Cassie Buchholz
Oct 15, 2026
ROCHESTER, Mich. — The Oakland Men's Basketball team defeated Grand Valley State, 103-74, in a preseason exhibition on Thursday night at OU Credit Union O'rena. Oakland used an 11-0 second-half run to turn a 66-60 lead into a 77-60 advantage. Oakland made 20 three-pointers on 41 attempts, finished with 22 assists and got 46 points from the bench in their 2026-27 debut.
Senior guard RJ Taylor scored 25 points, made six three-pointers and added five assists, as senior forward Chris Fields Jr. played the boards, recording 13 points, 10 rebounds, three blocks, and three steals. Sophomore guard Ryder Bradley finished with 15 points on 4-of-4 from the field and added four assists and two steals. Veteran junior guard Warren Marshall IV posted seven points, seven rebounds and six assists from the floor.
Oakland's perimeter shooting surfaced quickly after an early lead change, with a first-half burst that included five three-pointers while the Lakers made one during the same stretch. Sophomore guard Hamoudy Mashhour scored nine straight Oakland points during that opening push in his career debut, and Oakland later turned a 32-28 game into a 43-28 margin with an 11-0 run before halftime. That late-half sequence also included four straight Grand Valley turnovers forced by Oakland, keeping the opponent at 28 while Oakland built the run across six scoring possessions.
Grand Valley was within 66-60 in the second half before Oakland put together another 11-0 run over five scoring possessions to move the score to 77-60. A late 11-0 run from 89-69 to 100-69 overlapped with another perimeter burst, as Oakland made five 3-pointers while the Lakers made one, and freshman guard Deuce Hamilton scored nine straight Oakland points during the closing stretch. Oakland finished 20-for-41 from three-point range compared with 6-for-22 for Grand Valley, added 22 assists and held a 42-33 rebounding advantage.
The Golden Grizzlies are back on the court for their second exhibition of the season, as they take on Tennessee State at the Wayne State Fieldhouse in Detroit, for the annual Hoops and Culture Day put on by the Horatio Williams Foundation.