ORU: Emegano Earns Preseason POY Honors

Written By: Parrish Purnell Jr. 

Oral Roberts standout guard, Obi Emegano has been tabbed as the Summit League’s Player of the Year by Athlonsports.com.

“For me, player of the year comes through winning, so I'm always thinking team first, and what can I do to help my team win. The rest will fall in place,” he said.

Emegano led ORU in scoring last season finishing his junior campaign at 18.3 ppg, converting 205 free throws on the year with a ranking of fifth nationally. He also earned First Team All-Summit honors and was a two-time player of the week.

 As a senior, he’ll return without the help of backcourt running mate Korey Billbury who transferred to VCU this summer.

The Edmond native will shoulder most of the scoring load this season, but will hopefully receive help from a talented freshmen class.

"We've got a lot of young guys but plenty of talent. I think with such a young team it's about teaching and being patient,” he explained. “I think with the roster we have this year, for me, it is about enabling my teammates and showing them what our expectations for them individually as well as collectively are, and then let their game do the rest.”

His path to legendary status in the talented Summit league will not be easy, as he’ll primarily be the focus for all opposing teams’ defenses.

But, he’s not the only Summit league player gunning for the title. Standing in his way is South Dakota State senior guard, Deandre Parks.

Parks could potentially be the lone thorn in Emegano’s campaign for POY. Parks enjoyed a solid junior season leading his team in scoring (14.3ppg), earning Summit League Newcomer of the Year, All-Summit League First Team and Summit League Championships All-Tournament Team, and was named a 2015 Riley Wallace All-American.

SDSU beat Oral Roberts in both meetings last season in which Parks scored double figures.

The Golden Eagles were picked third in league play by sportingnews.com behind South Dakota State and North Dakota State respectively. ORU fans should expect Emegano to take the rankings as a slap in the face.

ORU begins its season November 13 against Missouri State. League play begins December 30th against IPFW.