Oakland came out victorious in an electrifying double overtime against the Milwaukee Panthers, 91-87.
With a new five minutes going into the second overtime, the tension escalated as Milwaukee controlled the tip and got on the board first as Kentrell Pullian scored a corner three. Jack Gohlke, in the midst of a fantastic night, was fouled on a three with 3:44 remaining but connected on all of his free throws, which tied the game, giving him 24 points in front of his home crowd.
The intensity grew at UWM Panther Arena as both teams exchanged buckets. A huge make by DQ Cole from long range and a block by Tuburu Naivalurua provided a major spark. The Grizzlies had the momentum in their favor and had the one-point advantage, 84-83, with two minutes left.
Milwaukee looked to attack the basket, but the Golden Grizzlies were just too good on the defensive end and were in full control as Gohlke continued his hot shooting that put Oakland up four points, 87-83.
A five-second call on Oakland gave the Panthers the ball back, and they were able to get down the lane and score a layup that cut it to two, 87-85. There was a lot of contact on Trey Townsend down low that resulted in him heading to the line for a pair of free throws on the next play that put them back up four.
After a timely layup scored by Milwaukee, the Grizzlies were able to successfully break their press, and eventually, the Panthers started fouling to stop the clock. In its final possession, Milwaukee attempted a corner three, but it fell short as Naivalurua secured the rebound and Oakland dribbled it out as the clock hit zero, and the Golden Grizzlies had made a statement with a win in Wisconsin.
There was a lot of recognition for Gohlke as he achieved a significant milestone, hitting his 1,000th career point and delivering a stellar performance with a season-high 27 points.
“Jack Gohlke, coming home in front of, I think his whole hometown was here tonight, and boy, we needed that. That’s the Jack we had early in the year, where he was fearless of shooting. He took 18 threes tonight, and I told him when he came, I want him taking 15 a game,” head coach Greg Kampe said. “Tonight, in front of his hometown, he made a three at the end of regulation to tie it; he made a three at the end of the first overtime to tie it; and then he got fouled on a three in double overtime. He just did everything he had to do, and it was so much fun to watch him do that in front of his hometown.”
The Golden Grizzlies secured a hard-fought victory in double overtime, and this just goes to show that they are very capable of contending.
“A lot of adversity thrown at us, and like I told them before the game, ‘If you’re a championship-level team, one loss doesn’t turn into two.’ And the last couple of years, we’ve been steps away from winning championships. We’ve been in these positions, and then one became two, two became three, excuses. They could have made excuses tonight, but they didn’t, and they just fell behind, got a stop at the end of regulation, got a stop at the end of the first overtime, and then made big plays after big plays in the second overtime.”
What’s Next?
Looking ahead, Oakland is set to host Robert Morris at the OU Credit Union O’rena on Thursday, Feb. 1 at 7 p.m. with momentum from their win that will propel them going forward.