Tipping Off
Following the postponement of their Summit League opener at Denver last week, the Mavericks will now officially begin conference play this Thursday at 7 p.m., when they take on Oral Roberts in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The game can be heard on 1180 The Zone with Jon Schriner on the call. Links to live stats, audio and video are available on OMavs.com.

Quick Hits

• Omaha closed out its non-conference schedule two weeks ago with a 45-67 loss at Northern Colorado. Overall, the Mavericks went 5-6, picking up wins against Wichita State (72-67), Weber State (91-73), Peru State (91-60), Pepperdine (56-51), and Saint Mary (84-34). Were it not for a couple of last second points scored by Tennessee State and CSU Bakersfield, the Mavericks would have gone 7-4 and finished above .500 against non-conference opponents for the first time since 2017-18 when they went 8-4.
• Despite being outshot .442 (23-for-52) to .304 (17-for-56) at Northern Colorado, the Mavericks bested the Bears in FT% at 90% to 77.8% after shooting 9-for-10 from the charity stripe. Omaha also had more second chance points (9 to 8), fast break points (12 to 8), and bench points (16 to 9).
• Elena Pilakouta enters the week as the most accurate shooter in the Summit League with a .577 shooting percentage (56-for-97). She is also Omaha's leading scorer and 13th in the Summit League with 136 points (12.4 ppg), while her 70 total rebounds (6.4 rpg) also lead the team and are the 13th most in the Summit. Last time out, Pilakouta scored 17 points at UNC giving her eight double-digit scoring games on the year.
• Grace Cave has done it all this year, leading the Mavericks with 30 assists, 27 steals, and five blocks. In each stat, she cracks the top-25 in the Summit League, with her 27 steals in particular being the second most in the league. Cave has also scored 101 points (9.2 ppg) and pulled down 50 rebounds (4.5 rpg) this season.
• Newcomer Aaliyah Stanley is the third Maverick with at least 100 points this year with 106 (9.6 ppg), thanks in part to her team-leading 13 three-pointers (13-for-37). She also places in the top-25 in the league in assists (21), and steals (12).
• Fellow newcomers Ana Nikulochkina and Polina Nikulochkina have also provided a lot of value off the bench, combining for 80 points, 29 rebounds, 15 assists, and 14 steals. 

Scouting the Golden Eagles
The Golden Eagles are 3-10 overall and 0-2 in Summit League competition. In non-conference play, ORU picked up wins against Little Rock (74-62), Central Christian (100-40), and Abilene Christian (87-81). They began conference play last week with losses to South Dakota State (80-83) and South Dakota (57-101). Last year, Oral Roberts went 16-15 with a 10-8 conference record. After topping North Dakota 61-54 in the Summit League Tournament quarterfinals, they fell 72-53 to SDSU in the semifinals.

Senior guard Hanna Cooper is the top scorer in the Summit League with 264 points (20.3 ppg), shooting 93-for-199 (.467) and owning the second-best FT% in the league at .840. She also leads the league with 60 assists and is tied for second in steals with 27.

Sophomore forward and reigning Summit League Freshman of the Year Tirza Moore is ORU's top defensive player with 109 total rebounds (10.9) and 19 blocks, both slotting in at second in the league. She is also second on the team with 131 points (13.1 ppg) 

Graduate student guard Delaney Nix is one of the league's best shooters from behind the arc, going 28-for-88 (.318). Her 28 three-pointers are the third most in the Summit, while her 2.2 3-PT FGs per game are tied for second.

Head Coach Kelsi Musick is in her first season at the helm of the Golden Eagles. Before coming to ORU, she spent 13 seasons leading Division II Southwestern Oklahoma, going 259-125 and claiming the 2019 National Championship.

All-Time Against Oral Roberts
Omaha is 3-11 all-time against ORU, dropping the last three meetings. Last season, ORU took the first game 50-45 in Baxter Arena, before sweeping the season series with a 64-55 win at home. Pilakouta scored 12 points and had nine rebounds across both contests, while Katie Keitges also had 12 points and five total rebounds.