BROOKINGS, S.D.—Oral Roberts University raced to a 34-13
halftime lead and cruised to a 67-52 Summit League win over South
Dakota State, giving the Golden Eagles the out-right regular-season
league title, Thursday at Frost Arena.
With the win, ORU (21-7, 16-1) not only captures their fourth
straight Summit League title but the Golden Eagles also gain the
top seed for next weekend's league tournament in Tulsa. The Summit
Leagu Tournament begins Saturday, March 8 at the UMAC.
Playing without leading scorer Robert
Jarvis (Humble, Texas) who missed his first game with a high
ankle sprain, ORU's offense was stagnant for much of the first
half. But the Golden Eagles' defense overwhelmed the less-athletic
Jackrabbits (8-20, 3-14), limiting SDSU to three first-half field
goals and 10.3 percent shooting.
South Dakota State opened the game by missing its first 19 shots,
scored its first points on a pair of free throws with just over 11
minutes left, and didn't convert a field goal until 8:59 remained
before halftime.
But ORU led just 13-5 when Mark Engen drilled a three-pointer for
SDSU's first bucket with under nine minutes to play in the half.
Another basket by the Jacks made it 13-7 before ORU turned up its
play on the offensive end.
The Golden Eagles scored the next eight points, taking a 21-7 lead
on a layup by
Andre Hardy (San Diego, Calif.) with 6:49 left in
the half.
Moses Ehambe (Arlington, Texas) scored 10 points
in the final 3:08 as ORU grabbed a 34-13 halftime lead.
Things continued to go ORU's way in the second half. Back-to-back
layups by
Marcus Lewis (Long Beach, Calif.) made it 44-17
with 16:27 to play. The lead reached 30 points when a pair of free
throws by Hardy made it 52-22 with 11:54 left. The Golden Eagles
coasted from there.
Ehambe led all scorers with 22 points, going 9-of-17 from the field
and 4-of-7 from three-point range. Though he was the only Golden
Eagle to reach double figures, several others had solid games.
Hardy, Lewis,
Adam Liberty (Oklahoma City, Okla.) and Curtis
Allen (Long Beach, Calif.) each scored eight points.
Kai Williams led SDSU with 10 points.
ORU shot 48.3 percent in the first half and 43.9 percent for the
game. The Golden Eagles grabbed a season-high 47 rebounds, compared
to 30 for the Jackrabbits.
South Dakota State shot just 31.6 percent from the field, including
4-of-17 from three-point range.
The Golden Eagles close out the regular season at North Dakota
State, 7 p.m., Saturday in Fargo, N.D.
--ORU--
