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We don't have a team who knows (or wants) to play defense or rebound. Just that simple. We may not have the offensive horse (Abmas) or the gigantic horse (Vanover) but we certainly have the ability to stop guys from dribbling coast to coast and getting a free layup. Or helping out on the weak side to prevent a bunny under the basket. Or running hard at the wing to prevent a wide open 3. Or move their feet to force a lower percentage jump shot rather than an open lane to the basket. Or turn and put a butt on a guy to block out instead of just turning to the basket and allowing the other guy to gain better position for the o-board unchecked. Or crash the offensive boards when the shot goes up instead of running to the other end of the court with no chance for an offensive rebound. Or maybe even following your shot. These don't take horses. They just take guys who know how to play hard.

Not sure if this has ever been posted - my apologies if it has. I found this video on the history of the Mabee Center, and I think some of you may find it interesting. Very in-depth, well researched video, with press clippings and such. Anyone who hasn't seen this will probably learn something.

It's possible that St. Thomas is the best team in the league. The grind of the conference will tell. I really like Coach Springmann and the kind of guy he is and I really appreciate the kind of people we have on the roster. Quality and talented young men, no doubt. It just seems to me they have to toughen up and play with a lot more intensity.

I’m pretty sure I’ve posted this photo before, but I thought it appropriate to post again. If you talk to me for very long you’ll find that I tell the same stories over and over again, too!

I committed to attending ORU the day after the upset (learned about it via the homepage of CBSsports.com) Loved seeing a small, private school get that exposure. Sports matter.

I brought along the Sports Illustrated I had received that morning listing Kansas as their pick for #1 in the nation!! One of the most memorable aspects of that game was how Marchello Vealy went off on Kansas that night. Not only was that the only game in which he performed at such a level, he ended up not completing his four years at ORU. (Later that season I brought that SI to a game and had the entire team sign the cover!!)

Tough weekend for TheEagleman.....first my beloved Golden Eagles go down in flames at home to St. Thomas...then the football Eagles fail to show in Tampa Bay for a playoff game to finish off the end of a disasterous Dec/Jan of the 2023 NFL season.......oh well....we will get em next season.....maybe.....lots of changes coming for sure....at this point TheEagleman has no answers for ORU or the Eagles.....plus we got our first measurable snow in two years last night.....guess the only way to dull the pain is..........no worries, friend....TheEagleman will survive.....God is Good all the time!!

I feel like I'm breaking up a fight on the playground, but here goes: D.J. played his freshman year in 2018-19, and redshirted in 2019-20 due to injury. With his COVID year, he's played four seasons (including this one) since then. For whatever reason, ESPN only lists the most recent four seasons in their bio for him. Here are his actual stats for his career, showing he has scored 1104 points to date: Moral to the story: since all those firings by parent company Disney, ESPN is about as reliable as Wikipedia (less so?) when it comes to actual facts.

I was on the bus. So was Luke Spencer-Gardner’s mother if I remember correctly. I kept taking pictures of the scoreboard to record our lead - thinking it would go away. Never did. My seat was on the top row in the corner. When I stood up, my head touched the ceiling.

I thoroughly enjoyed this video. My wife and I were on the bus to the Kansas upset game. We were not seated with the other ORU fans, but were the only ORU fans seated among hundreds of Kansas fans, who remained standing and shouting for at least 90% of the game. At the end, the Kansas fans were very gracious and congratulated us. That was a night to remember.

What a great video! Raise your hand if you were on that bus to Lawrence, KS for the upset of the Jayhawks? (Truth be told, it really wasn't that dramatic getting to the game: just north of Owasso on Hwy 169, we heard a banging luggage bay door that would not latch. Luckily, the bus barn just happened to be headquartered a few miles away, so the replacement bus got there within 30 minutes of the call. We still had time for a pre-game dinner at a Lawrence restaurant. And what a great trip back to Tulsa afterward!)

Thanks for posting, nodak. I had not seen it, but perhaps others have. It did indeed provide great detail and depth regarding the history of ORU in general, and Mabee Center in particular. He related many stories that have been fodder for discussion on this message board over the years. I found it interesting that the total cost of Mabee Center in 1972 was less than half the renovation cost in 2021. Also, the stated capacity of Mabee Center of 10,575 for many years, as was mentioned in the video, has been reduced since the renovation to 10,154, presumably due to the replacement of the old seating and the inclusion of suites to each side of the arena (which we recently discussed on here). I believe there are several regulars on this board (at least a couple) that were in attendance at that inaugural Mabee Center game against Wisconsin on December 4, 1972. It was a remarkably well done video by someone who I assume has no real connection to ORU, as he has done similar videos for arenas and stadiums across the country. There was a time a while back when we discussed the possibility of assembling a history of ORU athletics based on scrapbooks of articles collected by ORU's long-time and iconic athletic trainer, Glenn Smith. Perhaps this video could serve as impetus for us to revisit that idea.

The Summit League does not have big NIL money to throw at players and it will most likely take teams a few years to get that point. ORU still builds the same way they have for quite a while: find hidden gems from Texas (Bedford is an example). Coach Springmann has a lot of connections in the state of Texas, as he was an assistant with the Longhorns for a long time. He will find those overlooked high school or juco guys from Texas and develop them.

In fairness, this past Sunday at 2:00pm in Tulsa was a miserable time to attend a game: snowing, with a temperature hovering just above zero. But it highlights a problem for DECADES with attendance at both TU basketball and football games: inadequate parking. Tulsa should have YEARS AGO bought up all the little 900-square-foot houses east of Harvard Ave. and north of 11th Street and built a nice, big parking garage. But they didn't, and now that real estate has gone up in value exponentially. Maybe someday they will get serious about athletics and build a parking garage somewhere near the Reynolds Center and Skelly Stadium, but until they do (and in the meantime force fans to walk several blocks back & forth in all kinds of weather), they can expect their attendance figures to continue to fall victim to big screen TV's and comfy couches.

Everyone on the bus had seats for the game in the farthest back rows in the corner of "The Phogg", and ORUTerry is not exaggerating: when you stood up, you had to be careful not to bang your head on the iron beams supporting the roof. Great perspective, though, of the Allen Fieldhouse faithful from that height; the place was electric! I recall ORUTerry and I pacing behind the back row down the stretch, ducking that beam and waiting for the inevitable KU run (or Big 12 ref whistles) that never materialized. Greatest sporting event I've ever attended, easily...

Bill Haisten's article in today's World talks about TU's AAC slump. Here's an excerpt that discusses fan attendance (and refers to ORU): Misery for Hurricane: a stunning 1-22 slump It wasn't that long ago that the University of Tulsa annually would contend for a conference title and frequently would be on the NCAA Tournament bracket. There are fond memories of Tubby Smith's Sweet Sixteen runs and Bill Self's drive to the Elite Eight. This sort of current slump would have been unimaginable during those glory years, but it's a bitter-cold reality: With an American Athletic Conference loss to Tulane, the University of Tulsa basketball program is 1-22 in its last 23 games played against league opponents. ... …The lack of University of Tulsa basketball attendance is a nearly 20-year-old story and, frankly, I'm tired of writing about it. The essence of that narrative is that the beautiful Reynolds Center used to be packed, or close to it, during the first several seasons after construction was completed in 1998. Oral Roberts University somehow managed to draw big crowds back to the Mabee Center, so it's possible that TU officials eventually will do the same. Sunday's attendance was announced as having been 2,904, but the actual attendance was about 1,000…

The Tulsa World article said this (below). So I don't know exactly where it will go after it moves out of The Gathering Place. "After March 31, there will be a different and long-term location for the Scott Carter’s Heroes exhibit. The Carters are considering various options in Tulsa. One idea: the Grand Lobby at the BOK Center. What a grand place for the display of such an impactful and inspirational collection."

Once The Cowboys lost I was hoping the Eagles would rep the NFC East well. Not to be. As Scooter McGruder posted, "The NFC Least is back!"

Sounds like you're getting yourself in the mood for the Eagles game tonight. Preemptive strike?

Lol. Ya'll don't take FlightCrew's bait...

Stands to reason; haven't had so many guys playing five and six years before, either. Career records in and around 2020 should include multi-spiked coronavirus asterisks.