ROCHESTER, Mich. - The IU Indianapolis men's basketball team saw its offense bottled up on Wednesday night (Jan. 15) as the Jaguars fell on the road at reigning Horizon League champion Oakland University, 72-59. The Jaguars were held to under 43 percent shooting and just 6-of-23 (26.1 percent) from three-point range against OU's zone defense.

Oakland (7-12, 4-4 HL) had an efficient offensive performance, shooting 49 percent overall and 32 percent from beyond the arc. The Oakland frontcourt duo of Allen Mukeba and Tuburu Naivalurua hit a combined 14-of-16 shot attempts with Mukeba finishing with 20 points and nine rebounds. Naivalurua closed with 14 points, almost exclusively in the paint as the Jaguars' top interior defender, 7-foot graduate Julian Steinfeld, missed a third straight game due to injury. 

Jarvis Walker paced the Jaguars with 16 points and four assists and Sean Craig added 13 points and eight boards. Paul Zilinskas, coming back from injury, contributed eight points and a pair of treys off the bench. 

It was a 30-25 margin after Zilinskas deposited a wing three off a find from Caleb Hannah with 4:58 before intermission, but the Jags went scoreless from there as Oakland built a 36-25 halftime lead. The Golden Grizzlies proceeded to score the first eight points of the second half, including a pair of DQ Cole threes, to build a 19-point advantage. The lead grew as large as 21 before the Jaguars reeled off an 11-0 run to close within 10 with 5:01 to play. Eight of the points came at the free throw line, sandwiched around a Zilinskas corner three at the 5:46 mark. 

The Jags made just one field goal over the next four-plus minutes before a pair of Walker threes in the final minute helped set the final margin. 

The typically reliable three-point shooting Jaguars struggled with Oakland's zone as both Walker and Zilinskas were harassed into 2-of-7 efforts. Conversely, Cole connected on 4-of-10 from deep for the hosts as part of his 14-point effort. 

Millender and Timaris Brown scored six points each and Keenan Garner contributed five points and three rebounds. 

The Jaguars will return home to host Cleveland State on Sunday (Jan. 19) inside the Jungle at 2:00 p.m. on ESPN+. Fans can purchase tickets by clicking here.