick Stallings and junior point guard Chase Adams (13.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.2 assists). Stallings in the Gents leading scorer (17.0), rebounder (6.6) and 3-point shooter (35-for-79).

“Stallings is a great player,” Oakland coach Greg Kampe said. “He is one of the better players in the league. Chase Adams is a very good point guard. They’re a perimeter team. Our zone is going to have to guard the perimeter. We got to guard transition. They are very good in transition. And we are going to have to play against the enthusiasm they have of playing their first game in this place.”

The Gents also received a boost when senior forward Lance Hill (6-foot-7, 255) returned. Hill, who averaged 11.7 points per game last season, is averaging 7.3 points and 2.3 rebounds in his first three games back and started Centenary’s last game.

“We have to take advantage of the inside,” Kampe said. “Lance (Hill) just came back from an academic suspension, he’s their big guy and was a pretty decent player last year. He’s only played in three games so he’s getting better. I think you’re going to see this team improve as the year goes on with him back. Their weakness is inside and now with (Hill) coming back they could get a lot better quickly.

Junior forward Jerrald Bonham (3.8 points and 2.5 rebounds) and sophomore guard Gary Redus (9.4 points) round out the starting lineup.

Centenary’s two wins are over Troy and Alcorn State with both being in the LSU men’s classic.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Erik Kangas vs. Centenary’s Nick Stallings. Kangas is coming off the North Dakota State game where a cramp forced him to sit most of the game before he came in and nailed the game-winning 3-pointer. Oakland, which is already short-handed, needs a healthy Kangas and his scoring. Stallings is a huge part of the Gents’ offense and is an effective 3-point shooter (44.3 percent). Slowing down Stallings has to be Oakland’s No. 1 key defensively

“He’s a great athlete and nothing bothers him,” Kampe said of Stallings. “He can miss 10 in a row and he’s going to take five more. He’s got a great attitude. He’s a tremendous athlete. He is quick with the ball, he flies it up and down the court. He’s their leading rebounder. He is their whole team, he’s everything. Chase Adams is a guy that gets him the ball and does the right stuff. Those two guys are a very, very good backcourt.”

Matchup history — Oakland is 8-2 all-time against Centenary, has won the last five and is 4-1 at the Gold Dome The Golden Grizzlies won the last meeting at Centenary, 97-61, on Feb. 9, 2008. Derick Nelson led Oakland with 22 points and nine rebounds. Kangas added 14 points and Will Hudson had 11 points and seven rebounds. Oakland won the earlier meeting last season, 74-61.

The skinny — If Oakland wants to win a regular-season conference championship then this is a game it needs to win. The Grizzlies can’t look at Centenary’s record and think they can just show up and win. The Gents are a dangerous team with some streaky scorers and will no doubt want to win their first game in the newly renovated Gold Dome.

Oakland will be playing at least the next three weeks, if not the rest of the season short-handed with just 10 players and just eight that have seen quality minutes this season. The Grizzlies are still confident they can accomplish their goals with the guys they have and need to build on their win over North Dakota State. Oakland needs to start off its three-straight on the road with a win and then move on to Oral Roberts on Saturday.

For a story on the Oakland freshman click here.

Expansion could be coming to The Summit League soon. The conference announced it would be visiting South Dakota on Jan. 20-21 in a press release. What this means I’m not sure, but I do know the conference wouldn’t announce it’s going if it wasn’t seriously considering adding South Dakota. The Coyotes are in their first year of Division I.

“We feel really good about it, but it's just another step — not the final step by any means," USD athletic director Joel Nielsen told the Argus-Leader. "I think, though, that we can make a strong case for the academic profile of our university and our geographic footprint fitting in with the current membership."

Apparently North Dakota, which is also in its first year of Division I is not being considered by The Summit League until it solves it’s issue with the Sioux nickname and logo.

“I’m not presenting any information to the (league’s) presidents council on the University of North Dakota until the logo issue is resolved one way or the other,” Summit League commissioner Tom Douple told the Grand Folks Hearld. “I don’t want it to be an issue for our members.”

Douple also told the Grand Folks Herald there is no timetable for expansion, “But we’re always looking at our options.”

If both Dakotas are added, and I wouldn’t be shocked if they both were, then the league could consider dividing into two six-team divisions. Time will tell what happens, but it should be interesting what the league does over the next few years.

The Oakland men’s basketball team got some bad news earlier this week. An MRI revealed freshman center Ilija Milutinovic’s foot is broken. The X-ray done on the foot after the initial injury did not show the break, but an MRI did. Milutinovic will now miss at least 3-4 weeks and could be out the remainder of the season. He will be re-evaluated in three weeks.

Milutinovic missed the last four games with the injury. The Serbian native played in 12 games, averaging 1.8 points and 1.5 rebounds in 6.2 minutes per game. The injury leaves the already short-handed Grizzlies with just eight scholarship players as they head to Centenary for Thursday night’s game.

For various reasons I haven’t been able to get to too many Oakland women’s basketball games this season, but I was really impressed with their win over South Dakota State Monday night. The Grizzlies made the Jackrabbits, who are a very talented squad, look like a team that had no business being in the Top 25.

The Jackrabbits had won 10-straight entering Monday’s game and beaten Missouri, Wisconsin, Utah, Oregon, Illinois, Montana, Minnesota, Oral Roberts and Gonzaga among others. In other words SDSU is legit and Oakland dominated the Jacks in the first half, held off a second-half rally and ended the game on a 16-2 run.

Oakland’s defense in the first half was the difference in the game. The Golden Grizzlies forced 11 turnovers, allowed just 15 points and held the Jacks to 22.2 percent shooting from the field.

I really liked the starting lineup of Jessica Pike, Melissa Jeltema, April Kidd, Brittany Carnago and Sharise Calhoun. The lineup has a lot of speed, strength inside and played great defense to start the game. Carnago was really impressive defensively with five blocks and six steals. Carnago, Jeltema and Kidd were all active on the boards and having Kidd, Calhoun and Pike guarding the perimeter caused SDSU problems. The trio used their speed to get in SDSU's face and get into the passing lanes.

Bringing Hanna Reising off the bench also gives the Grizzlies a solid offensive weapon to bring in. Reising had just four points, but she is capable of scoring points in bunches. I’m pretty sure Reising came off the bench because she was coming off an illness, but it’s a lineup that could be used more.

Sophomore Anna Patritto was also impressive and was huge during a seven-minute stretch in the second half where she scored 10 of Oakland’s 12 points. She played her best game last season against a Top 25 team (West Virginia). Hopefully she can build on her performance against the Jacks.

The Golden Grizzlies now have an important game at Oral Roberts on Saturday. Oakland (11-4, 3-1 Summit) is tied for first place with SDSU (14-2, 3-1) and North Dakota State (5-7, 3-1). IUPUI (7-7, 2-1) and Western Illinois (4-10, 2-1) are a half game back. Oral Roberts is 8-6 and 1-2 in Summit League play.

1. Oakland (10-7, 3-1 Summit) — The Golden Grizzlies earned an impressive win over North Dakota State thanks to an Erik Kangas 3-pointer with 7.2 seconds left. It was a total team effort for Oakland, with Kangas limited due to a cramp in his calf. The Grizzlies need a healthy Kangas in the games coming up after losing Derick Nelson for the season to a medical redshirt. Oakland has three straight road games starting with at Centenary on Thursday and at Oral Roberts on Sunday.
2. North Dakota State (8-5, 3-1) — Senior forward Brett Winkelman was phenomenal in the Bison’s heartbreaking loss at Oakland, scoring 33 points despite battling a stomach virus. Something tells me after three straight close losses to the Grizzlies, the Bison can’t wait until they host Oakland on Jan. 29 in what might not be the final meeting between the schools this season. NDSU hosts a pair of league contenders this week in IUPUI and Western Illinois.
3. IUPUI (9-5, 2-1) — The Jaguars won a pair of home league games, topping UMKC and Southern Utah. Junior forward Robert Glenn averaged 15.5 points off the bench in the two wins. Freshman Alex Young leads the team in scoring at 15.2 per game. IUPUI heads to the Dakotas this week, where it swept its two games last season.
4. Western Illinois (6-8, 3-0) — The Leathernecks stand as the only team undefeated in league play after home wins over UMKC and Southern Utah. Half of Western Illinois’ total wins this season are in league play. Senior David DuBois is averaging 19.3 points per game in three league games and junior Josh Rivers has established himself as solid second option, scoring in double figures in five straight games.
5. Oral Roberts (4-11, 2-1) — The Golden Eagles easily defeated a road weary Centenary team and will be looking for their first back-to-back wins of the season when they host IPFW on Thursday. Junior forward Kevin Ford is averaging 11.1 points and 8.9 rebounds in the seven games since he became eligible.
6. IPFW (6-9, 1-3) — The Mastodons embarrassed South Dakota State, 100-66, to earn their first league win of the season. Senior forward David Carson outscored the Jacks by himself in the first half, 20-18. Carson is averaging 20.5 points in four league games. After starting league play 0-3, IPFW has work to do and will start with games at Oral Roberts and Centenary this week.
7. Southern Utah (4-11, 2-2) — The Thunderbirds fell to .500 in league play with two losses last week, at IUPUI and at Western Illinois. Junior guard Davis Baker is averaging 21.3 points and senior forward Tyler Quinney 17.5 points in four league games. Southern Utah plays at UMKC on Saturday.
8. UMKC (5-12, 1-3) — The Kangaroos lost two close road games, both by three points last week. UMKC was down big in both games and rallied back, but couldn’t complete the comeback. Senior Dane Brumagin is averaging 23.8 points per game in four league games this season.
9. South Dakota State (6-10, 1-3) — The Jacks are now 0-11 all-time in Summit League road games after a pair of road losses last week. SDSU hit a school-record 15 3-pointers in a 86-81 loss at Oakland, but then got embarrassed at IPFW by 34 points. The Jacks host two league games this week.
10. Centenary (2-13, 0-3) — The Gents concluded their 15-straight games on the road with a 82-59 loss at Oral Roberts. Centenary will host Oakland Thursday in its first home game of the season in the newly renovated Gold Dome. Senior Nick Stallings surpassed 1,000 career points in the loss to the Golden Eagles. Stallings is averaging 17 points a game this season.

Oakland’s win over North Dakota State is a huge victory for a number of reasons, but here are three that I think are the biggest.

1. The Golden Grizzlies were able to protect their homecourt despite having a limited Erik Kangas. Like Oakland coach Greg Kampe said after the game, the bench won Oakland this game. Drew Maynard had 15 points, four rebounds and three assists and Will Hudson had 11 points and six rebounds. Freshman Blake Cushingberry also played well, finishing with nine points. With Derick Nelson now out for the season these young guys are going to have to continue to come through and they did against one of the premier teams in the league.

2. Kampe can now go to a man-to-man defense with more confidence. Whether or not North Dakota State is the best team in the league remains to be seen, but it has a great offense and the Grizzlies played man defense on them for three quarters of the game. Kampe said he wanted to play the zone as long as he could, but knew it wouldn’t last against a great shooting team like the Bison. But now the team has a little more confidence in its man defense. It did create some matchup problems, in particular having Will Hudson or Dan Waterstradt try to keep up with 6-foot-6 Brett Winkelman, but Winkelman scored 16 or so points against the zone.

3. Kampe put it best when he said Friday night’s win was basically worth two games because it gives Oakland a win and gives NDSU a loss. Kangas’ game-winning shot could prove to be the one that won them a championship or it might not matter either way. There is still a lot of basketball to be played and while the team should be excited about the win they have to remain focused. There is 14 league games left and three tough ones coming up. Centenary will be playing its first home game of the season and is desperate for a win. Oral Roberts is still one of the league contenders and in the Summit League poll was voted the favorite, winning at the Mabee Center will not be an easy task. And finally Oakland plays at IPFW, which put up a 100 points against South Dakota State Friday and won by 34.

Other thoughts
n I was impressed by the crowd Friday night and on New Year’s Eve. I got to the game on New Year’s Eve and it looked like it was going to be a morgue, but a lot of people showed up. Friday’s game was also impressive considering the students are still gone and it was the day after New Year’s. Kampe even commented about the crowds being good the past two games at the press conference. I know the Grizz Gang has a bus going down to IPFW. I believe its for the first 200 that sign up, I’ll be interested to see how fast it fills up.

n Just when I think Kangas can’t possibly impress me anymore with a clutch shot, he finds a way. Just being in the game looked painful for him, but to have the confidence to take that shot when you were 0-for-4 on 3-point attempts in the game and on a cramped leg is unbelievable. People likely wonder how he got open, but as Kampe pointed out, Benson set a great screen. Benson deserves credit for the screen, especially considering the dumb foul he committed to put Ben Woodside on the line. Benson played a great game up to that point and thanks to his screen and Kangas’ shot nobody is talking about the foul, which is a good thing.

n Brett Winkelman really impressed me. The guy is just tough to guard. If you put a big guy on him he will use his speed to get to the basket. If you put a guard on him, he can post them up. And he has a nice outside shot. Apparently he was playing with some type of stomach virus and just a piece of toast to eat all day. That's a scary thought.

The opponent — North Dakota State enters Friday’s game 8-4 and 3-0 in Summit League player after a 67-60 win at IPFW on Wednesday. The Bison are considered one of the league favorites in their first year of postseason eligibility and have been picked by several publications to win the league.

NDSU is a very strong offensive team and is averaging 84.9 points per game, shooting 49.5 percent from the field, including 42 percent from 3-point range and have four starters averaging at least 9.5 points per game.

Summit League preseason Player of the Year Ben Woodside is living up to his preseason billing. The senior point guard is averaging 24.3 points, 7.6 assists. 1.5 steals, 1.9 3-pointers and is getting to the free-throw line an average of 9.5 times a game, where he shoots 83.3 percent.

Senior Brett Winkelman, a preseason first-team all-league selection, is averaging 18.2 points and 8.2 rebounds per game and is shooting over 50 percent from the field. Senior Mike Nelson is averaging 12.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.5 3-pointers and is shooting 49.5 percent on his 3-point attempts.

Michael Tveidt (9.5 points) and Lucas Moormann (4.5 points and 3.4 rebound) round out the starting lineup.

Key matchup — Oakland’s Johnathon Jones vs. NDSU’s Ben Woodside. Not only is Woodside one of the leading scorers in the nation, but he is also among the nation’s leaders in assists. Containing him will be a huge priority for the Grizzlies. Jones was able to contain Woodside in two Oakland wins over the Bison last season and if he could do it again this season it would be a huge boost for Oakland. Jones also scored 21 points in both games against NDSU last season so if he can make Woodside work on defense it may slow down his offense.

Matchup history — Oakland is 3-0 all-time against the Bison, winning both meetings last season. The Grizzlies won 73-71 at NDSU on Jan. 5, 2008 behind 21 points and four assists from Jones and then won 77-74 at home on Jan. 31 behind 21 points and eight assists from Jones. Mike Nelson led the Bison with 25 points last season at the O’Rena.

The skinny — It’s an early league game, but in the long-run could prove to be a crucial one. Both teams are among the favorites to win the league and could use a win in the first head-to-head matchup. The Grizzlies would like to protect their homecourt, where they are 3-0 so far this season.

A big concern for Oakland is limiting the Bison’s open 3-point looks. The Grizzlies allowed 15 3-pointers in a win over South Dakota State Wednesday. The Jacks' 3-point shooting kept them in the game. NDSU is a much better 3-point shooting team than the Jacks, averaging over seven a game and shooting 42 percent as a team.

The Grizzlies should have an advantage inside with Keith Benson continuing his spectacular play as of late. Oakland should look to get him involved early.

The Oakland Press' Dave Pemberton sits down with Oakland freshman Drew Maynard and Associate Head Coach Jeff Tungate.