Men's Basketball: Oral Roberts
BY JIMMIE TRAMEL World Sports Writer
Monday, February 11, 2013
2/11/13 at 5:44 AM
14-10, 9-3 Southland
Three questions
with Mikey Manghum
Class: Junior
Position: Guard
Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 185 pounds
Hometown: Derby, England
An academic all-district selection, Manghum came to ORU as a walk-on and earned a spot in the player rotation. He usually comes off the bench but made his fifth start of the season Saturday.
You are from England and you have Scottish ancestry. You told Damen Bell-Holter you are going to have to wear a kilt when you get married. When he laughed, you told him he shouldn't laugh because he must wear a kilt, too. Would you really make teammates wear a kilt at your wedding?
Of course. All of my groomsmen, if they are going to be at my wedding, are definitely wearing a kilt. So I would like to push them in that direction that they are going to have to wear kilts, too. That's just the way it is going to happen.
Are you and your teammates manly enough to pull off the trick of wearing a kilt?
I believe I am just because I have got that Scottish blood running through me. I'm not sure if some of the other guys are ready for that - Damen, in particular, I don't think is ready for that.
Damen also accused you of using your accent to your advantage when you are in the midst of females. Is that a fair accusation?
I would be lying if I said I haven't done that once or twice. I do know how to put it on extra thick. Like you said, I use it to my advantage when I need to.
THE BREAKDOWN
Looking back
Oral Roberts was tied for first place in the Southland Conference before a two-game road swing against contenders Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin. The Golden Eagles now are in third place. They dropped two consecutive league games for the first time since losing to Summit League opponents IPFW and Oakland in January 2011.
The week ahead
Thursday: vs. Sam Houston State, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday: vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, 7:30 p.m.
Oral Roberts needs help to get back in the Southland race. The Golden Eagles can't afford slip-ups against teams they should beat the rest of the season. They rallied for an overtime victory at Sam Houston State last month.
The big picture
Can Golden Eagles get healthy?
ORU has played 10 of 12 Southland games without preseason all-league player Steven Roundtree, who sustained knee and ankle injuries before the nonconference finale at Memphis. Roundtree returned to play in two games before missing a road swing last week and will undergo an MRI on his foot, according to athletic trainer John Joslin. Starting forward Shawn Glover missed the second half of the Stephen F. Austin game with an eyelid laceration. "At first they thought it was his eyeball," coach Scott Sutton said. "That was my main concern at first. Any time you get an eyeball scratched, you can be out for a week or so." Early indications are Glover should be green-lighted to play Thursday.
The new mission
Sutton acknowledged during a postgame radio interview Saturday that it is unlikely ORU will win the Southland Conference regular-season championship. The Golden Eagles trail Stephen F. Austin by two games with six games left (and the Lumberjacks own a tiebreaker advantage). The new and very important goal is to at least finish second. The top two teams in the standings get byes into the semifinals of the conference tournament, and that's where an NCAA Tournament bid will be at stake.
Bottom line
If Stephen F. Austin wins the Southland's regular-season championship, it's a virtual certainty ORU will have to beat Northwestern State and Stephen F. Austin in consecutive Southland tournament games to go to the NCAA Tournament. The Golden Eagles are 1-3 against the Demons and Lumberjacks. Sutton said his team will have to improve and get tougher before the tournament.
"If we get healthy and play like we are capable of playing, there is no question in my mind that we can beat both of these teams," he said.
Associated Images:
ORU's Steven Roundtree grabs a loose ball during the Golden Eagles' game against Southeastern Louisiana on Feb. 2. Roundtree has missed most of the league slate. CORY YOUNG / Tulsa World
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