This was supposed to be Brandon Conley?s breakout season. The high-flying junior from Fort Worth, Texas, was coming off a sophomore campaign that showed glimpses of stardom.
Conley started the first three games of the season, and was only averaging 4.4 points after eight games. His season-high point total was nine in a road loss at Weber State.
Then came Wednesday night and Conley?s 14-point, eight-rebound performance in the Golden Eagles? 91-87 win over UC Santa Barbara in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational. Conley, making his 14th start, did foul out for the ninth time this season, but he drained 5-of-7 field goals and 4-of-6 free throws before retreating to the bench.
Now Conley and the Golden Eagles (19-14) get a chance prolong their season again Monday night in a CBI quarterfinal showdown at Loyola Chicago (20-13).
Conley averaged 5.5 points and 4.5 rebounds as a sophomore last season, and his athleticism and propensity for a highlight-reel dunk had ORU coach Scott Sutton salivating. It also had other Summit League coaches fearful of what was to come.
?Brandon was really a raw talent when we got him, and he probably should have redshirted but we decided that we needed him to play,? Sutton said. ?He did play a lot as a freshman and as a sophomore, and we thought he was due for a big season.
?For him to be really good, he?s got to play with that high motor and that high energy. When he does, he?s a very good basketball player.?
Conley?s reversal of fortune was a matter of him having a one-on-one chat ? with himself.
?I just told myself it?s time to get it back,? Conley said. ?I just talked some confidence into myself.?
He credits renewed focus during practice to his resurgence.
?It started in practice,? said Conley, who is averaging 10.3 points 6.7 rebounds in three games since the start of the Summit League Tournament. ?I just told myself to be more aggressive and work on my pull-up jumper and crashing the glass every time. It turned over into the game.?
It?ll be the first meeting between the old Midwestern Collegiate Conference foes since 2004. Loyola Chicago, went 14-7 against ORU in the 1980s and owns a 14-10 all-time record against the Golden Eagles.
?This is a team that played in a tough, tough conference,? Sutton said of Loyola Chicago, which finished 8-10 in Missouri Valley Conference play. ?They?ve won four out of five, and they?re like us and playing their best basketball of the year.?
Despite the Ramblers? phobia of rebounding the basketball (28.8 per game and minus-1.6 rebounding margin) and getting to the free throw line (9.5 times a game, ranking 314th in the country), they make up for it by making 47 percent (39th in the nation) of their field goals. Loyola Chicago also limits opponents to 60.3 points per game.
?They don?t have great size,? Sutton said of Loyola Chicago, ?but they make up for it with great athleticism.?
Milton Doyle, who did not start for the Ramblers in the tournament?s first round, leads his team with 11.5 points per game. The Chicago native and Kansas transfer also makes 50.3 percent of his field goals while dishing out 4.5 assists per contest.
?I?d feel a lot better if this was at home,? Sutton said. ?Hopefully our guys will play loose again and make some shots.?
Conley started the first three games of the season, and was only averaging 4.4 points after eight games. His season-high point total was nine in a road loss at Weber State.
Then came Wednesday night and Conley?s 14-point, eight-rebound performance in the Golden Eagles? 91-87 win over UC Santa Barbara in the opening round of the College Basketball Invitational. Conley, making his 14th start, did foul out for the ninth time this season, but he drained 5-of-7 field goals and 4-of-6 free throws before retreating to the bench.
Now Conley and the Golden Eagles (19-14) get a chance prolong their season again Monday night in a CBI quarterfinal showdown at Loyola Chicago (20-13).
Conley averaged 5.5 points and 4.5 rebounds as a sophomore last season, and his athleticism and propensity for a highlight-reel dunk had ORU coach Scott Sutton salivating. It also had other Summit League coaches fearful of what was to come.
?Brandon was really a raw talent when we got him, and he probably should have redshirted but we decided that we needed him to play,? Sutton said. ?He did play a lot as a freshman and as a sophomore, and we thought he was due for a big season.
?For him to be really good, he?s got to play with that high motor and that high energy. When he does, he?s a very good basketball player.?
Conley?s reversal of fortune was a matter of him having a one-on-one chat ? with himself.
?I just told myself it?s time to get it back,? Conley said. ?I just talked some confidence into myself.?
He credits renewed focus during practice to his resurgence.
?It started in practice,? said Conley, who is averaging 10.3 points 6.7 rebounds in three games since the start of the Summit League Tournament. ?I just told myself to be more aggressive and work on my pull-up jumper and crashing the glass every time. It turned over into the game.?
It?ll be the first meeting between the old Midwestern Collegiate Conference foes since 2004. Loyola Chicago, went 14-7 against ORU in the 1980s and owns a 14-10 all-time record against the Golden Eagles.
?This is a team that played in a tough, tough conference,? Sutton said of Loyola Chicago, which finished 8-10 in Missouri Valley Conference play. ?They?ve won four out of five, and they?re like us and playing their best basketball of the year.?
Despite the Ramblers? phobia of rebounding the basketball (28.8 per game and minus-1.6 rebounding margin) and getting to the free throw line (9.5 times a game, ranking 314th in the country), they make up for it by making 47 percent (39th in the nation) of their field goals. Loyola Chicago also limits opponents to 60.3 points per game.
?They don?t have great size,? Sutton said of Loyola Chicago, ?but they make up for it with great athleticism.?
Milton Doyle, who did not start for the Ramblers in the tournament?s first round, leads his team with 11.5 points per game. The Chicago native and Kansas transfer also makes 50.3 percent of his field goals while dishing out 4.5 assists per contest.
?I?d feel a lot better if this was at home,? Sutton said. ?Hopefully our guys will play loose again and make some shots.?
