Central Michigan’s upset caps off good night for local Michigan schools

Oakland needed a win heading into their third conference game. Detroit Mercy wanted to stay undefeated on their home court and Central Michigan was looking to pull off a major upset on the road.

Central Michigan pulled off a huge upset by going on the road and defeating Michigan for the third time since 2002. The Wolverines are 4-3 against the Chippewas during that time period and the last time prior to this game that Central Michigan won was in December 2007 when the Chippewas defeated Michigan by a score of 78-67. This game was an upset for many reasons.

The Wolverines for example are ranked No. 65 in Pomeroy College Basketball rankings. The Chippewas in comparison are ranked No. 270. Michigan is a big-name program from the Big Ten conference while Central Michigan is known more for its football program and also outside of Kent State in basketball, the Mid-American conference is a lesser-known mid-major program in college basketball. How did Central Michigan then get the unexpected victory?

Junior guard Jesse Zarzuela who transferred to Central Michigan from Coppin State played very well shooting eight for seventeen from the field for 19 points as well as having six rebounds and two assists in only 27 minutes of play. Reggie Bass a highly-ranked recruit out of Indianapolis who was originally committed to play for Illinois, played well scoring 16 points to go along with seven rebounds. The Chippewas defense also held Michigan’s Hunter Dickinson to only 13 points and held the Wolverines’ offense to a season-low 61 points.

Central Michigan next plays Miami of Ohio on January 3rd on their home court in hopes of getting their sixth win of the season. Michigan has a quicker turnaround as they host Maryland on New Year’s day for their second Big Ten game of the season.

Oakland 83, Milwaukee 61

The Golden Grizzlies needed this win in a big way as Oakland entered this game with only two victories and only one of those wins was against a division one opponent in Eastern Michigan. Milwaukee on the other hand went into this contest 8-4 and was undefeated in league play with a 2-0 record. This game was an upset but not completely unexpected as according to the NET rankings, the Panthers are ranked No. 223 while the Golden Grizzlies are ranked No. 315. The reason why the 22 home victory for Oakland was not totally unexpected was that the Golden Grizzlies have won the last three home games that they have faced off against Milwaukee. How did the Golden Grizzlies pull off the minor upset?

It helped that star guard Jalen Moore who last played against Syracuse on Dec. 6 was back on the floor operating the offense for the Golden Grizzlies and his contribution of 17 points and eight assists helped greatly with Oakland getting their first conference win of the season. Rocket Watts who transferred over to the Golden Grizzlies from Mississippi State and before that Michigan State, shot 50% from the field and scored 14 points with also having grabbed four rebounds, a block, and a steal. Blake Lampman arguably played his best game of the season scoring a game-high 20 points and making five out of his seven three-point attempts.

Oakland next plays Green Bay on New Year’s Eve in hopes of getting their second Horizon League victory of the season to be at 2-2 in conference play. Milwaukee plays at Detroit Mercy on the same day and they hope to rebound from this loss and play better against the Titans.

Detriot Mercy 76, Green Bay 59

The Titan’s victory over visiting Green Bay was the only non-upset of the night among mid-major teams from the state of Michigan. However, Detroit Mercy by the numbers is the highest-ranked team out of Central Michigan, Oakland, and themselves according to the NET rankings as the Titans are currently ranked No. 172. Detroit Mercy has a legitimate chance of winning the Horizon League as they have proven especially on their home court that they are a very difficult team to defeat.

They have two victories against schools from Conference USA in Tulsa and Charlotte and by the numbers, the 49ers are one of the top mid-major teams this season and the Titan’s victory against the Golden Hurricanes was on the road. Detroit Mercy also has an impressive road conference victory against Purdue Fort Wayne and if the Titans can beat Milwaukee then they will be at 3-1 in conference play.

The Titan’s double-digit victory against the Phoenix was their fourth double-digit victory of the season and Detroit Mercy was led by star point guard Antoine Davis who led all scorers with 24 points as well as having three assists and making all seven of his free throw attempts. Senior forward Gerald Liddell a transfer from Alabama State had 19 points on nine for sixteen shooting from the field as well as grabbing a game-high 11 rebounds and three blocks. Senior forward Damezi Anderson also contributed 15 points and six rebounds in helping the Titans defeat Green Bay by 17 points.

Detriot Mercy hosts Milwaukee on New Year’s Eve in hopes of being 3-1 in Horizon League play entering the new year. Green Bay on the same day travels to play Oakland in hopes of getting their second conference victory of the season.