ESPN3: Chicago State Head to Oakland Today for Conclusion of Road Swing

Chicago State (1-1) at Oakland (2-0)
Date	Saturday, Nov. 19, 2016
Time	3 p.m. EST
Location	The Blacktop at O'Rena (4,000) - Rochester, Michigan
Video	ESPN3
Radio	WDFN-AM (1130) Radio
Live Stats	Oakland GameTracker
Social Media	@GoldenGrizzlies (Twitter)

Oakland Game Notes

OPENING TIP – Chicago State men's basketball concludes its short two-game road swing Saturday in the state of Michigan as it travels to Rochester for a non-conference battle versus host Oakland. The game will take place on ESPN3 from the Blacktop at the O'Rena with the tip-off set for 2 p.m. with Neal Ruhl (Play-by-Play) and Matt Dery (Analyst) calling the action.

SCOUTING CSU – CSU brings a 1-1 record into Saturday's showdown with Oakland following Thursday night's 69-51 defeat at Wisconsin which began the road swing. The Cougars are led by sophomore guard Fred Sims, Jr. (Chicago, Ill./North Lawndale), who is averaging 22.5 points and 2.5 steals per game while shooting 57 percent from three-point range and 48 percent from the field. Senior guard Clemmye Owens V (Toledo, Ohio/Rogers) is second in scoring at 15 points a game and has produced a team-leading field-goal percentage of 52 percent. Junior forward/center Deionte Simmons (Detroit, Mich./Lewisville (Texas)) leads CSU with four rebounds and 1.5 blocked shots per game, while freshman forward/center Patrick Szpir (Wheeling, Ill./Wheeling) is also averaging four boards a game.

SCOUTING OAKLAND – Oakland, heading into its second game of the week on Friday against NAIA member Goshen College, currently sports a 2-0 record after defeating Western Michigan by a score of 77-60 on Monday night. Four players are currently averaging double figure points for the Golden Grizzlies, led by redshirt junior guard Martez Walker at 21.5 points per game. Redshirt junior forward Jalen Hayes is shooting 86 percent from the free throw line and 65 percent from the field to go along with scoring 16 points a game. Redshirt senior guard Sherron Dorsey-Walker is grabbing a team-leading average of 7.5 rebounds a game and sophomore forward Xavier Hill-Mais has recorded a team-best six blocked shots.

SERIES HISTORY – Oakland has produced a 14-5 advantage in the all-time series against Chicago State which dates back to the 1998-99 season when both teams were members of the Summit League (Mid-Continent Conference). The Golden Grizzlies captured a 70-57 home win over the Green and White last season on Dec. 28, 2015 as Sims, Jr. led six CSU players that scored in double figures with 18 points.

SIMS, JR. TIES CAREER HIGH…AGAIN – Sims, Jr. equaled a career high for scoring in Thursday night's game at Wisconsin as he tallied 26 points on 10-for-22 shooting from the field and also connected on 6-for-11 from three-point range. It marked the third time that he had produced that total after doing it last season against BIG EAST Conference foes DePaul and Marquette.

STRIVING FOR NO. 1 – Palmer looks to place his name as one of the school's best offensive rebounders in the program's D-I era as he's currently second on CSU's career offensive rebounds list as he has produced 145 boards to rank second behind Carl Montgomery's total of 214.

STRIVING FOR NO. 1…PART TWO – CSU head coach Tracy Dildy heads into Saturday's game needing three wins to become the program's record holder for most Division I coaching wins. Dildy has amassed 47 career wins and is behind legendary Cougar bench boss Bob Hallberg (49) for the record.

UP NEXT – The Green and White return to the Emil and Patricia Jones Convocation Center on Tuesday, Nov. 22 to battle East-West in their final game of the year 2016 with the opening tip set for 7 p.m.

CHICAGO STATE UNIVERSITY ATHLETIC MEDIA RELATIONS