'Just Shoot It, Baby!' 14-Seed Oakland Shocks Kentucky On 3-Point Gohlke(s) Galore

Oakland's Jack Gohlke is Cinderella, whether he likes it or not.

Gohlke, a senior guard from Pewaukee, Wisconsin, may not look the part. But he hit 10-of-20 3-point field goals, or Gohlkes, for the second most in NCAA Tournament history Thursday night to send No. 3 seed Kentucky down the hole to a double-digit seed in the first round for the second time in three years in an 80-76 loss in Pittsburgh.

Oakland's Jack Gohlke (3) celebrates one of his 10 3-pointers in an upset win over No. 3 seed Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Thursday night at PPG Paints Arena in Pittsburgh. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)

"Appreciate it," Gohlke said in a postgame interview. "But we're not Cinderella."

Oakland, the Horizon League Tournament champions from Rochester, Michigan, sure seem like Cinderella. The Golden Grizzlies (24-11) played in their first NCAA Tournament since 2011 and won their first NCAA Tournament game since beating Alabama A&M in the 2005 First Four.

Kentucky (23-10) lost to No. 15 seed Saint Peter's, 85-79, in overtime two years ago. Kentucky coach John Calipari has not made it past the second round since 2019, when he reached the Elite Eight.

Oakland's Jack Gohlke Took Only 3-Pointers

"It's a dream," said Gohlke, who took only 3-pointers, other than 2-of-3 free throw shooting, and finished with 32 points. He came one 3-pointer short of tying the NCAA Tournament record of 11 by Loyola Marymount's Jeff Fryer in a 149-115 win over Michigan on March 18, 1990.

"This is why you work so hard," Gohlke said.

"He had no conscience," Oakland coach Greg Kampe said perfectly of Gohlke. "I told him, ‘Just shoot it baby, you’re the best.' And he's the best. And he proved it to the world tonight. This is what we wanted - this stage. We wanted Kentucky because they're the best. They're the best."

Well, there was a time when they were. But Calipari is 1-3 in his last four NCAA Tournament games.

Kentucky coach John Calipari fell to 1-3 in his last four NCAA Tournament appearances with his second first round loss to a double-digit seed in three years on Thursday. (Getty Images)

"This one hit me hard again," Calipari said, referencing the loss to Saint Peter's. "You go through this and the ups and downs of this sport. But this one, I'm really hurting for them. Because there are other years where you max out and you lose a game, but this team, I really felt could've done so much more. And our fans were here again. I feel bad for them."

Oakland advances to play on Saturday against the winner of a late game Thursday between No. 6 seed Texas Tech (23-10) and another Cinderella. That is No. 11 seed North Carolina State (22-14), which won five games in five days to win the ACC Tournament and automatic bid.

"What this means to our university, it's just unbelievable," said Kampe, 68, who has been Oakland's coach since the 1984-85 season when the NCAA Tournament went to 64 teams. "I'm happy for my players. We're going to enjoy about 45 minutes of this. Then we're going to get ready, because we've got the chance of a lifetime. This isn't the end of it. We've got more."