TULSA - The Oral Roberts University women's basketball team continues Summit League play against Oakland at 7:05 p.m. on Monday night at the Mabee Center. The contest will be broadcast live on KYAL 1550 AM in the Tulsa area, as well as on www.orugoldeneagles.com.

Scouting the Golden Grizzlies
Oakland is one of four teams in Summit League play with a conference mark of 3-1, while posting an overall record of 6-9. The Golden Grizzlies have won four straight games by an average margin of 37 points. Oakland has defeated conference foes IUPUI, Western Illinois and Centenary, while dropping a six-point decision at IPFW. Melissa Jeltema leads Oakland with 16.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, while Bethany Watterworth has added 13.2 points and 6.7 rebounds per contest. Oakland is averaging 67.3 points per game and limiting their opponents to just 59.7 points a contest.

All-Time Results Versus Oakland
Monday night's contest marks the 29th meeting between the two schools as ORU holds a 16-12 advantage in the series dating back to the 1998-99 season. The Golden Eagles dropped both contests to Oakland last season, including a four-point overtime loss in Rochester. Janae Voelker led ORU with 29 total points in the two contests against the Golden Grizzlies last season.

Recapping the IPFW Game
Chelsey Jackson knocked down a jumper as time expired to lift IPFW to a 74-72 victory over Oral Roberts on Saturday afternoon at the Mabee Center. Kevi Luper scored the final seven points for ORU, including a game-tying layup with 12.1 seconds remaining, before Jackson came down to hit the game-winner. The Golden Eagles trailed by 13 points at the half and as many as 16 points early in the second half. ORU went on a 9-0 run to cut the margin to eight points before the Mastodons scored the next four to extend their lead back to 12 points at the 13:55 mark. ORU then went on a 15-2 run, capped by two consecutive steals for layups by Savanna Buck (Pinehurst, Texas), to takes its first lead of the second half at the 8:10 mark. After IPFW scored the next four points, the Golden Eagles went on a 7-0 run, highlighted by a Luper trey, to reclaim a four-point lead with 6:15 remaining. The Mastodons would drain 3-pointers on four of their next five possessions to take a four-point lead with under a minute remaining. Luper paced the Golden Eagles with 27 points off 8-of-17 shooting from the field, including one 3-pointer on two attempts, and a 10-of-12 effort from the free-throw line. Luper also snagged four steals and pulled down four rebounds. Fellow freshman Jaci Bigham finished with 20 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and a 3-of-4 performance from beyond the arc.

Among the Nation's Best
The Golden Eagles are at or near the top of several statistical categories in the NCAA for team and individual accomplishments. ORU ranks third in the country in scoring with 84.2 points per game, while ranking second in 3-point field goals per game (9.3), fourth in steals per game (13.8) and 36th in assists per game (16.1). Kevi Luper tops the NCAA in steals per game (4.6), while ranking second in scoring with 25.7 points per contest. Fellow freshman Jaci Bigham ranks 19th nationally with 2.9 3-pointer per game and 28th with 5.4 assists per contest.

The Kids are Alright
Jaci Bigham and Kevi Luper are currently the nation's top scoring tandem, combining for 42.6 points per contest through the first 16 games this season, which accounts for 47 percent of ORU's total offense. Luper, who scored a Summit League-record 44 points against La Salle on Nov. 20, ranks second in the country with 25.7 points per game, while Bigham has chipped in 16.9 points per contest. Luper set a conference record by earning four consecutive Summit League Player of the Week awards and has won five total this season, while Bigham has collected the last two, as the duo has earned seven of the eight weekly accolades. The two freshman guards have led the Golden Eagles in scoring in all but one contest this season. Luper, a native of Adair, Okla., has scored in double figures in all 14 games played this season, including 30-point performances against Southern Utah and No. 6 Baylor. Luper also set a school record with 12 steals against the Thunderbirds, and currently leads the nation with 4.6 steals per game.Bigham, a McAlester, Okla., product, has scored in double figures in the last nine contests, averaging 22.0 points during the streak. Bigham has averaged 27.2 points over the last five games, which began when Luper missed two games at the end of December with an injury. Bigham and Luper combined for 54 points on Monday night to help ORU hand South Dakota State its first-ever Summit League loss at Frost Arena, while teaming up for 47 points in Saturday's loss to IPFW.

ORU Versus the Summit League
The Golden Eagles are 3-2 in Summit League play this season, averaging 85.4 points to their opponents' 69.6 points per game. ORU cruised through the first two contests, defeating Southern Utah and UMKC by an average margin of 37 points. The Golden Eagles scored 109 points against the Thunderbirds, marking the first time ORU has surpassed the 100-point mark against a conference opponent. Against UMKC, the Golden Eagles knocked down a school-record 18 3-pointers. Last weekend the Golden Eagles traveled to the Dakotas, dropping a heartbreaking 68-66 decision to North Dakota State before handing South Dakota State its first Summit League loss at Frost Arena by a score of 81-72. The Golden Eagles suffered a 74-72 loss at home against IPFW on Saturday. Each starting player for ORU is currently leading the league in at least one category. Kevi Luper is averaging a league-best 35.9 minutes, while posting 25.7 points and 4.6 steals per game. Jaci Bigham is first in 3-pointers (46), 3-point percentage (.434) and assists per game (5.4). Janae Voelker tops the league in defensive rebounds (112) and ranks second with 8.7 rebounds per game. Jordan Pyle paces the conference in field-goal percentage (.582) and offensive rebounds (55), while Georgia Jones is tops with an assist to turnover ratio of 1.7. Since joining the conference prior to the 1997-98 season, ORU is 106-91 (.538) in regular-season play, 18-7 (.720) in tournament action and 124-98 (.559) overall.

No Place Like Home
The Golden Eagles back the belief about home field advantage, posting a 128-48 record (.727) inside the friendly confines of the Mabee Center since the 1996-97 season when head coach Jerry Finkbeiner took over the reigns of the program. ORU is currently 5-2 at home this season with dominating wins over UT-Pan American, La Salle, Southern Utah and UMKC, where the Golden Eagles have averaged a margin of victory of 32 points. In the season-opening 98-65 win against UT-Pan American on Nov. 13, the Golden Eagles held the Lady Broncs to 34 percent shooting from the field and forced 31 turnovers. Against La Salle, the Golden Eagles held the Explorers to 32 percent from the field in the 76-55 victory. Against Southern Utah on Dec. 5, the Golden Eagles tallied 109 points and set a school record with 17 3-pointers. ORU surpassed that mark the next game against UMKC with 18 treys in a 99-72 victory. ORU is averaging 88.1 points at home this season compared to its opponent's 70.4 mark.

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