Trey Townsend always wanted to play for Oakland; now, he's the Horizon player of the year

Growing up, all Trey Townsend wanted to be was an Oakland Golden Grizzly.

He ended up becoming one of the program's best.

Townsend, the big man for the Horizon League regular-season champions, was named the league's player of the year Monday in voting by the coaches. He's Oakland's sixth POY winner in the last 15 years.

"It's an amazing story, almost a Disney script," Oakland head coach Greg Kampe. "From going to our basketball camps since he was 8, to sitting in the stands and dreaming of playing for Oakland, to player of the year in the conference and winning a championship."

Townsend, an Oxford native, followed his father to Oakland and Kampe. Skip Townsend played for Kampe in the 1980s. Townsend's mother Nicole also played basketball at Oakland.

Townsend is averaging 17.5 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.3 steals for Oakland (20-11, 15-5), which clinched its first outright Horizon League regular-season championship with a 75-70 victory over Detroit Mercy on Saturday. Townsend had 18 points and six rebounds.

Oakland has the No. 1 seed in the Horizon League tournament and gets a first-round bye, before opening Thursday at the O'Rena against the lowest remaining seed. The semifinals and final are in Indianapolis on March 11-12.

Towsend has played four years for Oakland, but has a year left of eligibility because of COVID-19, and is a hot prospect to enter the transfer (and NIL) market for his final season.

During the postgame Senior Day ceremony Saturday, he was serenaded with fans' chants of, "One more year!"

He joins Keith Benson (twice), Kay Felder, Kendrick Nunn and Jamal Cain among Oakland players to win conference player-of-the-year honors in the last 15 seasons.

Townsend was joined on the awards' roster by two teammates: senior guard Jack Gohlke, who is the sixth man of the year, and senior swingman Blake Lampman, who made second-team all-Horizon League. Lampman also was a finalist for the league's sportsmanship award, as was Detroit Mercy sophomore guard Marcus Tankersley.

Tankersley was the only Detroit Mercy player honored Monday. Interestingly, Detroit Mercy senior guard Jayden Stone, who led the conference in scoring at 20.5 points, did not make first, second or third team. The Titans' abysmal record of 1-30, 1-19 Horizon, played a big factor there.

Detroit Mercy opens Horizon League tournament play at Milwaukee on Tuesday night.

On the women's side, Oakland sophomore point guard Brooke Quarles-Daniels (Macomb) was named to the second team and made the all-defensive team, and Detroit Mercy senior forward Irena Murua made third team. Titans guard Paris Gilmore was named to the all-freshman team.

Detroit Mercy (16-15, 9-11) open Horizon League tournament play Tuesday at home against Robert Morris, and Oakland (12-16, 8-12) play Tuesday at home against Northern Kentucky.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

@tonypaul1984