Did Oral Roberts accidentally book an early flight back to Tulsa that we don’t know about?

After their women’s team exited unceremoniously Saturday afternoon, Scott Sutton’s top-seeded team nearly found themselves subjected to the same fate later in the evening against IPFW, barely holding on 71-67.

Summit League Men’s Basketball Player of the Year Dominique Morrison fouled out with several minutes to go, and Dons’ junior guard Frank Gaines seemed unstoppable at times with perhaps the most explosive first step in the conference.

The biggest wild card in all of this was, oddly enough, the crowd at Sioux Falls Arena. Don’t tell the Dakota natives that they didn’t have a rooting interest in the game. The arena, which filled up to near-capacity in the second stanza, went bonkers for IPFW as they fought their way back into contention. And, in case you missed it, they almost had a lot to cheer about. Down by two with seconds to go, Gaines had a short-range baseline look, but appeared to be fouled on the shot, drawing the ire of those in attendance to say the very least. Two made foul shots by Gaines would’ve tied the game and likely sent the game into overtime.

Instead, ORU advanced, avoiding becoming the only No. 1 seed to ever be upset in the opening game of the tournament. Still, they exerted all they had, and if things play out right, they may have to play in front of three crowds in a row that are heckling them to the Southland. It should be noted, IPFW deserves credit for not giving up.

In the night’s main attraction, romantic notions of progression from IUPUI were swiftly put to rest by South Dakota State, the host of the tournament in everything but name. Yours truly questioned IUPUI senior guard/forward Alex Young early in the season in regards to his performance early on in games, a topic that he began to silence late in the year with more consistent showings. The criticisms reared an ugly head for the final time this season in this one. Before Young hit his first three-pointer of the contest, he’d made just 2-of-12 attempts, coupled with six turnovers to boot.

Those NBA scouts (there were a handful) who may have come to see Young surely weren’t left empty-handed by Nate Wolters. The junior point guard was spectacular at filling the stat sheet, per usual. Exiting to a standing ovation with 1:40 to go, the mid-major sensation finished with 22 points, six assists and five steals. I’m betting the scouts particularly savored the flavor of his rebounding prowess, though. Of his seven boards, three were of the offensive variety. He cleaned up some of his own misses, a pinch of the formula that enabled Scott Nagy’s team to look fairly effortless.

If Oakland is successful in dispatching Southern Utah tomorrow, they’ll have their hands full with a team that has momentum and support eschewing them toward the finals. The game plan to stop Wolters and Co. isn’t as clear-cut as some. If I said I had the complete schematic for that, I’d be lying. That’s why Greg Kampe makes the big bucks.

Follow Bryan on Twitter @BryanWXOU.