Wright State will have two more opportunities to clinch the league title outright this week, but two dangerous backcourts will look to prevent it from doing so. Just two games separate second from sixth place, with the top-five finishers earning home tournament games. So, the final week is full of games with critical implications. Below are five games that will either determine how the championship is divided or who will host a game in the upcoming league tournament.
Detroit Mercy (14-13, 11-7 HL) at Robert Morris (19-10, 11-7 HL)
Wednesday, Feb. 25, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
These two teams, along with Oakland, enter the week in a three-way tie for second place in the league. For either team to share the title, Wright State would need to go 0-2, which is unlikely, but not impossible. Even without a share of a title, this game has major importance for seeding purposes. A loss for either team creates a little grey area in terms of having a sure-fire first-round home game in the league tournament.
Robert Morris is the hottest team in the league. Ryan Prather Jr., DeSean Goode and Nikolaos Chitikoudis have been great all season, but thanks to guys like Darius Livingston, Kaleb Brown and Ta’Zir Smith stepping up, the Colonials have won eight of 10 and five in a row to recover from a subpar start to league play.
Detroit Mercy has won four consecutive games and six of its last seven contests, setting up a matchup between two of, if not the two hottest teams in the league. Orlando Lovejoy has been the steady veteran presence for the Titans, but guys like TJ Nadeau, Tyler Spratt and Legend Geeter have come up big to anchor this strong close to the season.
Wright State (18-11, 13-5 HL) at Purdue Fort Wayne (16-13, 10-8 HL)
Wednesday, Feb. 25, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
No team will draw more attention than Wright State this week. Clint Sargent’s team has a chance to clinch the Horizon League regular-season championship with a win in either of its games this week. No game in this league can be looked at as a given, and the Raiders will face two tough, but similar tests this week with glory on the line. Wednesday night, the league leaders will play at Purdue Fort Wayne, which can absolutely play spoiler. Anyone on Wright State can be the alpha in a given game. Michael Cooper leads the team in scoring, but his game-high 19 points Sunday marked the first time he’d led the team in scoring since Jan. 21. Since that contest, four players besides Cooper have led Wright State in scoring, showcasing the balance that has it on the verge of a championship.
On the opposite side, Purdue Fort Wayne has a dangerous backcourt, led by potential player of the year Corey Hadnot II. He, alongside Mikale Stevenson and DeAndre Craig Jr., pose problems on both ends for every team the Mastodons face. Purdue Fort Wayne, who rests a half game out of a home league tournament game, will come out motivated to spoil a championship celebration.
Youngstown State (15-14, 8-10 HL) at Green Bay (16-14, 11-8 HL)
Saturday, Feb. 28, 2 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
Green Bay enters the week in fifth place and would be the final team in line to host a league tournament game if the season ended today. However, it stands just a half game ahead of the aforementioned Purdue Fort Wayne. The Phoenix swept the Mastodons and Northern Kentucky, which are the two teams that could catch it in the league wins column, meaning it would have the tiebreaker over both. That means this matchup with Youngstown State is a win-and-in game in a sense, as a win would guarantee a home tournament game. Doug Gottlieb and his staff have led an incredible turnaround and a win Saturday would be a solid consolation prize with a regular-season championship no longer in the picture. Youngstown State handed Green Bay its second-consecutive loss following a five-game win streak back on Jan. 22, and that put a damper on the momentum the Phoenix had built at the time. Cris Carroll remains an all-league talent, despite the Penguins having plenty of struggles this season. If Green Bay isn’t careful on senior day, Youngstown State could play spoiler.
Detroit Mercy (14-13, 11-7 HL) at Oakland (15-14, 11-7 HL)
Sunday, Feb. 28, 3 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
Rivalries are always more fun when the game means something not only because the teams dislike each other, but because the result has a major effect on standings and seeding. This has not been a rivalry that has affected the top of the Horizon League very often in recent years. This season, however, the in-state rivals will meet on the regular season’s final day in a critical game. Entering the week in a tie for second, these teams are trending in different directions.
Detroit Mercy has won six of seven and four consecutive, while Oakland just snapped a four-game losing streak. Still, you can never count out the team with the longest-tenured head coach in the sport. Isaac Garrett recently made his return from injury to supplement Tuburu Naivalurua and Michael Houge up front, and Brody Robinson may just be the frontrunner for Horizon League Player of the Year. The pieces are there for the Golden Grizzlies, but the on-court product hasn’t looked it the last few weeks. Oakland won the first meeting in Detroit, which should give the Titans even more motivation in an already heated rivalry matchup.
Wright State (18-11, 13-5 HL) at Northern Kentucky (17-12, 9-9 HL)
Saturday, Feb. 28, 7 p.m. ET, on ESPN+
Should Wright State take care of business on Wednesday in Fort Wayne, this game won’t have a ton of meaning. Given the tip-off time for this game, all other results will be final, so it will either have no impact on seeding or it will be a win and clinch outright, or lose and share the title for the Raiders. Northern Kentucky, like Purdue Fort Wayne which Wright State faces on Wednesday, poses a similar challenge defensively as it has and explosive backcourt. Donovan Oday and Dan Gherezgher are third and sixth, respectively, in the league in scoring, and LJ Wells and Kael Robinson aid their offensive efforts by each averaging just under 14 per game. The Norse possesses the second-ranked scoring offense in the league, fifth-ranked defense and are fourth in total rebounding. It has just been a struggle to put all of its strengths together at once, hence the .500 league record. Still, Northern Kentucky is dangerous should Wright State be in a position to need a win to clinch outright. And regardless, the Norse will be looking to build positive momentum heading into the postseason as they are plenty talented to be a dark horse in the league tournament.
