UMKC to Host Oral Roberts As Conference Play Continues
12/27/2011 7:47:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Oral Roberts (9-4, 1-0) at UMKC (7-7, 1-1)
December 28, 2011 - 7:05 p.m. (Central)
Swinney Recreation Center * Kansas City, Mo.
TV: KSMO, Kansas City (Neil Harwell, J.C. Pearson)
Radio: 810 AM (Steven Davis, Steven St. John)
THE GAME
The Kangaroos will get back into Summit League play this week when they face off against the preseason No. 1 team in Oral Roberts on Wednesday, before hosting Southern Utah a couple days later. It will be the first time this season UMKC has hosted two consecutive home games. The contest will be televised live in the Kansas City area on KSMO.
SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION
Oral Roberts comes into the contest winning nine of its last 11 games, including a win at Xavier and vs. Texas Tech in its last two contests. The Golden Eagles are receiving votes in the week's CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll.
They are led by a balanced attack with five players averaging at least nine points per game. Senior Dominique Morrison leads the way with 16.2 points per game, while Michael Craion is at 11.3, Steven Roundtree at 10.7, and Warren Niles is averaging 10.1 per contest. Six different players have led the Golden Eagles in scoring.
ORU averages 67.1 points per game, and allows 61.2 per contest. They out-rebound opponents by 2.7 per outing, and hit 44 percent from the floor. They also force opponents into 15 turnovers per game.
THE COACHES
Matt Brown is in his fifth season as the head coach of the UMKC men's basketball program, and comes off his most successful season at the helm. In 2010-11, he posted his first winning record at 16-14 overall. The 'Roos also posted the third-most home wins in school history, going 11-4 in Kansas City, and the third-most overall wins in program history.
Brown joined the 'Roos as the eighth head coach in school history on April 12, 2007. In his five seasons as head coach, Brown has guided UMKC to a 49-84 overall record and has coached seven players to all-Summit League recognition.
Scott Sutton is in his 13th season with the Golden Eagles, posting a 232-159 overall record. He has led ORU to a first or second place finish in the league the last eight years. A graduate of Oklahoma State, where his father Eddie was the legendary head coach.
THE SERIES
The Kangaroos and Golden Eagles are meeting for the 33rd time, with ORU holding a 22-10 advantage. The last 12 contests have gone to the Golden Eagles, with the last win in the series for the 'Roos coming on Feb. 22, 2005 by a 77-70 score. From 2000-2005, the Kangaroos won 9-of-13 meetings.
This will be the last trip to Kansas City for ORU as a member of the Summit League, as it is moving to the Southland Conference next year. Its first trip to UMKC came on Feb. 12, 1994 with the 'Roos winning 73-69.
Matt Brown has a 0-8 mark against ORU, while Scott Sutton is 18-9 vs. UMKC.
A WIN WOULD MEAN...
- UMKC would have defeated ORU for the first time in the last 12 meetings, since Feb. 22, 2005.
- UMKC would push its home record to 4-1 this season.
- UMKC would improve to 2-1 in Summit League play for the first time since the 2009-10 season.
Familiar Faces
The UMKC-ORU game features nine players from the Kansas City area, with the 'Roos boasting four and ORU with five. The area that is especially rich is Raytown, including UMKC's Reggie Chamberlain and Michael Gholston, along with ORU's Dominique Morrison and Roderick Pearson. Chamberlain and Morrison, both Raytown High graduates, lead their teams in scoring. Gholston and Pearson went to Raytown South.
