Oakland Women Tripped Up Against Vikings, Fall 77-65

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Play-by-play: Gavin Smilowski

Color: Harjun Buttar

Studio: Joey Hayes

The Oakland Golden Grizzlies fall to the new number-one Cleveland State Vikings at the OU Credit Union O’rena. The final score was 77 to 65. 

Oakland came into this game after pulling off an unbelievable upset over the dominant Green Bay Phoenix, in which they were able to break through their own shooting woes and squeak away with the win. Both Brooke Quarles-Daniels, who made the game-winning shot with 1 second left to go, and Kennedie Montue had career shooting nights, and carried the Grizzlies to victory. 

Cleveland State came into this game undefeated in the month of January, fresh off a dominant 90-58 win over the IUPUI Jaguars. The VIkings took control of the game in the second quarter and didn’t take their foot off the gas. Defense played a huge role in the fourth, holding IUPUI to just seven points en route to a decisive victory.

Oakland took possession of the game early, playing physical offense and forcing Cleveland State to foul. Neither Mickayla Perdue nor Colbi Maples got off to a good offensive start, and the Grizzlies targeted Cleveland State forward Jordana Reisma, and Reisma went a cold 1-5 from the free-throw line. Back to back threes by Linda van Schaik made the game 14-6 in favor of Oakland. The Grizzlies were able to stave off Cleveland State’s offense, and held a 19-12 lead at the end of the first quarter. 

Both the Grizzlies and Vikings were aggressive on offense in the second quarter, and the officials clamped down on the physicality, which put Oakland at a disadvantage. The tide slowly started to change near the end of the second half, when Cleveland State went into the double bonus and went to the line more frequently to close out the half. Oakland still held a 34-32 advantage going into halftime.

The third quarter started off with Cleveland State getting a number of transition baskets off of Oakland turnovers. The Grizzlies forced bad passes and could not get momentum, which Cleveland State quickly took advantage of. Colbi Maples got involved early in third, but Oakland quickly took her out, at the expense of leaving Perdue open from beyond the arc. Oakland, event set in their offense, could not close out quick enough to pressure Perdue into forcing the three. Cleveland State’s efforts earned them a 58-43 lead over Oakland heading into the final frame.

Oakland got into situations where they were forced to foul, and they were falling victim to Cleveland State’s physicality, which worked well alongside their height advantage. The Vikings continuously went to the line and converted, which only extended their lead. Oakland’s Maddy Skorupski, already battle-tested in late-game situations, tried her best to be a spark plug for Oakland, but with Miriam Ibezim, who was one of Oakland’s only big bodies, fouling out, Oakland lost all ability to play physical. They were never able to overcome, and ultimately fell. 

Oakland, desperate to get above .500, will head on the road to face the IUPUI Jaguars. Meanwhile, the Cleveland State Vikings extend their win streak to 7, and will look to pick up the pieces against the Detroit Mercy Titans. 

WXOU’s next broadcast will be on February 1st, when the men’s basketball team prepares to take on the Robert Morris Colonials. Noah Stalker will be play-by-play, Gavin Smilowski will be color, and Zach Oberdier will be in the studio. Tune in right here for live coverage!