Western Illinois Faces ORU in Quarterfinals

Friday, March 04, 2022 | By: WIU Athletic Communications

The Leathernecks enter Sunday’s game as the sixth seed.

The Opponent | Oral Roberts Golden Eagles
When | Sunday (March 6), 8:30 p.m.
Where | Denny Sanford PREMIER Center – Sioux Falls, S.D.
Social media | Instagram + Twitter + Facebook + #TRADITIONofTOUGH

Inside the Matchup: Western Illinois and Oral Roberts have faced off 50 times in program history, with the Golden Eagles holding a 38-12 advantage in the all-time series. Though ORU has historically controlled the series, Western has made recent progress, splitting the season series this year – which included a victory in Tulsa for the first time since 2017. In that matchup, a 90-85 victory on Feb. 3, five Leathernecks scored in double-figures. Luka Barisic (22) led the team in scoring along with Will Carius (19), Trenton Massner (18), Colton Sandage (13) and Cameron Burrell (10), while Tamell Pearson was close with eight. Western Illinois won the battle for the boards in that game, outrebounding ORU 40-35 and making 15-30 (50%) from deep.

Inside the Matchup: Western Illinois and Oral Roberts finished the regular close to one another in two major statistical categories: scoring and rebounding. ORU finished the regular season as the second-leading offense in the league at 83.8 points per game, whereas Western Illinois was third-best at an average of 79. Western finished the season as the second-best rebounding team in the Summit League with an average of 38.6 per game, not far behind ORU's league-leading 40.4. On the offensive glass the Leathernecks were dominant this season with 11.8 per game, and ORU was second at 11.0. Both teams also boast top-three scorers in the league, with the Golden Eagles' Max Abmas leading the league in scoring at 22.7 points per contest and Trenton Massner sitting at third with 16.4 points per game.

Players to Watch: After twice winning Player of the Week honors and being recognized as the Summit League Male Athlete of the Month for December, Trenton Massner has been named Second-Team All Summit while also being named to the All-Newcomer team and All-Defensive team. Massner finished the season as the team-leader in minutes played (1,080), points (16.4), rebounds (6.4), assists (4.0), steals (1.8) and blocks (0.6), while shooting 43.9% from the field and over 70% from the free-throw line. He ranked third in the Summit League for scoring, seventh in rebounding, second in assists while leading the entire league with his 1.8 steals per game average.

Luka Barisic got his season off to a strong start by making the game-winner at Nebraska, and has been named All-Summit League Honorable Mention while also joining Massner on the All-Newcomer team. Barisic had a strong year, averaging 14.5 points and 5.9 rebounds per game while shooting 41% from the field and 78% from the free-throw line. Barisic was consistent early in the year but took his play to a new level down the stretch, recording four-straight 20-plus point games to open the month of February. He scored a season-high 28 points in an overtime victory at North Dakota State on Jan. 15, and paired a season-best 14 rebounds with 21 points against North Dakota on Feb. 12.

One year after earning Second Team All-Summit League honors, Will Carius had a solid season in year two as a Leatherneck. The Bettendorf, Iowa, native was second on the team in scoring at 14.7 points per game, grabbing three rebounds and shooting a team-high 36.1% from deep. In Western's road victory over the Golden Eagles, Carius scored 19 points and hit four shots from deep, while grabbing four rebounds and finishing the game with one steal and shooting 6-13 from the field (4-10 from deep). Carius had seven games of 20+ points this season.

What's Next: Sunday's game is a "win or go home" situation. A loss will officially conclude the 2021-22 season for Western Illinois, but a victory would lead to a semifinal matchup on Monday.

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The Leathernecks enter Sunday’s game as the sixth seed.

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