Athletics, basketball, ncaa, tournament, men's basketball, upset, cinderally
March 22, 2024
PITTSBURGH, Pa. - The Golden Grizzlies will keep on dancing after an upset victory over the Kentucky Wildcats, 80-76 in the First Round of the NCAA Tournament inside PPG Paints Arena.
The Golden Grizzlies (24-11, 15-5 HL) were led by a historic performance from Jack Gohlke, who poured in a career-high 32 points on 10-of-20 (.500) shooting from three-point range, tying the second most all-time in an NCAA Tournament game, tying Carsen Edwards (Purdue, 3/30/2019) and Roburt Sallie (Memphis, 3/19/2009). Trey Townsend also added 17 points (6-of-15) and 12 rebounds. DQ Cole pitched in 12 points, including three makes from deep (3-of-3), to go with eight rebounds and four assists.
The University of Kentucky Wildcats (23-10, 13-5 SEC) also had three players in double figures, with Antonio Reeves shouldering the load with 27 points (11-of-18). Justin Edwards notched 10 points (4-of-9) while Tre Mitchell put in 14 points (4-of-8) and 13 rebounds.
The Wildcats grabbed the first basket of the game on its first possession as each team struggled at the rim to follow. Cole got the Golden Grizzlies on the board with one from deep for the first score by either team in nearly three minutes. Kentucky answered with a two of its own, but Rocket Watts pulled up for a two after three-straight offensive boards for the Golden Grizzlies.
The Wildcats made it a two-point game, at 7-5, but Gohlke hit his first make from range to put the Golden Grizzlies up one. The Wildcats hit a quick two to go up one, but Gohlke hit his second-straight from downtown to put the Golden Grizzlies ahead, 11-9. Kentucky bumped its lead back to two after two-straight makes, but it was Gohlke's turn once again as he hit the next two shots of the game to go up, 19-13, at the midway mark of the half.
The Wildcats clawed back to a two-point deficit, but Gohlke's fifth make from downtown, followed by a make from the charity stripe from Cole, put the Golden Grizzlies ahead by six. Once again, however, Kentucky came back within one as Townsend made it three, but the Wildcats first three of the game knotted it up. Each team traded baskets from beyond the arc in its following possession as Townsend made one, followed by a Wildcat three, as Blake Lampman got in on the action to make it 31-28, Oakland.
Kentucky grabbed its first lead since the 11:41 mark with a make from downtown, but a turnaround jumper from Chris Conway put things even at 33. Two from the charity stripe gave the Wildcats the lead, but Oakland rattled off five-straight before the halftime buzzer, highlighted by Gohlke's seventh three of the half, to lead, 38-35.
Despite being down, the Wildcats led from the field, shooting at a .407 (11-of-27) clip while Oakland shot at a .368 (14-of-38) clip. The difference maker was shots made from range as the Golden Grizzlies hit nine (9-of-20, .450), while the nation's top-rated three-point team in Kentucky only had three (3-of-11, .273). Off the glass, the Wildcats brought down one more rebound than the Golden Grizzlies with 23, as Oakland totaled 10 offensive boards. In one half, Gohlke made seven threes to set the record for most threes made against Kentucky in an NCAA Tournament game.
The teams traded points to start the second half as it remained tied at the 15:00 minute mark, 43-43. The Wildcats broke the tie with a two, but it was Townsend's turn to hit from range as he retook the Golden Grizzlies lead, followed by Gohlke's eighth from downtown to make it 49-46. His ninth of the night followed as he became first time a player since 2019 to hit nine three's in an NCAA tournament game (Carsen Edwards, Purdue vs. Villanova, 2nd rd.).
The Golden Grizzlies grew its lead to seven with 8:09 to go as Watts accounted for four-straight points with a stepback jumper, followed by two from the charity stripe. The Wildcats cut it down to two after a two and a three, but Cole put it back to five with a make from range. Kentucky answered back with a three of its own as the teams went back-to-back with makes from range as Gohlke hit one, followed by a Wildcat three to make it 67-65 with 4:09 to play.
The Golden Grizzlies held a four-point lead with 3:55 to go as the Wildcats turned the ball over to give Oakland the chance to increase its lead. Gohlke attempted another shot from range and was fouled in the making and made two to put the lead to six. The Wildcats hung around and made it a one-point game with 1:03 to go, but Cole hit a dagger corner three to make it a four-point game with :28 seconds to play, sealing Oakland's fate as they move to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
The teams shot nearly identically from the field as Oakland went 26-of-63 (.413) and Kentucky went 26-of-61 (.426), the biggest difference came from behind the arc where Oakland had a wide advantage. The Golden Grizzlies hit 15 threes (15-of-31) for the third time this season, tying their season high, while Kentucky went just 9-of-28 (.321) from deep. Oakland also dominated the offensive glass, being quicker to the ball on numerous occasions as it outrebounded the Wildcats, 14 to 11, on the offensive glass.
Coming into the game Kentucky was the second highest scoring team in the nation, averaging 89.4 points per game. They were also fifth in field goal percentage (.497) and first in three-point percentage (.419). Oakland's matchup zone stumped the Wildcats, holding them under all their offensive averages.
The Golden Grizzlies now await its next opponent as it will face the winner of (6) Texas Tech and (11) NC State on Saturday.
All Oakland games this season will be live streamed through audio via The Bet1270 AM (WXYT-AM) & the Audacy App with Neal Ruhl on the call.