The Horizon League Tournament is as wide open as ever. On Thursday, third-seeded Milwaukee (21-10) hosts sixth-seeded Oakland (15-17) in a quarterfinal matchup at the Klotsche Center, with tipoff set for 8 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
Milwaukee and Oakland split their regular-season series, each winning on its home floor. Just a week before Thursday’s matchup, the Panthers edged Oakland by five points at UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. But this game carries extra weight. It’s a rematch of last year’s conference championship game when Oakland beat Milwaukee to claim the league’s automatic NCAA Tournament bid. Now, the Panthers have a shot at revenge, and a trip to the semifinals in Indianapolis is on the line.
Oakland
The Golden Grizzlies have had an up-and-down season but enter Thursday’s matchup with momentum, winning three of their last four games, including a first-round conference tournament victory over Green Bay on Tuesday.
Oakland averages 70.4 points while allowing 71.7 points per contest. Senior forward Allen Mukeba, a 6-foot-6, 247-pound forward, leads the team with 14.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Senior forward Tuburu Naivalurua (13.7 ppg) and senior guard DQ Cole (10.9 ppg) also provide consistent scoring.
When these teams last met, senior guard Jayson Woodrich, who averages 5.4 points per game, drained four 3-pointers and finished with a team-high 14 points.
Oakland is led by Greg Kampe, the longest-tenured Division I head coach in the country in his 41st season. The Golden Grizzlies are coming off a historic year, winning their first outright Horizon League regular-season title before edging Milwaukee in the conference championship to secure an NCAA Tournament bid. They made national headlines in March, stunning No. 3-seed Kentucky in the first round before pushing North Carolina State to overtime to cap a 24-12 campaign.
Milwaukee
Milwaukee entered the season as the preseason favorite in the Horizon League and, at times, has looked the part. However, inconsistency on offense has hurt the Panthers at times. Still, they enter the conference tournament by winning five of their last six games.
The Panthers average 78.9 points per game while allowing 71.7. Perimeter shooting has been a weakness, as they rank 318th nationally, shooting just 30.9% from beyond the arc. But they make up for it on the boards. Milwaukee is one of the nation’s top rebounding teams, ranking second in offensive rebounds per game (14.8).
Offensively, Milwaukee boasts a balanced attack with five players averaging double figures. Senior point guard Themus Fulks leads the way with 14.4 points, 5.9 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game. Junior forward Jamichael Stillwell provides a strong interior presence, averaging a double-double with 12.9 points and 10.8 rebounds, good for sixth in the country.
Senior guards Kentrell Pullian (12.4 ppg), AJ McKee (11.2 ppg) and Erik Pratt (11.1 ppg) round out the scoring core, giving Milwaukee plenty of offensive depth heading into tournament play.
