The Ottawa University men's basketball team will face its toughest test of the young 2026-27 season when the Braves travel to Tulsa, Okla., to take on NCAA Division I University of Tulsa at the Reynolds Center on Monday. The matchup will mark the first meeting in program history between Ottawa and Tulsa. The Braves enter the contest with a 2-1 overall record after defeating Haskell Indian Nations University 83-75 in overtime on Saturday, Oct. 31. Ottawa will face a Golden Hurricane program coming off one of the most successful seasons in school history. Tulsa finished 2025-26 with 30 victories, advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) championship game, and established several program offensive records.

Ottawa opened the 2026-27 season with a 97-80 victory over Hesston College on Oct. 27. The Braves then fell to John Brown University, 91-58, on Oct. 30 before bouncing back with an 83-75 overtime victory over Haskell on Oct. 31. Through three games, Ottawa is averaging 79.3 points per contest while shooting 41.3 percent from the field and 73.1 percent from the free throw line. 

The Braves have been strong on the glass, averaging 48.3 rebounds per game and holding a plus-11.0 rebounding margin. Ottawa is ranked 15th in the NAIA in rebounds per game (48.3), 11th in offensive rebounds per game (18.0), and 13th in both free throws made (22.7) and attempted (31.0) per game.

Jackson Harding has led Ottawa offensively, averaging 17.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Harding is shooting 44.4 percent from the floor and 90 percent from the free throw line. Seb Khan is averaging 12.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per contest. Khan is shooting 57.7 percent from the field. sAries Hull has provided a presence in the paint, averaging 10.7 points and 7.3 rebounds per game. Jayven Price has contributed 9.3 points and a team-leading 4.0 assists per game.

The University of Tulsa enters the 2026-27 season following a historic 2025-26 campaign in which the Golden Hurricane won 30 games, the second-most victories in a single season in program history. Only Tulsa's 1999-2000 team, coached by Bill Self, won more games with 32 while advancing to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight.

Tulsa became just the ninth program in American Conference history to reach the 30-win mark and returned to postseason play for the first time in a decade. The Golden Hurricane advanced to the NIT championship game and reached the American Conference Tournament semifinals for the first time since 2014-15. Tulsa's 17-win improvement from the previous season was the second-largest in NCAA Division I, trailing only Miami (Fla.), which improved by 19 victories.

The Golden Hurricane established single-season school records in points (3,233), three-pointers made (399), free throws made (722), free throw percentage (.780), games scoring at least 80 points (26), games shooting at least 50 percent from the field (12), and games shooting at least 40 percent from three-point range (17).

Tulsa led the American Conference in field goal percentage (.467), three-point percentage (.380), and free throw percentage (.780), becoming the first team in conference history to lead all three categories in the same season.

Nationally, Tulsa ranked 16th in scoring offense (85.1 points per game), 18th in scoring margin (11.5), 16th in free throw percentage (.780), 13th in free throws made per game (19.0), 19th in three-point percentage (.380), and 23rd in three-pointers made per game (10.5).

The Golden Hurricane also broke the American Conference record with 399 made three-pointers, surpassing Houston's previous mark of 337 in 2018-19. Despite last season's success, Tulsa will have a different look in 2026-27. The Golden Hurricane return zero starters from last season after using just two starting lineups throughout the 2025-26 campaign.

Jaylen Lawal and Myles Rigsby headline the returning contributors. Lawal averaged 7.3 points per game as a freshman, scoring 279 points, the ninth-most by a freshman in Tulsa history. He connected on 43 three-pointers, earned American Conference Freshman of the Week honors three times, and scored 20 or more points in three contests. Rigsby averaged 6.2 points per game and appeared in 32 contests. He shot 87.3 percent (62-for-71) from the free throw line, tying for the sixth-best single-season percentage in program history among players with at least 65 attempts.

Tulsa was selected to finish fourth in the 2026-27 American Conference Preseason Coaches Poll after finishing tied for second in the league last season.

The Braves are 26-50 in games against current NCAA Division I programs. The records below include  historical games against institutions now competing in Division I, even when those institutions belonged to a different classification at the time. 

The last time OU played an exhibition against a NCAA Division I team was on Oct. 20, 2023 against, then, no. 25 Illinois. Ottawa fell 116-65 at the State Farm Center in Champaign, Ill. 

Arkansas   0–1
Arkansas State   0–2
Denver    0–1
Eastern Illinois    0–1
Grand Canyon    0–1
Illinois    0–1
Kansas    1–12
Kansas City (UMKC)    3–12
Kansas State    4–3
Kentucky    0–1
Lindenwood    0–1
Missouri State    0–2
Northern Colorado    2–0
Oklahoma State    0–1
South Dakota State    1–0
Southeast Missouri State    2–2
Southern Illinois    0–2
Wichita State    13–7
Total    26–50