Box Score The Basics
Score: Oral Roberts 76 – South Dakota State 81
Record: ORU (10-4), (0-0) – South Dakota State (11-3), (0-0)
Location: Mabee Center (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
 
TULSA, Okla. – The ORU women's basketball team dropped a nailbiter to the South Dakota State Jackrabbits in their first game of Summit League play.
 
Taleyah Jones put ORU on her back, scoring 28 points on the night, shooting 11-20 from the floor, racking up four steals and grabbing two rebounds. Emily Robinson also had a stellar night, scoring 21 points on 7-13 shooting from the field. Robinson also tallied three steals and one steal.
 
Emily Robinson knocked down a triple out of the gate for ORU, making the Golden Eagles' presence felt. Makyra Tramble, Ruthie Udoumoh and Taleyah Jones each followed with jumpers of their own, but SDSU quickly extended their lead to four (16-20) with 1:16 to play in the first. Jones hit her first triple of the game followed by a jumper from Udoumoh to spark a 5-3 run to end the quarter, cutting the lead to two (21-23) heading into the second.

ORU allowed a triple to open the second before trading baskets with SDSU, down three (27-30) with 8:03 to go before the half. With 6:34 left in the second, the Golden Eagles fell into their deepest hole of the game, down eight (27-35). Emily Robinson and Jalei Oglesby proceeded to catch fire, scoring all 11 of ORU's points during the final six minutes of the period, down just three (40-43) heading into the break.
 
A tough bucket from Meghan Weinrich and a triple from Emily Robinson tied the game at 45 to open the second half for ORU. Robinson scored the Golden Eagles' next seven points adding a triple onto the stat sheet in the process, leaving them in a one-point hole (51-52). Four points from Oglesby closed out the third but three minutes without a bucket for the Golden Eagles proved costly, heading into the final quarter down eight.

Taleyah Jones and Emily Robinson scored every point for ORU in the fourth, with Jones racking up 12 and Robinson tallying six. An electric and-one layup and three from Taleyah Jones had the Mabee Center rocking but it wasn't enough to overcome the Jackrabbit powerhouse as ORU was handed their first loss at home this season.

The Leaders
Oral Roberts: Taleyah Jones scored a season-high 28 points on 11-20 shooting. She tacked on two threes, four steals and two rebounds to the stat sheet, playing all 40 minutes in the loss.
 
South Dakota State: Katie Vasecka scored a team-high 21 points on 8-11 shooting, knocking down four threes in the process. She also grabbed five rebounds and logged one block.

Inside the Box Score

• ORU fell at the Mabee Center for the first time this season.

• The Golden Eagles have lost the last 27 matchups against the Jackrabbits.
• Despite forcing more turnovers (17-10) and grabbing more steals (10-5), the Golden Eagles were outrebounded offensively 13-7 and blocked six times compared to ORU's zero.
• Taleyah Jones set season-highs in points (28) and steals (4) while also marking her fourth game this season with 4+ threes made.
• Emily Robinson tied her career-high in points, scoring 21.

• ORU had their best game from the line this season, shooting 92.3% (12-13) from the stripe.
• The Golden Eagles had their fourth best three points shooting night this season, shooting 37.5% (6-16) in the matchup.

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