On Wednesday night, March was in the air.
Two programs who are used to success — and each other — did battle with their seasons on the line.
In the end, Northern Kentucky went on the road and took down Oakland 85-84 to advance to the Indianapolis stage of the Horizon League Championships.
“I’m not surprised at all with how that game ended and with the game that it was,” Northern Kentucky head coach Darrin Horn said postgame. “That’s just how it is when Oakland and Northern Kentucky play.”
He’s right. As conference opponents, the Golden Grizzlies and the Norse are now tied 10-10 in the all-time series. The last 10 meetings have been split 5-5. Both schools faced each other plenty as Division II foes as well, and those games bring the all time series to 15-14 in favor of Northern Kentucky.
In postseason play, Northern Kentucky beat Oakland at the buzzer en route to the tournament championship in 2019 as well as during the championship run in 2023. Horn also led the Norse to a tournament championship in 2020 and was looking for three straight in 2021, but Oakland denied the Norse in the semifinals.
With a strong history and familiarity, the Norse brought out everything they had to get a win on the road, including catching the Golden Grizzlies off guard with a full court press a few times.
“We know that they are so good and we have so much respect for this program and for coach [Greg] Kampe,” Horn said. “Whatever we could do to get them out of their stuff offensively we had to do, because they run such good stuff.”
Northern Kentucky was in total control of the game after a strong second half, taking a 75-61 lead with under two minutes to play. From there, desperation fueled the Golden Grizzlies to a 23-10 finish in the last 1:52 of the game.
“Those last few minutes show what kind of character these kids have,” Kampe said.
He singled out the two players flanking him during the press conference, Brody Robinson and Buru Naivalurua. Robinson scored 16 points in the last two minutes of the game, finishing with 36 points and seven rebounds while making a Horizon League Tournament record 10 threes. Naivalurua added 12 points, eight rebounds and four assists in his final game as a Golden Grizzly.
“This program means the world to me and always will,” Naivalurua said. “There aren’t enough words to describe how Oakland basketball makes me feel.”
The 2026 all-league performer Naivalurua’s three-year Oakland career ends after a terrific run. Naivalurua was the last remaining member from the 2024 Horizon League Championship team that upset Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
LJ Wells of Northern Kentucky was a freshman on the 2023 edition of the Norse team that hung a banner. Wells, now a senior, had 18 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. He led the team in all three.
“I came in as a freshman and we won,” Wells said while looking back at his career postgame. “I’ve gotten so much better here. I trust Coach Horn and I know he trusts me. That’s why I’m here.”
“This dude is a special guy,” Horn said of Wells. “We are so proud of how he’s grown as a player and a person. The sad reality of college basketball is that players this good don’t stay anywhere anymore. What he valued over being at a bigger place or more money is being able to try and win a championship as such a focal point on the team. And there’s nothing wrong with either way, but I think that shows an awful lot about what type of kid he is.”
Northern Kentucky exhibited the championship DNA that exists within the program and will try to carry that on as it advances to play Green Bay on Sunday in Indianapolis. Oakland finishes an up and down season that included the hardest non-conference schedule in the country, an MTE sweep, a blazing conference start and a February collapse at 16-16 overall.
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