Box Score | Season Stats | 2021-22 Schedule
The Basics
Score: Oral Roberts 80 - Colorado State 109
Record: ORU (0-1) - CSU (1-0)
Location: Fort Collins, Colo. (Moby Arena)
 
FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Oral Roberts men's basketball could not slow down the offense of Colorado State, a team receiving votes in the AP Top 25 poll, in the second half dropping its season opener on the road, 109-80, Tuesday night inside Moby Arena. The Golden Eagles were out-scored by a 59-37 margin in the final 20 minutes.

Carlos Jürgens converted a mid-court steal and finished at the rim for the first points of the 2021-22 campaign as ORU jumped to a 4-0 advantage. CSU responded by hitting a pair from distance as the lead changed sides nine times over the opening eight minutes until a 3-pointer from newcomer Issac McBride gave the visitors a 15-13 lead. The Rams used a 12-4 run over the next two minutes to jump in front 25-19 at the mid-point of the stanza.

The Golden Eagles cut the margin down to two, 26-24, as McBride knocked home his second triple of the night. The home crowd of 7,287 spurred on the Rams in a span of 2:39 as they tallied eight-straight points for a double-digit advantage, 34-24. It took less than two minutes for the ORU offense to close the gap behind a 7-0 run as DeShang Weaver drained a 3-pointer from the wing starting the burst and Francis Lacis capped it off on an offensive rebound and put-back. The Golden Eagles pulled within two and stayed in striking distance as Max Abmas recorded the final seven ORU points of the half heading into the break trailing 50-43.

Abmas finally converted from long range early in the second half as the junior made it a two possession game, 52-46. CSU capitalized on a 10-3 stretch that covered three minutes and took control of the action limiting the Golden Eagles offense to just five points in a seven-minute span, while scoring 24 of its own pushing the margin to 86-57.

ORU struggled to contain the Rams down the stretch as the home side shot 67 percent from the floor in the second half sealing the 109-80 setback on opening night.
 
Turning Point
After Kareem Thompson drilled a 3-pointer making it a 36-34 deficit for ORU late in the first half, the Rams stretched their lead back into double figures two minutes into the second frame and held that for the remainder of the night.
 
Individual Leaders
Oral Roberts: Abmas put together his 30th career game scoring at least 20 points and added two rebounds and two assists.

Colorado State: John Tonje went off for a career-best 31 points topping his previous high of 15 points as he shot 10-of-14 from the floor and made all eight free throws.

Inside the Box Score
- Abmas, the reigning scoring champ in the NCAA, put up 15 points in the first half alone and closed the night with a team-best 20.

- Jürgens shined in all aspects as the redshirt junior tallied 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting to go with four rebounds, a team-high three assists and two blocked shots.

- In his first game with the Golden Eagles, McBride knocked down 4-of-8 shots from distance finishing with 12 points. Weaver joined him in double figures adding 11 points as he made three 3-pointers, while Trey Phipps also made his ORU debut scoring eight points.

- Thompson led the team with eight rebounds, which equaled his career high, and tied for the team high adding three assists.
 
News and Notes
- The Golden Eagles dished out 12 assists against just five turnovers.
 
- ORU ended the night hitting 12-of-40 from 3-point range shooting 30 percent and shot 40 from the floor overall.
 
- Elijah Lufile made his return to the lineup after missing the entire 2020-21 season. Sir Issac Herron played four minutes off the bench in his first collegiate contest.
 
Up Next
ORU returns to the hardwood for its home opener Nov. 12 inside the renovated Mabee Center hosting Southwestern Christian at 7 p.m. as part of its Homecoming festivities. Catch all the action streaming live on the ORU Sports Network and ORUSN Roku app.
 
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.