Golden Eagles ready to meet Leathernecks - TW (1-24-06)

[ORUTerry]

Golden Eagles ready to meet Leathernecks

By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer

1/24/2006

ORU's road ability has improved since a Jan. 9 loss at Valpo.

Scott Sutton said his Oral Roberts basketball team should be in better shape than the last time it went on the road.

The opponent won't be as strong, although Western Illinois did upset the Golden Eagles in Western Hall last year.

The Eagles return at 7 p.m. Tuesday to face a team with six straight losses.

"It's a game we can win, but anything can happen on the road," said Sutton, remembering last year's 83-81 loss in Macomb, Ill.

ORU has gotten healthier and shot better since its 80-60 loss at Valparaiso on Jan. 9.

"It was a different atmosphere. It was the first time for playing together with a new starting five," said 6-foot-9 swingman Yemi Ogunoye.

The Eagles were playing their fifth game in 10 days and their first since losing junior guard Ken Tutt to an injured foot two days before.

ORU had little time to practice with a new lineup and played possibly its worst game of the season against a team riding a six-game winning streak.

"That was a tough situation we had to deal with," Sutton said. "Valpo played well that night and we didn't, but we're playing with a lot more confidence now, and

our chemistry is better," Sutton said. "I feel a lot better about going to Macomb than I did that night at Valpo."

Injured guard Chris Riouse returned after the Valpo game to spur the Eagles with 3-point shooting. He made 7-of-13 treys and the Eagles were a combined 17-of-34 from behind the arc in home wins over Oakland (Mich.) and Indiana-Purdue Indianapolis.

Those games kept the Eagles in the thick of the Mid-Continent Conference race. A win at WIU would put them back into a first-place tie with IUPUI.

Ogunoye took over Tutt's spot in the starting lineup and has given the Eagles a solid defender and rebounder. ORU is also getting more production from its bench, averaging 17.7 points per game in conference play.

ORU ripped the Leathernecks 83-66 in Tulsa on Jan. 7 as Caleb Green scored 32 points. But the game was costly because Tutt went down in the first half with a stress fracture in his right foot and is expected to miss four more weeks.

With the players he brought in to supplement outstanding sophomore David Jackson, WIU coach Derek Thomas figured to be fighting for a high seed in the conference tournament -- not fighting to stay out of last place.

Thomas shuffled his lineup twice last week, but the Leathernecks lost at Southern Utah 69-53 and Chicago State 75-73, as the Cougars won on a tip-in at the buzzer.

[praetorfenix86]

We should win the game tonight but I'm always leery of mid-con road games. I remember the Western game last year and a few losses at Chicago State over the years in games we should have won. As long as our guards can shoot it well, and we play defense, ORU should take command of the game.

[ORUTerry]

Let's hope they don't double team Green.... they didn't when they played us earlier this month at the Mabee Center and Caleb shredded them. Owens also had a good game.

Hard to figure Western Illinois out. They have decent/athletic players - their recruiting has been good over the last couple of years - and they figured to move into the upper division of the conference this year. Let's hope that they don't figure out what is wrong tonight. Let's bring a win home tonight, beat up on Centenary on Thursday and have a little payback in KC on Monday.