Box Score | Season Stats | 2020-21 Schedule
The Basics
Score: Oral Roberts 64 – Missouri 91
Record: ORU (0-1) – MU (1-0)
Location: Columbia, Mo. (Mizzou Arena)
 
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor combined to score 35 points in the season opener for the Oral Roberts men's basketball team, a 91-64 loss to Missouri Wednesday night at Mizzou Arena.
 
Both players were named to the Preseason All-Summit League teams and showed their scoring abilities, especially down the stretch posting 23 of the Golden Eagles' 32 points in the second half.
 
Abmas drained a triple from the mid-court Tigers logo to even the score, 11-11, six minutes into the contest. Missouri broke the tie with the next four points and stretched the margin to 11 midway through the frame.
 
After DeShang Weaver connected from distance closing the gap to single digits, the home side took control building a 34-18 cushion by holding the Golden Eagles off the board in a nearly four-minute span. Newcomers Sheldon Stevens and Nate Clover III scored on back-to-back possessions stopping the drought, but it was the Tigers that closed the half in front, 42-32.
 
Missouri stopped the momentum and posted the first seven points of the second stanza for a 17-point edge before ORU cut it to 13 on an Abmas jumper. The Tigers used an 11-0 run to break the contest open leading, 62-38, and the margin never dropped below 20 points as the Golden Eagles could not convert enough chances late in the ballgame.
 
Turning Point
A rally before the halftime buzzer gave ORU momentum into intermission, but it was the Tigers that broke that run in the first two minutes of the second half putting up seven-straight points turning a 10-point game into a 17-point advantage.
 
Individual Leaders
Oral Roberts: Abmas led the Golden Eagles in scoring in both halves totaling 18 points shooting 6-of-16 overall. The Rockwall, Texas, native also dished out a career-high five assists.

Missouri: Mark Smith paced four Tigers in double digits with 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including a 4-of-6 effort from distance.

Inside the Box Score
- Obanor also scored in double figures registering 17 points and grabbed a team-leading nine rebounds. The redshirt junior found his rhythm late scoring 13 points in the final frame and knocked down four of his final five shots.
 
- Kareem Thompson added nine points and four rebounds in his ORU debut, while RJ Glasper joined him in the starting lineup and scored five. Weaver, playing his first game since March 2019, and Stevens also scored five points for the visitors.
 
- The Golden Eagles missed their first six 3-point attempts of the second half before Glasper hit, but ended the half shooting just 2-of-18 from behind the arc and 20 percent for the game.
 
- Missouri held an 18-12 margin at the free throw line, including the game's first 12 attempts as ORU found itself in early foul trouble. The Golden Eagles did convert 11 of those tries for a 92 percent shooting clip.
 
News and Notes
- ORU averaged 11.7 offensive rebounds per game a season ago and recorded 13 on opening night of 2020-21 thanks to a team-best three by Francis Lacis. In total, seven different players pulled down at least one offensive rebound.
 
- After shooting 35 or more times from 3-point range twice last year, the Golden Eagles attempted 35 Wednesday night hitting seven.
 
- The Golden Eagles fell to 1-3 in season openers under Head Coach Paul Mills and 33-23 in program history to begin a campaign.
 
Up Next
ORU returns to action Saturday night in its home opener welcoming Rogers State to the Mabee Center for a 7 p.m. tip live on the ORU Sports Network.
 
For the latest information on ORU Men's Basketball, follow the Golden Eagles on Twitter and Instagram, or go to www.ORUAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the ORU Athletics app from the App Store or Google Play Store.