Wright State rallies past Oakland
BY DAN STICKRADT
SENIOR EDITOR
dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com
DAYTON, Ohio – Sometimes, free throws can be a life-saver or an Achilles Heel on the basketball court.
It more than saved Wright State Tuesday evening.
The Raiders moved to 3-1 on the year after making 21-of-21 free throws in the contest to down visiting Oakland University 82-79 at the Ervin J. Nutter Center.
Wright State rallied back from a 14-point deficit to earn the non-conference men’s basketball win. OU’s Reggie Hamilton missed a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer that would have forced overtime.
“They went 21-of-21 from the free throw line and came into the game shooting 57 percent,” said Oakland coach Greg Kampe. “It’s disappointing because we had the game in control and let it slip away. You cannot make those types of mistakes down the stretch on the road against the good basketball team.”
Senior Keith Benson had 25 points, seven rebounds and blocked a season-high five shots, as the Raiders had a difficult time trying to stop him on the inside.
Hamilton collected 15 points and four assists, senior Larry Wright added 14 points and a career-high seven assists and sophomore Ledrick Eackles chipped in with nine points and a career-high nine rebounds for Oakland.
Vaughn Duggins led the Raiders with 23 points and went 6-for-6 from the foul line, including 4-for-4 in final 30 seconds to seal the comeback win. Cooper Land and Troy Tabler scored 17 points apiece, while Matt Vest tallied 15 points off the bench for the Raiders.
The (1-3) Golden Grizzlies built a 14-point lead at 52-38 just four minutes of the second half but could not sustain the advantage. Wright State responded with four triples from the outside to aid a 20-4 run to take its first lead of the second half, 58-56, with 11:42 left in the game, which featured 12 lead changes and nine ties.
Benson scored 10 straight points for Oakland to tie the game at 66-66, but WSU answered with a pair of 3-pointers to lspark a 6-5 spurt to go ahead by one, 72-71, with 3:56 left in the contest..
OU’s last lead came when Hamilton banked in a three-pointer with 1:18 left in the game and was fouled, and he completed the four-point play to give the Grizzlies a 77-76 lead.
Duggins’ lay-up with one minute left put the Raiders ahead for good.
OU’s Wright converted a layup with 14.7 seconds left to bring the score to within 80-79, only to see Duggins deliver the dagger with a pair of freebies with five seconds to play.
The Golden Grizzlies will continue play in the Chicago Invitational Challenge as they face Southern University at the Sears Centre on Friday at 3:30 p.m. ET.
To submit information to www.northoaklandsports.com, e-mail dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com. To advertise, e-mail advertising@northoaklandsports.com
Category: Oakland University, Uncategorized
