AOTW: Oakland’s Hamilton putting up big numbers to keep Oakland relevant

DAN STICKRADT

SENIOR EDITOR

dan.stickradt@northoaklandsports.com

ROCHESTER HILLS — Four years ago, Reggie Hamilton was faced with a dilemma.

His playing time had dwindled and he was benched for a few games without notification of the specifics. Hamilton, then a sophomore at UMKC, asked for his release from the school and it was granted short thereafter.

UMKC’s loss was truly Oakland University’s gain.

DRIVING FORCE: Oakland University senior guard Reggie Hamilton leads the nation in scoring and hopes to lead the golden Grizzlies to the Summit League championship in Sioux Falls, S.D., this weekend. File Photo | Dan Stickradt

Hamilton, a 6-foot senior guard from suburban Chicago, has had one fine career at the collegiate level, that past two in a Golden Grizzlies uniform. He sat out one season due to the NCAA transfer rules, but was part of a NCAA tournament team in 2011.

Hamilton is leading the NCAA Division I in scoring — out of 345 Division I schools — with a 25.5 average, including 26.0 points in conference games, but is far from a one-man greed show.

“It’s all about going out and winning basketball games, helping this team win,” admitted Hamilton, a two-year starter at OU. “Our goal is to win (the Summit League championship) and get us back to the NCAA tournament.”

ESPN recently ranked Hamilton as one of the top 50 recruits to come out of the fertile Chicago-land hotbed of talent in the past decade, which features several current college stars, NBA talent and players collecting a paycheck overseas. He attended Chicago Thornwood, an Illinois powerhouse, and was sought after multiple schools, especially when he announced his transfer from UMKC during 2008-09.

Hamilton is on the radar of scouts from the NBA and abroad, but has plenty on his mind more than his future playing options. He plans on leading the third-seeded Golden Grizzlies to the NCAA tournament for the third consecutive year and for the fourth time in eight seasons with three wins this weekend at the Summit League Tournament.

Veteran Oakland men’s basketball coach Greg Kampe welcomed Hamilton with open arms for a fresh start at OU three years ago and has seen Hamilton mature into a fine all-around player, not just a talented scoring looking for the attraction of scouts.

Besides his scoring touch and ability to take over games, Hamilton leads OU with 5.3 assists a contest with 2.3 steals, a team best, and 3.8 rebounds, third for Oakland. He was named to the All-Summit League First Team for the second straight season, the league announced Thursday.

He set the Summit League single-season scoring record of 790 points in the league and also has set several single-season records at Oakland this season. The Player of the Week 11 times in his career with UMKC and Oakland, five times this season, Hamilton rides a six-game streak where he scored at least 30 points, including 31 points each in the final two regular season games.

He has 14, 30-point games overall and also set the school record for free throws attempted in a season and has generally been a consistent thorn in the sides for the opposition.

“In our last game against UMKC, we came out in the second half and Reggie didn’t put up a shot for the first seven minutes,” said Kampe. “Now, being a senior, he could have been the guy thinking, ‘I’m going to get mine.” But that has not been the case. He’s been a leader of this team. He’s always getting teammates involved and he makes those around him better.”

In that recent win over UMKC, he had 31 points and eight assists, while making 18-of-22 free throws — all game highs. He scored over 40 twice this season and has been a huge reason why Oakland carries a 17-14 record and a five-game league win streak into this weekend’s Summit League tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Oakland has enjoyed tremendous success in the league tournament the past several years, reaching at least the semifinals the past five years and the finals five times in seven seasons.

“That’s the one thing about Oakland basketball. They contend for championships,” said Hamilton, who was on the roster the past two years where Oakland posted a 40-2 overall mark against league opponents in both 2009-10 and 20010-11. “It’s been a blessing to play here the past couple of years, with guys like Keith Benson and Will Hudson. I don’t want it ti be over.”

Oakland must win the Summit League tournament for a likely postseason bid. An outside chance at the College Insider tournament could await the Grizzlies if they falter in the conference tournament, due to the golden Grizzlies’ strength of schedule.

Hamilton average some 35 minutes a contest for an extremely young team, which had just four returning players with significant experience, the others being Drew Valentine, Travis Bader and Ryan Bass. There were six freshmen or sophomores who gained minutes this season, plus one transfer and another player that left the team during Christmas break.

That left a large loud for Hamilton to shoulder. Even in a game again Michigan, a team that is seeking a share of the big Ten championship, the Grizzlies stayed with striking distance before falling to the Wolverines by 10 points.

Hamilton was instrumental in the Grizzlies defeating Tennessee of the Southeastern conference each of the past two years, including last season on the road when the volunteers were ranked in the top 25.

In the preseason, Hamilton was placed on the watch list of multiple print and digital publications. The co-captain was listed as the nation’s No. 4 point guard by Lindy’s Magazine, was nominated Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award candidate, named Lou Henson Award Preseason All-America, ranked No. 96 on CBSSports.com list of top 100 players in college basketball and was selected as preseason All-Summit League First Team.

He has lived up to all of those expectations and more, while leading an extremely young team to a winning record and a chance to win the league tournament.

“This is what it’s all about,” smiled Hamilton.

“For the seniors, if we don’t win the tournament, we’re done,” added Hamilton. “We’re going to do whatever we can to help this team win.”

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Tags: Athlete of the Week, featured, NCAA Men'sBasketball, oakland university, Oakland University men's basketball, Reggie Hamilton, Summit League Men's Basketball

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