THE BASICS
Summit League Women's Basketball Championship Quarterfinal
Score: Oral Roberts 92 – South Dakota 69
Records: ORU (12-18); South Dakota (14-16)
Location: PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, S.D.

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Behind swarming defense and a game-high 24 points from Hannah Cooper, the Oral Roberts women's basketball team rolled past South Dakota, 92-69, in Sunday's Summit League Women's Basketball Championship Quarterfinal at the PREMIER Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. With the win, ORU advances to the semifinals for the second straight season.

Along with her 24 points, Cooper dished out a game-best seven assists, pulled down six rebounds and registered a game-high five steals. The 20-plus performance was the senior's 15th of the season and second straight. Ruthie Udoumoh followed Cooper with 19 points on 8-of-15 shooting to go along with five rebounds and two assists. The junior also finished the day 3-for-4 from beyond the arc. 

Tirzah Moore rounded out the double-figure scoring for the Golden Eagles as the sophomore netted 13 points on 6-of-8 shooting to go along with a team-best eight rebounds. Off the bench, Lauren Ramey contributed with nine points and six boards. 

After the two sides traded the opening 12 points, ORU used a 10-2 run to take a 16-8 lead with 3:08 left in the quarter. Udoumoh's first triple of the game sparked the run and Delaney Nix capped it off with one of her own. A 5-0 spurt by the Coyotes drew them to within four with :24 ticks left on the clock but Cooper responded on the other end with her first three-pointer of the contest to give ORU a 22-15 advantage after the first.

The Golden Eagles continued to turn up the pressure in the second as a 7-0 run gave them their largest lead of the half, 37-23, with 2:09 left on the clock. During the stretch, Walker netted five of the seven ORU points. Despite the Coyotes scoring five of the final seven points, the Golden Eagles headed to the break with a 39-28 advantage. In the opening half, ORU totaled 17 points off of 10 South Dakota turnovers.

An 8-0 run by the Coyotes out the break saw the ORU lead dwindle to three, 39-36, with 7:40 remaining in the third. South Dakota later drew within one, 48-47, on a Grace Larkins three at the 5:00 mark. Udoumoh answered on the other end with a three of her own and sparked a 14-4 run for the Golden Eagles as their lead extended back to double-digits, 62-51, with :26 ticks remaining on the clock. A pair of free throws by the Coyotes marked the final points of the period as ORU headed to the fourth with a 62-53 advantage.

The Golden Eagles' lead bloomed to 19, 76-57, following a 14-4 start to the fourth. Ramey jumpstarted the stretch with a second-chance bucket and Cooper finished off with a fastbreak layup. Udoumoh later put ORU up 20, 80-60, following a fastbreak layup with 5:35 left on the clock. The Golden Eagles took their largest lead of the game, 92-66, courtesy of a 5-0 spurt as :09 ticks remained in the contest. Despite South Dakota netting a three prior to the buzzer, ORU went on to claim the 92-69 victory. 

THE LEADERS
Oral Roberts: Cooper delivered a strong all-around performance as the senior poured in 24 points to go along with seven assists, six rebounds and five steals. The El Paso, Texas, native led all players in assists, points and steals on the afternoon.

South Dakota: Grace Larkins and Carley Duffney led the Coyotes with 19 points apiece. Larkins also pulled down a game-high nine rebounds.
                                                                                                                                                 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
- ORU scorched the nets as they shot 49.3 percent from the field.
- From downtown, the Golden Eagles knocked down 10 threes.
- ORU forced 21 turnovers and racked up 13 steals, led by Cooper's five.
- The Golden Eagles netted 28 points off of turnovers on the day.
- Cooper dished out seven of the team's 19 assists.
- The Golden Eagles turned it over a season-low nine times.
- Moore registered four of ORU's six blocks, which led all players.
- The sophomore also totaled four steals on the afternoon, which matched her career-high.
- The Golden Eagles were outrebounded, 36-32, on the day.
- All seven ORU players that saw action registered at least nine points.
- Ariel Walker, Nix and Sara Rodrigues each contributed with nine points apiece. 
- Nix also recorded five dimes on the afternoon.

GAME NOTES
- Sunday's meeting marked the 25th all-time between the two squads.
- The win marked ORU's first over the Coyotes since 2016, snapping a 19-game losing streak.
- Cooper has now reached double-figures in 25 straight games and 29 of the 30 contests this season.
- The 20-plus point performance was the senior's 15th of the year and second straight.
- Udoumoh surpassed double-figures for the 15th time this season.
- Moore logged double-figures for the 42nd time in her career.

Up Next
The Golden Eagles will now face top-seeded South Dakota State tomorrow at 12:30 p.m. for a spot in the Summit League Women's Basketball Championship Final.

For the latest information on ORU women's basketball, follow @ORUWBB on Twitter or go to www.ORUAthletics.com.  Fans can also receive updates on the team by downloading the new ORU Athletics app in the Google Play or App stores.

---#GoldenStandard---