YSU knocks off Oakland, 78-71
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YOUNGSTOWN -- Youngstown State's Michael Akuchie strutted down the sideline with a smile, flexing his arms and letting out a roar of elation. Myles Hunter, standing on top of the logo at midcourt, clapped twice before urging the Beeghly Center crowd to its feet for a final ovation.
As the crowd came alive one last time, Shemar Rathan-Mayes dribbled out the final seconds and the final buzzer sounded on a 78-71 victory over visiting Oakland, perhaps YSU's biggest win this season. Now, winners of five straight, the Penguins just might be the hottest team in the Horizon League after a frustrating month of January in which the Penguins went 4-6.
"I feel like we already knew we could do it. It was just about gelling together and playing for each other and playing together," said guard Tevin Olison, who scored 19 points in the victory. "Everybody just had to figure out their role, and I think the past couple of weeks, we've found that and we've been playing really good basketball. So we know we can play with anybody in the conference."
That confidence was palpable from start to finish, as the Penguins never trailed Oakland (16-8, 9-4) by more than two, and in fact trailed just once the entire game -- a 30-28 deficit with exactly four minutes left in the first half. The Golden Grizzlies maintained that advantage for just 17 seconds before YSU tied the game back up and eventually took a lead it did not relinquish the rest of the way. The Penguins led by as much as 10 in the second half.
The win also snapped a five-game skid against the Golden Grizzlies and was YSU's first over OU since Jan. 9, 2020. Earlier this season, Oakland had topped Youngstown State on New Year's Day, 87-72.
This time around was different, though. As it's been during each game of the current win streak, YSU's second this season of at least five games, the defense clamped down. Oakland, which has lost three straight, shot just 23-of-55 and an icy 5-of-23 from 3-point range, all the while being held five points under its season average of 76.1 points per game.
Though its offense otherwise struggled, Oakland did pick up big performances from its usual stars. Jamal Cain scored 20 points and snagged 11 rebounds, while Jalen Moore tallied 19 points and Blake Lampman added 10.
"We tried to mix it up a little bit. We got lost one time in our zone, but to hold a team to 71 -- you talk about maturity, it's our defense," YSU coach Jerrod Calhoun said. "This has been a really good defensive team here as of late. We just have to keep it going."
The Penguin offense, meanwhile, attacked Oakland's 1-3-1 zone primarily through ball movement. Youngstown State racked up 20 assists to just nine turnovers. The 20 assists tie a season high.
"Definitely ball movement (and) player movement," Dwayne Cohill said of the key to attacking Oakland's defense. "You can't really beat a zone dribbling too much, so just consistently moving, having players moving around, flashing in the middle of the zone and just trying to get the ball into the middle. That was our biggest key was to try to get the ball in the middle of the zone. We knew we could break it down there and just have fun and make shots."
Cohill led the scoring with 24 points, while Hunter joined Cohill and Olison in double figures with 12 points and added five rebounds. Michael Akuchie, meanwhile, just missed a double-double as he scored seven points and pulled down 10 boards.
As he did at UIC, Owen Long provided a pair of timely baskets -- back-to-back 3-pointers which pushed YSU's lead to 61-53 with 9:28 to go and gave the Penguins a much-needed burst.
With Rathan-Mayes in foul trouble for much of the first half, Luke Chicone played 21:02 of game time and supplied a team-high seven assists to just one giveaway.
Calhoun said hitting 20 assists was one of the keys to YSU's night, as Wright State, Northern Kentucky and Milwaukee -- the other three Horizon League teams to top Oakland -- averaged 19 assists in their victories.
Of Chicone's performance in particular, he added, "For Luke Chicone to come into the game and spray the ball the way he did -- seven assists -- I thought he handled the pressure. Big, big time performance when Shemar got those two fouls."
Youngstown State will have a quick turnaround, as Detroit Mercy visits Friday night and then Robert Morris comes Sunday. UDM (10-11, 7-4) dispatched the Colonials on Wednesday, 79-62, and is jostling alongside YSU for the coveted top four positioning for the conference tournament.
Like Oakland, it will be a tough task for Youngstown State, but also one that presents opportunities.
"Momentum is a scary thing," Calhoun said. "In sports, you get that momentum, it's a nice thing to have on your side, so we have to build on it."
jwhetzel@tribtoday.com