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The Basics
Score: Oral Roberts 85 – Kansas City 57
Record: ORU (21-4, 12-0) – KC (10-15, 6-6)
Location: Kansas City, Mo. (Swinney Center)
 
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the 14^th time in program history, the Oral Roberts men's basketball team earned its 21^st victory in a season with an 85-57 victory at Kansas City Saturday evening.

Max Abmas achieved another milestone of his career Saturday by moving to 4^th all-time in points scored in the ORU record book. Abmas surpassed Golden Eagle great Anthony Roberts to become fourth all-time and now has 2,355 career points. He also moved up to No. 4 in the Summit League record book as well in the same category. Abmas led all scorers with 21 points, his 15^th 20-plus point outing of the season. He was one of four to record double-digit points.
 
The Golden Eagles scored the first points of the game on the opening possession, but Kansas City would then go on a 7-0 run to lead, 7-2, a couple of minutes in. Unknowingly at the time, it would be the Roos largest lead of the game. Oral Roberts then went on a 12-0 run to lead by seven. During the run, ORU held Kansas City scoreless for 8-plus minutes. With 8:08 to go, KC would make it a five point game, the closest the Roos would get the rest of the way. After back-to-back three-pointers by Abmas, the Golden Eagles led 36-22 at the half. Max became the 4^th all-time scorer in program history in the first half as he scored 14. ORU's defense held KC to 29 percent from the field and only allowed one three-pointer.
 
In the second half, the Golden Eagles went on a 12-2 run that was highlighted by a four-point play by Vanover. Vanover hit three-point jumper and was fouled, he connected on the following free-throw. ORU's run was then extended to 14-3. With 7:20 to go, the Golden Eagles led by 31, their largest lead of the night. Down the stretch, ORU's bench would add 18 points and the Golden Eagles cruised to an 85-57 road victory. Shooting above 50 percent overall, it was the seventh road victory of the season for ORU.
 
Issac McBride scored 13 on the night as it was his eighth-straight double-digit game of the season. Carlos Jurgens and Kareem Thompson each added 10 points and Vanover made five blocks. Defensively, ORU has held conference opponents to 72 or fewer points in 10 of their 12 games played. It was the eighth-straight win for ORU as the Golden Eagles have now won 18 of their last 19. Oral Roberts improves to 21-4 on the season, its best start since 2011-12. ORU now holds a three and a half game lead in the Summit League standings with six games to play.

Individual Leaders
Oral Roberts: Abmas scored 21 and Patrick Mwamba, Thompson and Vanover each grabbed eight rebounds.

Kansas City: Shemarri Allen scored 16 points and pulled down six boards.

Inside the Box Score
- ORU shot 37 percent from the three-point line.
 
- ORU shot 52.4 percent from the field.

- The Golden Eagles had 11 assists on 33 made baskets.

- Oral Roberts had 44 points in the paint and 29 bench points.

- ORU forced Kansas City to 13 turnovers and scored 15 points off those takeaways.

News and Notes

- Abmas has scored 2,355 career points which puts him 4^th all-time in the ORU record book. He is the eighth player to record 2,000-plus points in ORU history. He's recorded 389 three-pointer made making him second all-time in ORU history in that category.

- For Abmas, it was his 12^th-straight double-digit game. He moved to 4^th all-time in points scored in the Summit League record book.

- Vanover has 80 blocks on the season and is second the nation in total blocks and in blocks per game.

- The Golden Eagles improved to 12-0 in Summit League play for the first time since 2011-12. ORU now has a minimum of a three and a half game lead over everyone in the conference standings.
 
- It's the 14^th time in program history the team has won 21 games.
 
- The Golden Eagles are one of four teams in the nation to remain undefeated in conference play.
 
- Head Coach Paul Mills is three wins shy of 100 career wins as a head coach.   

Up Next
ORU will hit the road to St. Paul, Minnesota, to take on the St. Thomas Tommies Thursday, February 9 at 7 p.m.

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.