Target on Tulsa's back after AAC wins over UConn, Temple
After knocking off two of the American Athletic Conference favorites in the past week, the University of Tulsa is no longer flying under the radar.
For its first year in the league, the Golden Hurricane was projected to finish fifth out of the 11 teams. Two-and-a-half weeks into conference play, TU sits alone in first place with a 4-0 record.
?Now, you?re going to get everybody?s best shot because you?re out front a little bit,? coach Frank Haith said. ?People are going to say it?s a good win if you beat a team with an RPI of 29 right now.?
Most recently, TU picked up a 66-58 home win Tuesday against Connecticut, which won the national championship last year and was picked to win the league. Dating to last season, the Hurricane has strung together 15 consecutive victories against conference teams, the longest streak in program history and the fifth-longest active streak nationally.
?We have to take this game and continue to grow,? guard James Woodard said after Tuesday?s game. ?We still have a lot to work on.
?... UConn is a great team, but this win is telling us that we are moving in the right direction. We are going to keep growing and keep preparing and go hard in practice.?
On Saturday morning, TU looks to continue its six-game win streak at South Florida, which is in 10th place in the league and is one of two American teams that plays TU only once. The other, Cincinnati, will travel to Tulsa for a March 4 game.
?Luckily, we get (Tulsa) at home,? first-year USF coach Orlando Antigua said. ?It?s a really experienced team that made the tournament last year. They have really good guard play and solid big guys that contribute. It?s going to be a good challenge for us.?
The meeting is the first of three road games for TU in the next four games. The schedule features games at East Carolina on Jan. 24 and at Tulane on Jan. 27, with a home game against Memphis on Wednesday.
?I had someone tell me that it was a good win to go win at Temple; man, it?s a good win to go win anywhere,? Haith said. ?Any road win is good and we?ve got two in the bank, so we?ve got to get our guys understanding that (beating UConn) doesn?t mean anything. We have to go get ourselves ready to play again on the road.?
While an average shooting team, the Hurricane has won during the current streak because of success and consistency on the other end. It leads the league in scoring defense (55.5 points per game) and field-goal percentage defense (36.9 percent).
?I think we have to hang our hat on the defensive end,? Haith said. ?We?re not a great shooting team, so we?ve got to be on point on that end of the court every night and that gives us a chance. We shot about 16 percent the other night (in the first half) at Temple and we still won the game. But that?s got to be what we do night in and night out.?
After knocking off two of the American Athletic Conference favorites in the past week, the University of Tulsa is no longer flying under the radar.
For its first year in the league, the Golden Hurricane was projected to finish fifth out of the 11 teams. Two-and-a-half weeks into conference play, TU sits alone in first place with a 4-0 record.
?Now, you?re going to get everybody?s best shot because you?re out front a little bit,? coach Frank Haith said. ?People are going to say it?s a good win if you beat a team with an RPI of 29 right now.?
Most recently, TU picked up a 66-58 home win Tuesday against Connecticut, which won the national championship last year and was picked to win the league. Dating to last season, the Hurricane has strung together 15 consecutive victories against conference teams, the longest streak in program history and the fifth-longest active streak nationally.
?We have to take this game and continue to grow,? guard James Woodard said after Tuesday?s game. ?We still have a lot to work on.
?... UConn is a great team, but this win is telling us that we are moving in the right direction. We are going to keep growing and keep preparing and go hard in practice.?
On Saturday morning, TU looks to continue its six-game win streak at South Florida, which is in 10th place in the league and is one of two American teams that plays TU only once. The other, Cincinnati, will travel to Tulsa for a March 4 game.
?Luckily, we get (Tulsa) at home,? first-year USF coach Orlando Antigua said. ?It?s a really experienced team that made the tournament last year. They have really good guard play and solid big guys that contribute. It?s going to be a good challenge for us.?
The meeting is the first of three road games for TU in the next four games. The schedule features games at East Carolina on Jan. 24 and at Tulane on Jan. 27, with a home game against Memphis on Wednesday.
?I had someone tell me that it was a good win to go win at Temple; man, it?s a good win to go win anywhere,? Haith said. ?Any road win is good and we?ve got two in the bank, so we?ve got to get our guys understanding that (beating UConn) doesn?t mean anything. We have to go get ourselves ready to play again on the road.?
While an average shooting team, the Hurricane has won during the current streak because of success and consistency on the other end. It leads the league in scoring defense (55.5 points per game) and field-goal percentage defense (36.9 percent).
?I think we have to hang our hat on the defensive end,? Haith said. ?We?re not a great shooting team, so we?ve got to be on point on that end of the court every night and that gives us a chance. We shot about 16 percent the other night (in the first half) at Temple and we still won the game. But that?s got to be what we do night in and night out.?
