ORU gets chance at Montana (TW)

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ORU gets chance at Montana

By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer

2/18/2006

The BracketBuster game could spark the Eagles.

It doesn't come at the best time and it probably won't be easy.

Missoula, Mont., is nearly half a continent away, and wintry conditions there are said to be frightful.

But Saturday's visit to play Montana could be an opportunity for the Oral Roberts basketball team.

The Golden Eagles haven't won a big game all season, unless you count a 68-52 win over archrival Tulsa or a 67-47 win over Southern California, the Pac-10's sixth-place team, in the Great Alaska Shootout.

ORU has beaten only three teams with winning records -- USC and Monmouth in Alaska and Indiana-Purdue at the Mabee Center.

A win over a reputable foe might remind the Eagles of what they thought they were when the season started -- a team capable of advancing in the NCAA Tournament.

Montana (18-5) is second by two games in the Big Sky Conference. Northern Arizona clinched a tie for the title with an 82-73 win at Montana State on Thursday night.

As of Friday, the Grizzlies were No. 84 in the Ratings Percentage Index, compared to 150 for ORU, according to Kenpom.com.

"People around here may not know that much about Montana, but they beat Stanford

(the Pac-10's third-place team) by 19 points," said ORU coach Scott Sutton.

The Grizzlies are 11-1 this season in Dahlberg Arena, site of the 3:05 p.m. Saturday contest.

Montana coach Larry Krystkowiak doesn't share Sutton's enthusiasm for the game, one of 50 ESPN BracketBusters matchups this weekend.

The made-for-television event was meant for higher-rated mid-major teams to enhance their portfolios for NCAA at-large consideration. But that is more for the teams playing in 13 games to be televised by ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU.

"The reality is, we're never going to get an at-large bid (to the NCAA Tournament)," Krystkowiak told the Missoulian (Mont.) newspaper.

"When you have eight coaches' livelihoods and players' fate depending on how the conference goes, then two weeks before it's over you throw in a completely random opponent and create travel situations."

Lyon Productions of Helena, Mont., will produce the ORU-Montana game, which will air locally on KGEB (Cox cable 23).

With the Mid-Continent Conference Tournament two weeks hence, a loss could work against ORU if it causes the Eagles to lose the momentum they've built by winning six of their last seven games.

"We've played pretty well over the past three weeks, even (in the 80-75 loss) at IUPUI last Saturday. I don't think we would lose a lot of confidence," Sutton said.

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Griz host Oral Roberts in BracketBusters presented by eBay

by: Dave Guffey of the UM Sports Information Department

Friday, 02/17/2006

THE GAME:

The University of Montana Grizzlies (18-5/8-3 Big Sky Conference), stayed 15th in the most recent Mid-Major Top 25 Poll (on page , take a one-game hiatus from their Big Sky Conference schedule, hosting the Oral Roberts University Golden Eagles (16-10/11-3-Mid-Continent Conferece) in a BracketBusters game presented by e-Bay, on Saturday, February 18.

START TIME:

The Griz-Golden Eagles contest tips off in Dahlberg Arena (7,255) at 2:05 p.m. (Mountain Time). UM press row phone: 406-243-4281.

RADIO:

Griz basketball games are broadcast live on its flagship station -- Missoula?s KGVO-AM (1290). Calling the action for men?s basketball for his 13th season and his 21st overall is the Voice of the Griz, Mick Holien. The Larry Krystkowiak Radio Show, hosted by Holien, is broadcast live every Monday from 6:00-6:30 p.m., from Paradise Falls.

TV:

The game will be televised on the Montana Ford Stores ?Game of The Week.? It will be produced by Lyon Productions of Helena. It will be carried on Bresnan Cable and Mid-Rivers Cable channels, as well as on other cable systems throughout the state. Bruce Parker calls the play-by-play action, while Dave Guffey and Joe McClafferty will serve as color commentators.

NEXT GAMES:

The Griz return to league action, playing at Eastern Washington on Thursday, Feb. 23 and at Portland State on Satuday, Feb. 25. Both games start at 8:05 p.m. (Mtn.).

LAST GAME: at MONTANA 84, SACRAMENTO STATE 79:

Senior guard Kevin Criswell scored a game-high 28 points and sophomore forward Andrew Strait added 25 points and a career-high 10 rebounds to lead the Griz to the victory.

GRIZ LEADERS:

UM?s other double-figure scorer was Dlouhy with 13 points, while redshirt freshman forward Jordan Hasquet added 8 boards. Hasquet and Criswell each had 8.

GRIZ RANKED AMONG NCAA NATIONAL LEADERS:

In the recent NCAA rankings (Feb. 13, 2006), the Grizzlies are ranked seventh in the nation in field goal percentage (49.6%); 12th in assists (17.8 a game); and 26th in scoring offense (78.7 points a game). Strait is ranked fourth in the country in field goal percentage at 64.1%.