May 13, 2004

Tigers’ queen of the court signs with Oral Roberts

Cowley County Community College sophomore basketball player and homecoming queen, Ebony Haliburton, recently signed a letter of intent to play at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa.

Michigan State University and Toledo also expressed interest, but ORU seemed to be the best choice for Haliburton, who averaged 10.4 points and 10.2 rebounds this past season.

“I never thought I would end up at Oral Roberts,” Haliburton said. “But the reason I chose them was because it fits my Christian morals. At Oral Roberts, I can really focus on my academics and basketball, and I think the school will make me a better person in the long run.”

Oral Roberts finished just two points away from going to the NCAA Tournament last year as it lost to Valparaiso 64-63 in the Mid Continent Conference title game. The Golden Eagles finished with a record of 17-13 overall and 9-7 in the conference.

This will be the second Division I school Haliburton has played for as she spent her freshman season at the University of Kansas. However, Haliburton did not see much playing time for the Jayhawks.

“Going to Kansas and not playing at all made me lose a lot of my passion for the game,” Haliburton said. “Coming here and competing has helped me overcome the hurt from not playing at KU, and has helped me want to continue toward my dream of playing basketball in the WNBA or possibly overseas.”

Along with averaging a double double for the Tigers, Haliburton also led Cowley with 43 blocked shots. However, at 5-10, Haliburton will move from power forward to the small forward position for Oral Roberts.

“In high school and at Cowley, I got away with playing inside, but I won’t be able to do that at Oral Roberts,” Haliburton said. “But I will compete and represent Cowley the best I can.”

Cowley head coach Stephanie Smith thinks Haliburton made a wise choice in picking Oral Roberts, and believes she will make a successful transition to the small forward position.

“I think the choice to go to Oral Roberts is really good for her because the school fits her personality, and she wants to continue to grow in her faith,” Smith said. “Right now they need a good athlete that can come in and rebound, and I think that’s one of the main reasons they recruited her. She’s naturally a small forward, so it shouldn’t be that much of a transition for her. She just needs to work on her outside shooting, which I’m sure she will do.”

Haliburton helped lead Cowley to a 23-9 record this past season and was thought of as the ultimate team player.

“She’s a coaches dream,” Smith said. “She was always motivated to work hard in practice and was emotional in games. She’s an All-American in my book.”

Haliburton will get an opportunity to play against five other players who were coached by Smith as former Wabash Valley College players Liga Bergvalde, Kristina Grbic, and Lateia James play for last season’s Mid Continent regular season champion Western Illinois. Also on next season’s schedule is Oklahoma State University, which has former Wabash Valley College players Nina Stone and Shyra Samuels on the squad.

As for coming to Arkansas City to play basketball, Haliburton feels it was a wise decision.

“When I first came here, I thought why in the world does God want me in this little town,” Haliburton said. “But this little town has actually been a big part of my life. I’ve met a lot of good people here, and I think my decision to come to Cowley has been one of the best decisions I have made in my life. The coaches really helped me a lot as a person on and off the court, and the professors at the school pushed me to do well and are really good people.”

Smith will miss coaching Haliburton, and feels Oral Roberts is lucky to have her joining its program.

“She came here and loved the place and everybody loves her, and I think she will make that impact on Oral Roberts as well, in the community and on campus,” Smith said.