While many think Oakland U is in California — maybe even the Veep? — local cities spar for ownership

Pittsburgh — Oakland coach Greg Kampe said Thursday night, following a bracket-busting win over Kentucky here at PPG Paints Arena, that the program and the school had introduced itself to the nation.

That's not to say everyone still knows exactly where Oakland is located.

"Oakland, California?" N.C. State big man DJ Burns told reporters, following his team's win over Texas Tech to set up a Round of 32 game with Oakland at 7:10 Saturday.

He was told, no, Michigan.

"Oh," Burns said, "I didn't know that. But they're putting themselves on the map, so I definitely won't forget it."

You can excuse folks from outside Michigan for not knowing where Oakland is located.

But, fascinatingly, Friday on X (formerly Twitter), a debate broke out among municipalities inside of Michigan about exactly where Oakland is located.

"It's actually Rochester Hills," the official city X account posted Friday.

"Are we sure," the Auburn Hills Police Department responded, adding a photo of an Auburn Hills welcome sign that adds, "Home of Oakland University."

And, then, there's Oakland itself, which uses the Rochester dateline for game-recap stories on its athletics website. As such, The News has long used the Rochester dateline when covering events on Oakland's campus, which on maps stretches across Rochester Hills and Auburn Hills.

Oakland athletic director Steve Waterfield, who took the job in 2018 and isn't a Michigan native, was asked about the confusion before walking into a closed practice Friday afternoon.

He said his business cards say Rochester.

"And I just go by what it says," Waterfield said.

The school's official mailing address is 2200 N. Squirrel Road in Rochester Hills. The O'Rena, home of the men's and women's basketball teams and other Oakland sports, has a mailing address of 69 Pioneer Drive in Rochester but appears on map boundaries to be in Auburn Hills. The basketball teams' new planned practice facility will be on the site of the old Baker College in Auburn Hills.

So, there ya go. Fight it out, you three.

The rest of the country can keep Googling, "Where is Oakland?"

Which, you have to wonder, if Vice President Kamala Harris did before filling out her NCAA Tournament bracket. More than 95% of ESPN's brackets had Kentucky winning, but Harris was an outlier, going with Oakland. Oakland, Calif., of course, would be in her backyard. She was a U.S. senator from California, and before that, attorney general of California, and before that, district attorney in San Francisco, which is, of course, near Oakland. Maybe Harris thinks Oakland is in Oakland, Calif.; more likely, maybe she just likes the school's name, given her background. Or, maybe, just maybe, she knows more about basketball than the rest of us.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer also picked Oakland in her bracket because, of course, she had to. Local pols always pick the local team. And she knows where Oakland University is; well, as much as the rest of us, anyway.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

@tonypaul1984