theeagleman5 Posted December 27, 2018 Share Posted December 27, 2018 Conference play opens up for ORU in Omaha on Sunday evening.....the Mavericks play Friday night vs. Denver so let's hope that game goes into triple OT and tires them out....Omaha is 6-7 on the season and have won 3 straight....the Golden Eagles limp in at 4-11 but will have had 8 days off.....not sure it will matter....can't see ORU starting off Summit League action with a road win but TheEagleman will hold off until the weekend before making a prediction....expecting the Mavericks to be about a 10 point favorite......Go Blue!!... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 27, 2018 Share Posted December 27, 2018 I'm guessing the line will be more like -6 or -7, but wouldn't be surprised at -10. Omaha was playing well going into the Christmas break, while Denver is coming off a 61-point loss at Gonzaga last week. Curious to see how that game plays out; Omaha is favored by 7.5 points over the Pioneers. On related topics, here are the latest conference office notes (see ORU in last place league-wide in the NET rankings, at 308. #smh) http://www.thesummitleague.org/sports/mbkb/2018-19/releases/20181227lhego1 Also, Coach Mills has mentioned at least a couple of times over the past two weeks that ORU is ranked in the top 10 nationally in the curious statistic of "Most Improved Teams Since Start of Season". I've been unable to find this analytic anywhere online; can someone tell me who compiles such a stat? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Cornelius Posted December 27, 2018 Share Posted December 27, 2018 2 hours ago, Old Titan said: Also, Coach Mills has mentioned at least a couple of times over the past two weeks that ORU is ranked in the top 10 nationally in the curious statistic of "Most Improved Teams Since Start of Season". I've been unable to find this analytic anywhere online; can someone tell me who compiles such a stat? Oh I'm sure with sites like KenPom and Bart Tovik there are lots of different ways to measure improvement relative to the rest of the NCAA. That Bart Torvik "Four Factors Team Trend" is the closest thing I can think of. Coach Mills did also say in the media prior to the Mayor's Cup one of the reasons for that is we have nowhere to go but up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Ben Johnson of the Tulsa World is also "stringing" for Mid-MajorMadness.com this season, covering the Summit League. Here's his latest installment, headed into conference play: <br> Nice to see that Ben can still take a more civil tone when he wants too; he's gotten REALLY snarky lately about life in general (and ORU in particular) on Twitter... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Here but for the grace of God go our boys this season... The problem isn't snow; it's the temperature: as of 11am Friday, it's ZERO degrees in Fargo, with a 23 mph wind, and it's dropping to -10 tonight. Tomorrow will be a balmy 12 degrees (which is sure better than the -24 with snow that's forecast for Monday night). This means, unless there's another schedule change, NDSU will host back-to-back games Saturday (vs. USD) and Sunday (vs. IPFW). Pretty tough 24-hour turnaround, but they have the advantage of 1.) being at home, and 2.) opponents' concerns over frostbite and polar bear attacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 UND follows suit, which means IPFW has to play twice in 24 hours, traveling by bus from Grand Forks to Fargo in between - not good! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORUTerry Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Explain to me again why we want another Dakota school in the conference and not Grand Canyon which is in Arizona? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORUTerry Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Omaha won their last three games (at Idaho, 89 to 80; UC-Santa Barbara, 85 to 74 and at Rice, 83 to 66) They can score (77.2 ppg) - averaging 85.7 points in their last 3 games. They shoot 46.7% from the field and 37.7% (116/308) from 3-pt line; 72.2% free throws. we have to guard the perimeter. The Mavericks are not a big team but have three players/contributors listed at 6'8". Top scorers are: Jackson (6'5" senior): 18.4 ppg (53.5% fg; 45.5% - 3pt) He can score Gibson (6'3" junior): 13.5 ppg (45.5% fg; 41.3% 3pt) Robinson (6'0" junior): 10.5 ppg (43.0% fg; 39.5% 3pt) Their two big guys (Hahn - 6'8" senior and Pile - 6'8" sophomore) both average 9.4 ppg. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91jack Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 28 minutes ago, Old Titan said: UND follows suit, which means IPFW has to play twice in 24 hours, traveling by bus from Grand Forks to Fargo in between - not good! I guess this makes things more even. Now both NDSU and Purdue Fort Wayne have to play on back-to-back days. Even though NDSU was at home I thought they were getting the short end of it since IPFW would of had a day off and USD only has one game this weekend. The roads are slick around the Dakotas. They did shut down the interstate last night north of Brookings to the North Dakota border. The sun is out right now but since it's 3 degrees in Brookings right now it's still cold. Looks lovely out the window though! I heard that SDSU was driving to Sioux Falls yesterday at 4PM to take their fight to Western Illinois for todays games. The plane was supposed to take off yesterday at 6PM so I would think teams should be/ were able to fly but the icey roads and wind made driving interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
91jack Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 20 minutes ago, ORUTerry said: Explain to me again why we want another Dakota school in the conference and not Grand Canyon which is in Arizona? I would hope we want Grand Canyon in the league but we might need to get better to make it more desirable for them. If the Summit League turned away Grand Canyon or NMSU I would be really disappointed. As far as Omaha goes, I have not followed them much this season but they normally are one of if the the highest scoring team in the Summit. They still have Hahn who is a center but he likes to shoot from outside and Pile who (I think) isn't scared to go down low. I think they are a guard dominated team other than them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Cornelius Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 2 minutes ago, 91jack said: I would hope we want Grand Canyon in the league but we might need to get better to make it more desirable for them. If the Summit League turned away Grand Canyon or NMSU I would be really disappointed. Unfortunately that did happen in Grand Canyon's case. University of Manitoba would honestly have been a better addition than UND. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORUTerry Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Heard the Dakota schools and Omaha nixed Grand Canyon. We wanted them in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keenan Henderson Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 ORU played well against Omaha last year, beating them twice. Albert and Javan had their way inside. So if they can pound the ball inside (Chris Miller needs to step up) and dominate the glass then they have a shot to win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ORUTerry Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 Chris Miller needs to stay in the game. If he could just discipline himself not to foul. He had a recent game where, according to the stats, he picked up five(!!) fouls in 3-1/2 minutes of playing time. We need him in the game - not on the bench. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 4 hours ago, 91jack said: I guess this makes things more even. Now both NDSU and Purdue Fort Wayne have to play on back-to-back days. Even though NDSU was at home I thought they were getting the short end of it since IPFW would of had a day off and USD only has one game this weekend. The roads are slick around the Dakotas. They did shut down the interstate last night north of Brookings to the North Dakota border. The sun is out right now but since it's 3 degrees in Brookings right now it's still cold. Looks lovely out the window though! I heard that SDSU was driving to Sioux Falls yesterday at 4PM to take their fight to Western Illinois for todays games. The plane was supposed to take off yesterday at 6PM so I would think teams should be/ were able to fly but the icey roads and wind made driving interesting. To say that IPFW is somehow now "even" with NDSU (or anyone else) on this opening weekend, or that NDSU was otherwise "getting the short end of it", is ridiculous. First off, IPFW has to get TO Grand Forks, which even in the summertime is no picnic: either you bus the whole way from Fort Wayne, or you fly to Minneapolis and bus from there, or something similar. Then, you have to get from Grand Forks to Fargo, THEN get from Fargo BACK to Fort Wayne by hook and crook over New Year's Eve, all in the span of around 72 hours. Mix in the way-too-short hotel room beds, the hotel room heater that leaves you either feezing or roasting in the middle of the night, the crappy food at whatever roadside diner happens to not have frozen water pipes, the never-ending diesel exhaust from the bus (how does it get in the hotel lobby, anyway?), plus forgetting to pack a mask to avoid getting your nose frozen off, and it all adds up to one big pain in the ice. NDSU, by comparison, just has to get back-&-forth from the dorm to the arena on consecutive days. Big whoop. And, they've probably already got snowshoes, arctic weather gear, and gas-powered hand warmers from their high school days walking three miles both ways from the dairy farm. Not to mention the usual comforts of home for the Dakota schools: the adoring leather-lunged fans, the same three referees that work as high school vice-principals in neighboring counties, and, of course, the succulent lutefisk (Google it). Sorry, that's not "even" for the visitor. Not "even" close. (rimshot) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 2 hours ago, ORUTerry said: Chris Miller needs to stay in the game. If he could just discipline himself not to foul. He had a recent game where, according to the stats, he picked up five(!!) fouls in 3-1/2 minutes of playing time. We need him in the game - not on the bench. He loses his temper, and then just goes "rogue". It's not just childish, it's selfish...the team needs him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Titan Posted December 28, 2018 Share Posted December 28, 2018 4 hours ago, Dr. Cornelius said: Unfortunately that did happen in Grand Canyon's case. University of Manitoba would honestly have been a better addition than UND. UND will start looking pretty good once Douple announces in the spring that Sioux Falls-based Augustana University is joining (as they make the transition from D-2). At least the Vikings (not making that up) play baseball... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theeagleman5 Posted December 29, 2018 Author Share Posted December 29, 2018 About 24 hours until ORU opens Summit League play in Omaha.....the Mavs won last night at home vs. Denver by 7.....TheEagleman will agree that Omaha is a mediocre Summit team at best and ORU does have a shot to steal this one since the home team has only about 36 hours to rest and prepare....but it's still gonna be tough....our Golden Eagles just haven't shown that they have the consistency, ball handling and shooting skills to win....gotta take Omaha in this one which will likely be a high scoring affair since both team average giving up 77 points per game......Omaha 87 ORU 78...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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