# 2017–18 Oral Roberts Golden Eagles men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Oral Roberts Golden Eagles men's basketball team represented Oral Roberts University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Golden Eagles were led by first-year head coach Paul Mills and played their home games at the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma as members of The Summit League. They finished the season 11–21, 5–9 in Summit League play to finish in a tie for fifth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the Summit League tournament to Denver.

## Previous season

The Golden Eagles finished the season 8–22, 4–12 in Summit League play to finish in last place. As a result, they failed to qualify for The Summit League tournament.
On April 10, 2017, the school fired all-time winningest coach Scott Sutton after 18 years. He finished with an overall record of 328–247. On April 28, the school hired Baylor assistant Paul Mills as the new head coach.

## Preseason

In a poll of league coaches, media, and sports information directors, the Golden Eagles were picked to finish in seventh place. Senior center Albert Owens was named to the preseason All-Summit First Team and sophomore forward Emmanuel Nzekwesi was named to the Second Team.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| Nov 10, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Avila | W 86–72 | 1–0 | Mabee Center (2,521) Tulsa, OK |
| Nov 13, 2017* 7:00 pm | | at Tulsa Mayor's Cup | L 71–90 | 1–1 | Reynolds Center (4,437) Tulsa, OK |
| Nov 16, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSOK+ | | at Oklahoma State Legends Classic | L 48–91 | 1–2 | Gallagher-Iba Arena (4,268) Stillwater, OK |
| Nov 20, 2017* 7:00 pm | | vs. Montana Legends Classic | L 64–69 | 1–3 | Firestone Fieldhouse (1,682) Malibu, CA |
| Nov 21, 2017* 9:30 pm | | vs. Pepperdine Legends Classic | L 76–80 | 1–4 | Firestone Fieldhouse (1,239) Malibu, CA |
| Nov 24, 2017* 2:00 pm, BTN+ | | at Penn State Legends Classic | L 48–86 | 1–5 | Bryce Jordan Center (4,463) University Park, PA |
| Nov 27, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Oakland | L 86–93 $^{OT}$ | 1–6 | Mabee Center (1,754) Tulsa, OK |
| Nov 29, 2017* 7:00 pm, FSKC | | at Kansas State | L 68–77 | 1–7 | Bramlage Coliseum (7,273) Manhattan, KS |
| Dec 2, 2017* 3:00 pm | | at Little Rock | W 74–66 $^{2OT}$ | 2–7 | Jack Stephens Center (2,111) Little Rock, AR |
| Dec 5, 2017* 9:00 pm | | at UNLV | L 66–92 | 2–8 | MGM Grand Garden Arena (6,713) Paradise, NV |
| Dec 8, 2017* 7:00 pm | | Southern Nazarene | L 60–68 | 2–9 | Mabee Center (2,152) Tulsa, OK |
| Dec 10, 2017* 3:00 pm | | Missouri State | W 73–66 | 3–9 | Mabee Center (2,331) Tulsa, OK |
| Dec 16, 2017* 7:15 pm, ESPN3 | | at Florida Gulf Coast | W 83–64 | 4–9 | Alico Arena (3,316) Fort Myers, FL |
| Dec 19, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Arkansas | L 69–104 | 4–10 | Bud Walton Arena (13,945) Fayetteville, AR |
| Dec 21, 2017* 7:00 pm, BTN+ | | at Minnesota | L 63–77 | 4–11 | Williams Arena (11,234) Minneapolis, MN |
| Dec 30, 2017 7:00 pm | | Omaha | W 93–74 | 5–11 (1–0) | Mabee Center (2,167) Tulsa, OK |
| Jan 4, 2018 7:00 pm | | Fort Wayne | W 76–60 | 6–11 (2–0) | Mabee Center (2,219) Tulsa, OK |
| Jan 6, 2018 7:00 pm | | Western Illinois | W 81–66 | 7–11 (3–0) | Mabee Center (2,146) Tulsa, OK |
| Jan 11, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at South Dakota State | L 75–78 | 7–12 (3–1) | Frost Arena (2,221) Brookings, SD |
| Jan 13, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at North Dakota State | L 64–82 | 7–13 (3–2) | Scheels Center (3,625) Fargo, ND |
| Jan 17, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at South Dakota | L 70–82 | 7–14 (3–3) | Sanford Coyote Sports Center (2,351) Vermillion, SD |
| Jan 20, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | Denver | L 64–73 | 7–15 (3–4) | Mabee Center (5,023) Tulsa, OK |
| Jan 23, 2018* 7:00 pm | | East Texas Baptist | W 93–66 | 8–15 | Mabee Center (2,036) Tulsa, OK |
| Jan 27, 2018* 4:00 pm | | Nebraska Christian | W 105–74 | 9–15 | Mabee Center (2,442) Tulsa, OK |
| Feb 1, 2018 6:00 pm | | at Fort Wayne | L 75–85 | 9–16 (3–5) | Memorial Coliseum (1,481) Fort Wayne, IN |
| Feb 3, 2018 2:00 pm, ESPN3 | | at Western Illinois | L 56–82 | 9–17 (3–6) | Western Hall (712) Macomb, IL |
| Feb 8, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | North Dakota State | W 67–66 $^{OT}$ | 10–17 (4–6) | Mabee Center (2,366) Tulsa, OK |
| Feb 10, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | South Dakota State | L 75–85 | 10–18 (4–7) | Mabee Center (2,568) Tulsa, OK |
| Feb 14, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN3 | | South Dakota | L 67–85 | 10–19 (4–8) | Mabee Center (2,027) Tulsa, OK |
| Feb 18, 2018 2:00 pm, ALT2 | | at Denver | L 65–66 | 10–20 (4–9) | Magness Arena (1,247) Denver, CO |
| Feb 22, 2018 7:00 pm | | at Omaha | W 83–75 | 11–20 (5–9) | Baxter Arena (1,899) Omaha, NE |
| Summit League tournament ||||||
| Mar 4, 2018 8:30 pm, ESPN3 | (6) | vs. (3) Denver Quarterfinals | L 88–90 $^{2OT}$ | 11–21 | Premier Center (5,692) Sioux Falls, SD |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time Source. ||||||