Texas Southern @ Tulsa Preview [12/4/2013] [Men's Basketball]

[Nelson]

Courtesy TulsaHurricane.com:

TULSA, Okla. - The Tulsa basketball team is back home for the first time in two weeks Wednesday evening when it plays host to Texas Southern at 7 p.m. at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.

Tickets for the game are available by visiting the TU Athletics Ticket Office in the Reynolds Center, by calling 631-GoTU (4688), or online at www.TulsaHurricane.com. The game will be broadcast live on the Golden Hurricane Radio Network, KRMG AM 740/102.3 FM in Tulsa, and network affiliates.

This will be the first-ever meeting between the Golden Hurricane (1-6) and the Tigers (3-5).

Sophomore forward Rashad Smith leads Tulsa in scoring, averaging 13.6 points per game. Sophomore guard James Woodard scores 11.0 points and leads the team with 6.1 rebounds per game. Shaquille Harrison averages 8.9 points and 3.7 assists per contest. Senior guard Pat Swilling Jr. averages 8.3 points per contest. Sophomore forward D'Andre Wright averages 7.1 points, sophomore guard Rashad Ray scores 4.3 points with 3.1 assists. The Golden Hurricane averages 67.7 points and 33.7 rebounds per game, shooting .414 from the field. Hurricane opponents average 75.7 points and 38.6 rebounds, while shooting .445 from the field.

Texas Southern features three players scoring in double figures, led by center Aaric Murray, who scores 21.4 points per game. Jose Rodriguez averages 16.8 points and 6.8 rebounds, and Ray Penn averages 12.8 points and 4.6 assists per game. The Tigers average 76.6 points and 36.9 rebounds per game, shooting 43 percent from the field. TSU opponents average 78.9 points and 36.9 rebounds per game, scoring 47 percent from the field.

Read the rest: http://www.tulsahurricane.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/120313aaa.html

Tune in to the game:

RADIO & STREAMS:
KTSU-FM 90.9-FM Houston
[font=verdana, arial, sans-serif]KRMG AM 740/102.3 FM in Tulsa[/font]

Live Stats:
TulsaHurricane.com GameTracker

Game Notes:
TulsaHurricane.com PDF

Video:
TulsaHurricane.com (Premium)

Earlier preview from SportsDirect via the Chicago Tribune:

Tulsa is 0-2 for the first time since 2005-06, struggling to stay out of foul trouble through its first two games. The Golden Hurricane had two players foul out and four more finish with four fouls in a 96-93 loss to Missouri State on Saturday and coach Danny Manning said that's something his club will have to get used to and rectify. "You're going to have to alter your [defensive principles]," Manning told The Tulsa World. "That's what the game has become: Put your head down, drive into somebody and get to the free-throw line."

Earlier preview from SBNation:

Tulsa Headlines

Based on statistics alone, Saturday afternoon's matchup for the Tulsa Golden Hurricane could be something of a mismatch. Through the first three games of the season, the Golden Hurricane are scoring 71.7 points per game, allowing 82.33 points per game, shooting 46.7 percent as a team from the field, and a meager 30.7 percent from the 3-point line. In a close loss to Missouri State in their second game of the season, the Golden Hurricane got a lot from sophomore Shaquille Henderson. A Kansas City, Missouri native, the guard scored 21 points on 50 percent shooting from the field, and could be the main source of offense from the Golden Hurricane on Saturday afternoon. Via Hoop-Math, he has a 53.6 TS% and his field goal percentage at the rim is 71.4 percent, which both are near the team's best.

Defensively, this matchup could be something of a nightmare as well. Via Ken Pomeroy, Tulsa is 255th in the nation in 3PT% allowed, as teams are shooting at a 37.5 percent clip from the perimeter. They are also yielding a 47.1 2PT%, which stacks them up at 122nd in the nation. However, although Creighton is within the Top 50 in 2P%, they rank 100th in Adjusted Defense Efficiency, giving up 99.6 points per 100 possessions early on in the 2013-14 season. The Bluejays have yet to prove that they can be very stout defensively and even though Tulsa's offense has been struggling out of the gate, playing Creighton could open up a few opportunities.

X-Factors

In their first three games of the season, Tulsa has allowed 52 points in the paint. They have done a good job of controlling the game in the paint, but they might be up to a tougher task in this contest. That is why I am selecting Creighton's Will Artino to be their X-Factor. At the rim this season, Artino has been nearly unstoppable. He has shot 81.8 percent at the rim according to Hoop-Math, and 68.8 percent of his shots have come at the rim. Tulsa's big men have not been very effective on defense as of late, so this could be one of many matchup problems for the Golden Hurricane.

Meanwhile, for Tulsa, their X-Factor could more than likely be sophomore Rashad Smith. Smith, a 6'7" 206 lbs. forward from Plano, TX is coming off of a poor outing against the Wichita State Shockers. Smith had just six points and found himself unable to contribute in other areas. Before that, though, Smith was got into double figures in the first two games of the season for the Golden Hurricane and was effective on the glass and all over the floor, as a very efficient shooter. He will have to come up large for Tulsa in this game if they want to stand any chance of giving Creighton a game.

Likely Tulsa Starters:
Smith, Evans, Woodard, Harrison, Peete

Notes:
Woodard & Smith are the usual high scorers and Woodard is usually the leading rebounder for Tulsa. Opponents have usually pulled away from Tulsa during the second half. Their only win over Indiana State was by a single point and I'm oversimplifying this, but they won that game due to outrebounding Indiana State 38-27 (9-3 offensive). They've been outrebounded every loss they've had except against TCU, but that was a winnable game. 

Tulsa has had home attendance of 6160 and 5446 at home so far, but with a 1-6 record, expect that number to be lower... I'd estimate 4,500.

Game begins at 7:05pm tonight!

Go TIGERS!!!

 

[Nelson]

Final score:
TSU 71
Tulsa 98

We had 3 players in double figures (Murray-30, Clayborn-16, Penn-12). We were in early foul trouble, but so were they (they had 2 players foul out).

Here's the rest of the box score: http://www.tulsahurricane.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2013-2014/tlsmbb08.html

A couple of articles on the game:
http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/tu-finds-the-range-vs-texas-southern/article_acdb6144-0990-5b93-8e0e-31ac453304bf.html
http://www.tulsahurricane.com/sports/m-baskbl/recaps/120413aaa.html