The Oakland Golden Grizzlies begin their defense of the Summit League Tournament title on Sunday night when they play the Southern Utah Thunderbirds in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Golden Grizzlies are actually two-time defending tournament champions. A run through the tournament would give them its fourth Summit League Tournament championship overall, breaking its current tie with Oral Roberts (which won the tournament three years in a row, 2006-2008).
Oakland went 17-14 (11-7 Summit) to capture the No. 3 seed in the tournament. They easily handled Southern Utah on the road, 72-63, but needed overtime at home for the 76-68 victory. Reggie Hamilton, relatively unknown to the wider public, leads the nation with 25.5 points per game. Travis Bader comes in second with 15.6 points.
Southern Utah (13-16, 8-10 Summit) ended the season on a four-game losing streak to take the No. 6 seed in the tournament. Jackson Stevenett is the team's leading scorer at 14.1 points. He also pulls down a team-high 5.7 rebounds per game.
The South Dakota St. Jackrabbits await the winner of this contest on Monday.
Game time/date: 8:30 p.m. CT, Sunday, March 4, 2012
Location: Sioux Falls Arena, Sioux Falls, SD
TV: SummitTV
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