ORU Defeats TU In PSO Mayor’s Cup

Oral Roberts beat the University of Tulsa in the PSO Mayor's Cup Saturday night, 77-68. This was the first time since 2012 that a home team won the matchup.

The first half opened up physical. ORU's Korey Billbury was on the free throw line within opening minutes of the game. ORU quickly took a 3-0 lead with 18 minutes on the clock. Soon after that, Tulsa's Shaquille Harrison drove to the basket, drew the blocking foul, and got the three point play. With 17 minutes still on the clock, ORU's Darian Harris committed an intentional foul on TU's James Woodard. Woodard sank the free throws, allowing Tulsa to take the lead by one. As the half progressed both teams continued to play aggressively, exchanging back to back fouls. By the 13:08 mark Oral Roberts had taken off on a 7-0 run. Although TU was struggling on offense, they managed to catch up. With the game tied at 11-11 Woodard hit a deep jumper for the Golden Hurricanes. The Golden Eagles then answered back, stealing the lead by one point. With 7:34 on the clock TU was 4 of 18, and ORU was 6 of 15. As the first half neared its end, the two teams went back and forth on the free throw line. Both teams struggled to sink two in a row. At just under five minutes TU was 7 of 11 at the line, and ORU was 8 of 13. With only 2:40 left in the half, Obi Emegano launched a deep three that extended ORU's lead to 29-19. With the minute mark approaching, TU's Rashad Smith and Woodard combined for buckets that cut Oral Roberts lead down to four points. ORU lead 29-25 at the end of the first.

The second half got off to a fast start when TU cut ORU's lead to one. Billbury then got fouled and increased ORU's lead by three. At the 15:55 mark D'Andre Wright hit two free throws, and Tulsa took the lead (34-33). With 11 minutes on the clock Woodard hit two big threes for ORU. The score was 45-38 at the 10:33 mark. With 9:20 to go Wright decreased ORU's lead over TU with a three point play. As the half winded down the two teams continued to go head to head, continuously challenging each other. Both teams were in double bonus late in the half. Emegano was the leading scorer for ORU. His double digit game played a major part in leading his team to victory. Tulsa ended the game with 43 rebounds, 35 percent in field goals, and 12 turnovers. ORU had 33 rebounds, 40 percent in field goals, and 8 turnovers. TU went 21 of 30 from the free throw line, and Oral Roberts went 27 of 36.

ORU will be hitting the road to take on Missouri November 19. Tip off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.