It’s been a turnaround season for the ORU men’s basketball team, led by the nation’s leading scorer Max Abmas.

Abmas who has averaged 36 points per game this season, took the top spot in the nation after scoring 41 points against Western Illinois on Saturday. In Sunday’s rematch with WIU, Abmas added another 25 points, in the Golden Eagles 95-60 win.

Now it’s on to The Summit League Basketball Championship at the Sanford Pentagon, in Sioux Falls, S.D., March 6-9.

The Golden Eagles finished fourth in the Summit League regular season standings with a 10-5 record (13-10 overall), and will open the Summit League Tournament with a game against fifth-seed North Dakota (9-16, 8-8 SL), Sunday at 5:45 p.m. CT.

South Dakota State claimed its fourth straight regular season title and will be the No. 1 seed at the The Summit League Tournament. SDSU will face No. 8 seed Omaha (5-19, 3-11 SL) on Saturday.

South Dakota (13-10, 11-4 SL) secured the No. 2 seed and will take on No. 7 Western Illinois (7-14, 5-9 SL) Saturday in the second quarterfinal at 8:45 p.m. CT. No. 3 seed North Dakota State (13-11, 11-5 SL) will play in Sunday’s second quarterfinal at 8:45 p.m. The Bison will take on No. 6 Kansas City (11-12, 7-7 SL).

The Summit League Men’s Championship game will be televised live on ESPN2 and available on WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app, Tuesday at 8:00 p.m. CT.

THE WOMEN’S BRACKET

South Dakota State (21-2, 14-0 SL) captured the regular-season title and will be the No. 1 seed for the sixth time in program history at The Summit League Women’s Basketball Championship. The Jackrabbits will be making a run for their 10th tournament title in the last 13 years, and will face No. 8 seed Omaha (5-12, 4-8 SL) on Saturday. The Mavericks (5-12, 4-8 SL) are making their second consecutive appearance as the eighth seed.

No. 2 seed and reigning tournament champion South Dakota (16-5, 12-2 SL) will play in Saturday’s second quarterfinal at 2:45 p.m. CT and take on No. 7 seed Oral Roberts (6-14, 4-8 SL). The Coyotes, who swept the Golden Eagles in the regular season, bring a six-game winning streak into Sioux Falls.

North Dakota State (14-8, 9-7 SL) claimed the No. 3 seed and will take on sixth-seeded Denver (8-14, 6-8 SL) in Sunday’s second quarterfinal at 2:45 p.m. CT.

Kansas City (10-11, 7-8), will be the No. 4 seed in their first tournament since returning to the league. The Roos will face No. 5 seed Western Illinois (7-15, 6-8 SL) on Sunday at 11:45 a.m. CT.

The league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament will be determined in the championship game Tuesday, March 9, at 1:00 p.m. CT and will be televised live on ESPNU and available on WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app.

ORU SOCCER

The ORU men’s soccer team improved their record to 5-0, with a 2-0 win over Kansas City, Saturday afternoon at the Case Soccer Complex. This ties the best start to a season in program history. ORU is currently 3-0 in Summit League play.

The Golden Eagles are led by senior forward Dante Brigida, who scored the first goal of the match against Kansas City, and now has four goals on the season. Sophomore midfielder Reed Berry picked up his third goal of the year by scoring the second goal of the match.

The Golden Eagles are on the road this week and will take on the Denver Pioneers Thursday at 7:00 p.m., and Saturday at 3 p.m.