SD looks to extend streak vs Oral Roberts
South Dakota (19-8, 9-3) vs. Oral Roberts (13-12, 6-6)
Mabee Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Saturday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: South Dakota looks for its eighth straight conference win against Oral Roberts. South Dakota’s last Summit League loss came against the North Dakota State Bison 72-70 on Jan. 15. Oral Roberts is coming off an 81-78 overtime win over Nebraska Omaha in its most recent game.
PLENTY OF EXPERIENCE: Senior leadership has been on display for both teams this year. Deondre Burns, Emmanuel Nzekwesi and Kevin Obanor have combined to account for 51 percent of all Oral Roberts scoring this season. For South Dakota, Tyler Hagedorn, Stanley Umude, Tyler Peterson, Triston Simpson and Cody Kelley have combined to account for 83 percent of all South Dakota scoring, including 88 percent of the team’s points over its last five games.
STEPPING IT UP: The Coyotes have scored 77.8 points per game across 12 conference games, an improvement from the 73.3 per game they managed over 12 non-conference games.TERRIFIC TYLER: Hagedorn has connected on 55.9 percent of the 118 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 11 of 19 over the last five games. He’s also made 83.3 percent of his free throws this season.
WINLESS WHEN: The Coyotes are 0-5 when they score 70 points or fewer and 19-3 when they exceed 70 points. The Golden Eagles are 0-6 when they fail to score more than 68 points and 13-6 on the season, otherwise.
UNBEATEN WHEN: Oral Roberts is a perfect 5-0 when it holds an opponent to 60 points or fewer. The Golden Eagles are 8-12 when opponents score more than 60 points.
DID YOU KNOW: The South Dakota offense has scored 80.2 points per game this season, ranking the Coyotes 18th among Division I teams. The Oral Roberts defense has allowed 72.9 points per game to opponents (ranked 243rd overall).