The No. 15 seed Oral Roberts Golden Eagles will be making their first-ever appearance in the Sweet 16, when they face off against the No. 3 seed Arkansas Razorbacks. It is the second time a No. 15 seed advanced to the Sweet 16. The two teams will square off next Sunday with a spot in the regional final on the line.
Game date: Saturday, March 27
Game time: 7:25 p.m. ET
TV channel: TBS
Location: Bankers Life Fieldhouse
March Madness Odds from DraftKings Sportsbook
Point spread: Arkansas -11.5
Total: 158.5
Moneyline: Arkansas -670, Oral Roberts +460
No. 15 Oral Roberts 18-10 (10-5 Summit)
KenPom rating: 135 Overall, 72 Offense, 249 Defense
NET ranking: 158, (2-5 VS Quad 1)
Leading scorer: Max Abmas (24.4 ppg)
The upset-minded Golden Eagles took down another Power Five opponent, defeating the No. 7 seed Florida Gators 81-78. Oral Roberts was down five points at halftime and as much as 11 points in the game. But they battled back with tremendous performances from their top players in Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor.
Obanor scored a game-high 28 points (9-16 FG, 4-7 3pt) and had 11 rebounds. Abams added 26 points (6-14 FG, 12-12 FT) and seven assists. The Golden Eagles somehow outlasted the Gators, who had four players score in double figures. ORU shot 45.6% from the field and 33.3% from three-point range, but they forced Florida into an incredible 20 turnovers.
No. 3 Arkansas: 24-6 (13-4 SEC)
KenPom rating: 13 Overall, 36 Offense, 11 Defense
NET ranking: 14 (7-5 VS Quad 1)
Leading scorer: Moses Moody (17.2 ppg)
The Razorbacks survived a hard-fought game and defeated the No. 6 seed Texas Tech Red Raiders 68-66 in the second round. Arkansas will be going back to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1996.
The Razorbacks and Red Raiders went back and forth in the first half and had a two-point lead at halftime. Arkansas eventually increased their lead to 13 with nine minutes to go in the second half. However, Chris Beard’s team did not go down without a fight, going on a couple of runs and having a chance to win it at the end. But Texas Tech could not knock down free-throws in the waning moments and missed the game-tying layup.
After a quiet first round game, freshman Moses Moody had 15 points (6-11 FG, 2-6 3pt) and six rebounds. Justin Smith once again led the Razorbacks in scoring with 20 points (9-11 FG). He also had six rebounds and two assists. Overall, Arkansas had four starters in double figures.