Oral Roberts Tops Missouri State At Home

NewsOn6.com

TULSA, Oklahoma – Warren Niles picked a good time to hit a career milestone.

Niles hit a pair of free throws to seal a 68-63 victory for the Golden Eagles on Wednesday, reaching the 1,000-point mark for his career in the process.

ORU led for most of the game, but Missouri State battled all the way back to within three at 66-63 before Niles' free throws went down.

Oral Roberts coach Scott Sutton said he was proud of the intensity level that his team played with.

"We told them, Missouri State is a tough, physical team and would play with a high intensity level and we would have to match that," he said. "I thought our guys really did that tonight, especially in the first half."

Niles ended up with 19 to lead the Golden Eagles, including shooting 8-of-8 from the free throw line.

Dominique Morrison had 13, while Roderick Pearson and Michael Craion both reached double figures.

Steven Roundtree put up eight points and 12 boards for the Golden Eagles.

ORU was a solid 50 percent from the field in the first half, using an 13-0 run midway through to take an 11-point lead. The Golden Eagles led by 14 at the half.

Sutton said Niles' team-high 19 points and his clutch free throws were great to see.

"Warren has been in a little bit of a slump and probably lost a little of his confidence along the way," he said. "It was great to see him play well tonight because he's a great shooter."

The Golden Eagles will play their final of five straight home games with a conference opener against Southern Utah on Friday. Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m.