There aren’t many people that know what Oral Roberts is facing right now, but former Golden Eagle legend Dominique Morrison is one of them. 
 
He has felt the pressure that comes with a League record that keeps growing and growing without a tick in the loss column. His senior year in 2011-12 was the last time ORU started League play with a 12-0 record and to him, the key to building that gaudy record was simple: they lived in the moment. 
 
“Mike Craion and I, we didn’t even look at it, whether we were 11-0 or whatever,” he said. “We just stayed level headed. The coaches did a good job keeping us level headed and making sure we worked hard every day.” 
 
That year the Golden Eagles would end up losing their 13th game facing Nate Wolters and South Dakota State in Brookings (a Jackrabbit squad that would ultimately earn the league’s NCAA Tournament bid). But ORU would not lose again during that regular season and Morrison would average nearly 20 points per game en route to being named the League's Player of the Year. He said that Scott Sutton and his staff were crucial to keeping the Golden Eagles on the right track during that historic, 17-1 campaign. 
 
Now, it falls on Paul Mills and his 2022-23 staff to keep this ORU team heading toward the program’s first regular season title since that Morrison-led squad 12 years ago. And, they could certainly do it in grand fashion as the Golden Eagles approach just the second undefeated season in Summit League history. 
 
While there may be no challenge out there like the Wolters-led Jackrabbits, there are plenty of potential pitfalls still to come. With all due respect to North Dakota and South Dakota – which have every opportunity to make this list look silly – below are the top four spots that could prove particularly sticky for ORU in its pursuit of perfection. 
 
1. Feb. 25 at South Dakota State: The Final Day in Frost
Part of the challenge would be the hypothetical context: the regular season’s final day, in arguably the hardest road environment in the League, against the program that just pulled off perfection a year ago. But more so, and while this could well change, this would look to be a potential preview of a “should the chalk hold” tournament title game. 
 
The Jackrabbits’ home sweep last week, coupled with Western Illinois’ loss in Denver, gave them sole possession of second place in the League. They’ve now won three straight games and have one of the few players in the league in Zeke Mayo that can not only go shot for shot with Max Abmas and Isaac McBride, but also hassle one of them on the opposing end as well. The first meeting was a 39-point blowout win for the Golden Eagles, but this would be an SDSU team with two additional months of learning to play without Luke Appel.
 
Having a healthy Charlie Easley in the mix to guard ORU’s potent perimeter offense would be a boon as well, but Mayo, Matt Mims and Alex Arians still provide a stiff test even if he’s not available. In terms of storyline and intrigue, it would not get much better than a 17-0 ORU team traveling into Frost Arena.
 
2.  Feb. 11 at Western Illinois: The Showdown of Stars 
This is the second half of a tough road trip (more on that below) coming up for the Golden Eagles. The excursion to Macomb being on the back end certainly factors into this, as does – presumably – the energy of home crowds that revved up Western Hall during the Leathernecks’ last homestand. Similar to Mayo and SDSU, Trenton Massner presents an especially unique two-way challenge to ORU, as he does for any team in the conference. 
 
One thing WIU may have in its back pocket is its three-point defense. Though Denver did get loose against them from the outside last week in the Pioneers' blowout win, the Leathernecks have still flustered teams into shooting just 30 percent from the outside during League play, the best mark in the conference. The Golden Eagles’ offense is more than just three balls pinging into the basket, but that’s the biggest weapon they have used to let games get out of hand this year. To that end, the Golden Eagles are one of just four teams in the country with seven or more wins of 28 points or more.
 
The big asterisk is that ORU made 11 three’s in their comfortable win in the teams’ first meeting this season in Tulsa, but a colder shooting night in Macomb in front of a frenzied crowd could put the Golden Eagles bid for perfection to the test.
 
3. Feb. 9 at St. Thomas: Avoiding the Northern Nightmare 
As one would expect with the conference’s best two offenses, the first meeting was a game of runs. One of these from the Tommies had the game within just a couple of possessions well into the second half. ORU would ultimately come away with a double-digit win in Tulsa, but UST did prove it could score on the Golden Eagles’ underappreciated defense (the Tommies’ 69 points still stands as the second highest total in Mabee Center from a League opponent this year). 
 
Could the Tommies rev that offense up even more in a showcase game in St. Paul? They will certainly have momentum, coming off their first road winning streak since joining the League. Parker Bjorklund against Patrick Mwamba is a great matchup of athletic forwards, and both were great in the first matchup with Bjorklund going for 23 points and Mwamba scoring a season-high 15 points off the bench. 
 
The Tommies notched arguably the biggest win of their Division I life in beating SDSU during their last homestand. Knocking off the Golden Eagles, and ending their bid for perfection, would top that right away.
 
4. Feb. 18 against North Dakota State: The Home Trap
This is yet another game where the first meeting – a 23-point ORU win in Fargo – would not suggest jeopardy in the return game. Abmas (22 points) and McBride (21 points) both got loose in that game, combining to make nine 3-pointers. The Bison are also reeling, losing four out of their last five games. 
 
Of course, things could look different when this game rolls around. Grant Nelson caused problems for the Golden Eagles in their initial meeting – like he does most teams – and challenging this ORU team would seem to require a star player doing what he does best. NDSU has quietly posted the second-most efficient offense in the Summit since League play began. Their greatest strength – crashing the defensive glass – may not necessarily provide extra oomph with how ORU plays, but there is defensive potential in their backcourt. Jacari White is emerging as one of the better perimeter defenders in the League and will have an extra month of development under his belt from when they first met. 
 
The Golden Eagles’ closest call to this point came in the Mabee Center (against Kansas City). Could the Bison put a similar scare into them in Tulsa?

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