Tulsa: Confidence is key

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Confidence is key

Following last month?s home loss to Division II Southeastern Oklahoma State, Tulsa?s players walked off the court with their heads down out of embarrassment. The team that has won five in a row is a completely different one, full of confidence heading into Tuesday?s game against Connecticut. ?There?s no question we?ve really grown in that area,? coach Frank Haith said. ?You look at Missouri State and that stretch of games after Oklahoma, I think we?ve had good practice time. I think our guys have gotten in the gym and it?s paying dividends. I think it?s transferred to the floor, to the games.?

Still room to grow
As Haith said this week, ?We?re no finished product, by any means.? Tulsa has improved significantly but needs strides in other areas to continue to contend in the American. Among the weaknesses that have been exposed: The Hurricane needs more points from its big men, who are averaging in the single digits. It needs more production from its reserves, who, aside from sixth man Rashad Ray, are averaging two points per game or fewer.

And while Tulsa has found it can win without shooting well, its chances of a winning conference title would soar if its field-goal percentages went up.

 

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The opportunity awaiting Tuesday night doesn?t come around often for the University of Tulsa. Not since 1980 has the Golden Hurricane hosted the reigning men?s basketball national champion.

UConn is in town to meet the Golden Hurricane, which has flourished recently to win five in a row and take an early lead in the American Athletic Conference standings.

?We?re playing a team that cut down the nets and played in the last game last year,? first-year coach Frank Haith said. ?I think it?s great for our community, the University of Tulsa, this league.

?That?s what joining this league is all about, the types of teams we are going to bring here to the Reynolds Center. That?s got to be exciting for our fanbase.?

Tulsa is 1-4 on its home court against the previous year?s national champion, with the lone victory coming in 1980 against Louisville at the Convention Center. Another win against the defending champ occurred in 1982 against North Carolina at the Mabee Center.

Although the Huskies returned only two starters from last year?s squad and have lost six games, they remain a legitimate threat and are one of the favorites to win the league. A win against a program of that caliber could raise Tulsa?s profile in the college basketball world.
?UConn is a big-name program,? point guard Shaquille Harrison said. ?Every year, they?ve got great players and they?ve got a great coach.
?Beating them would really boost up Tulsa?s name, but I feel like we can?t go into that just to beat them to get publicity. ... Our No. 1 goal is to win the conference and you can?t lose games like this if you want to win it, so it?s a huge game for us.?

The appeal is there, but the meaning is greater. A 4-0 start to conference play would send a statement that Tulsa has a shot in a league race lacking a clear leader.

?It?s another conference game, and it?s a game that we want to win so we can stay undefeated in conference,? guard James Woodard said. ?They?re just another team that?s in the way of our goal, so we?ve got to take notice and stay poised. This is another opponent and we?ve got to do the best we can, play Tulsa basketball and not worry about the hype.?

Some of that hype might be because of an intriguing point-guard matchup pitting Harrison, who has scored more than 20 points in six of his last seven games, with Ryan Boatright, the preseason conference player of the year and current leading scorer.
?They?ve got a great ballhandler and a great point guard in Harrison,? Boatright said. ? ... He?s a good player and I respect him, but it?s going to be a dogfight. It?s not going to be easy.?

Said UConn coach Kevin Ollie: ?It seems like they thrive in transition, so we?ve got to get back and load up to Harrison and not allow them have easy buckets. Then when they get in halfcourt, they run some great sets. Of course, you have those two guards (Harrison and Woodard) who can penetrate and create for their own shots, and that makes life a lot easier for their offense.?

Ollie, who spent his last NBA season with the Oklahoma City Thunder, last week became the first UConn coach to record 60 victories in three years. His team is riding a three-game winning streak and has won five of its last six games.

?They?re going to be tough, like him (Ollie) as a player,? Haith said. ?They?re going to compete. They?re going to fight to the end.
?They?re going to scrap. ... We?ve got to be ready to go toe-to-toe against those guys because they?re going to bring it.?