Oakland moves Summit League win streak to 16 with victory at South Dakota State
BROOKINGS, S.D. – Oakland University made history Thursday night.
Senior Keith Benson scored a season-high 28 points, grabbed 11 rebounds and blocked three shots to lead five Oakland players in double figures to tie the all-time Summit League record with 16 straight league wins in a 97-88 defeat over South Dakota State University on Thursday night inside Frost Arena.
“We had a goal to win our next 17 league games after we lost at IUPUI last season,” said OU coach Greg Kampe. “I didn’t think it would happen, but we have won 16 straight now. We had an answer every time they made a run at us tonight and that is was home team’s do.”
Benson broke the all-time league record with his three blocks tonight, pushing his career total to 320. He also surpassed the all-time school record in double-doubles with his 41st.
The Golden Grizzlies (13-8, 8-0) have now won 16 straight league games in consecutive seasons, tying Cleveland State’s 16 straight in 1991-93. OU has now won 19 straight games over league opponents, including the 2010 Summit League tournament, and are riding a six-game winning streak.
All five starters were in double figures for OU, as sophomore Drew Valentine added a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds. Junior Reggie Hamilton tallied 18 points and nine assists, while senior Will Hudson scored 16 points for the Grizzlies. Freshman Travis Bader made a career-high five 3-pointers, finishing with 17 points.
Four Jackrabbits (12-7, 4-4) reached double figures with Jordan Dykstra and Clint Sargent leading the way with 18. The Summit League’s leading scorer Nate Wolters posted 16 points on 6 of 17 shooting, while Tony Fiegen added 15 for SDSU.
Oakland led wire-to-wire tonight, holding a 10-point advantage at halftime, 54-44. The Golden Grizzlies pushed their lead all the way to 18 points in the second half and the Jackrabbits did not get closer than eight points in the final 20 minutes. OU held a decisive 44-32 advantage on the glass and shot 55 percent (37-for-67) for the game.
The Golden Grizzlies will travel north to Fargo, N.D. to face North Dakota State University at the Bison Sports Arena on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET. The game will air on WDFN-AM (1130) with Neal Ruhl (play-by-play) and Scott MacDonald (color).
Category: Oakland University
ADDITIONAL LINKS:
FALL SPORTS
FOOTBALL: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Football&x=12&y=12
SOCCER: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=soccer&x=0&y=0
CROSS COUNTRY: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Cross+country&x=11&y=10
GOLF: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Golf&x=9&y=14
TENNIS: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Tennis&x=13&y=4
VOLLEYBALL: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Volleyball&x=0&y=9
SWIMMING: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Swimming&x=11&y=14
WINTER SPORTS
BASKETBALL: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Basketball&x=13&y=12
WRESTLING: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=wrestling&x=10&y=9
SKIING: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Skiing&x=5&y=14
GYMNASTICS: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Gymnastics&x=10&y=12
HOCKEY: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Hockey&x=11&y=14
SWIMMING: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Swimming&x=11&y=14
BOWLING: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Bowling&x=4&y=13
SPRING SPORTS
BASEBALL: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Baseball&x=16&y=13
SOFTBALL: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Softball&x=8&y=11
TRACK AND FIELD: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=track&x=14&y=11
LACROSSE: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=lacrosse&x=12&y=9
TENNIS: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Tennis&x=13&y=4
GOLF: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=Golf&x=9&y=14
SOCCER: http://northoaklandsports.com/?s=soccer&x=0&y=0