Tulsa vs. Michigan: NCAA First Four Preview

TULSA (20-11, 12-6 American) vs. MICHIGAN (22-12, 10-8 Big Ten)
Date/Time:	Wednesday, March 16, 2016 • 8:10 p.m. CT
Site:	UD Arena (13,435)
Coaches:	Tulsa – Frank Haith (Elon '88) – 43-22, 2nd year Michigan – John Beilein (Wheeling Jesuit '75) – 188-122, 9th year
TV:	truTV (Carter Blackburn, Mike Gminski and Jaime Maggio)
Radio:	Big Country 99.5 FM (Bruce Howard and J.R. Rollo)
National Radio:	Westwood One (Craig Way and Kevin Grevey)
Live Stats:	Live Stats
Series:	First Meeting
Twitter:	@TUMBasketball \| @TulsaHurricane
Instagram:	TulsaMBasketball
Game Notes:	Tulsa \| Michigan
Press Conference Quotes:	Tulsa \| Michigan

Video Preview

DAYTON, Ohio – The University of Tulsa men's basketball team opens the NCAA Tournament Wednesday against Michigan in the First Four at 8:10 p.m. on truTV at UD Arena.

The Golden Hurricane (20-11, 12-6 American Athletic Conference) and Wolverines (22-12, 10-8 Big Ten) meet in a matchup of No. 11 seeds at Dayton. The winner will advance to face sixth-seeded Notre Dame on Friday in Brooklyn. The Hurricane has won 12 of its last 17 games, while the Wolverines are 5-5 in their last 10 games.

This will be the first meeting between Tulsa and Michigan, which have a combined 38 NCAA Tournament appearances between them. This is Tulsa's 16^th NCAA appearance, and the 22^nd appearance for Michigan.

The game will be broadcast on Big Country 99.5 FM and the Golden Hurricane Radio Network, televised on truTV, and broadcast on the Westwood One national radio network. The Tulsa-Michigan game will follow the game between Southern and Holy Cross, which begins at 6:40 p.m. CT.

The Series
This will be the first meeting between Tulsa and Michigan.

About Michigan
Michigan averages 74.3 points and 32.0 rebounds per game, as well as a .466 field goal and .384 3-point percentage, while allowing 67.5 ppg, 33.0 rpg, a .445 field goal and a .345 3-point percentage. Zak Irvin and Derrick Walton Jr., lead the Wolverines with 11.7 points per game apiece, and Duncan Robinson adds 11.2 points per contest. Walton leads the team with 5.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game.

Tulsa Statistical Leaders
James Woodard leads the Golden Hurricane with 15.6 points and adds 5.2 rebounds per game, while Shaquille Harrison averages 14.8 points and a team-high 5.5 rebounds, along with 4.1 assists and 1.9 steals per contest. Pat Birt adds 12.4 points, Rashad Smith scores 7.2 points, Brandon Swannegan puts up 6.5 points, and Marquel Curtis scores 6.7 points per outing. Tulsa averages 74.0 ppg, 35.0 rpg, a .444 field goal percentage, .329 3-point pct. and a .678 free throw pct. The Hurricane allows opponents 69.7 ppg, 37.0 rpg, a .416 field goal pct. and a .363 3-point pct.

Quick Hits
• Tulsa is making its 16th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and its 30th postseason appearance.
• Tulsa earned an at-large bid to the 2016 tournament.
• The Hurricane finished in a third place tie in the American Athletic Conference with a 12-6 record.
• Tulsa has won 12 of its last 17 games
• Tulsa has reached 20 wins for the 23rd time in program history, and third year in a row.
• Tulsa played seven teams that made the NCAA Tournament, and posted a 5-5 record in those games.
• Shaquille Harrison is the first player in TU history to compile 1,300 points, 400 assists and 200 steals
   James Woodard is the third player in TU history to compile 1,800 points and 700 rebounds.
• James Woodard, Shaquille Harrison and Pat Birt combine to average 42.8 points per game.
• Three Tulsa starters are left-handed (60%), but only 12 percent of the population is left-handed.
• Tulsa is 2-2 vs. Top-25 opponents, with wins over No. 9 Wichita State (77-67) and at No. 16 SMU (82-77).
• This is the first year in TU history that its football team played in a bowl game, and its basketball team
   played in the NCAA Tournament in the same academic year.
• Two Tulsa players have scored 20 points in the same game six times this season – the most since
   the 1993-94 team had at least two players score at least 20 points in the same game eight times.
• Tulsa has two wins against top-25 opponents for the first time since the 1999-00 season.
• Tulsa's road win against SMU was its first road win over a top-25 team since the 1996-97 season
   opener against UCLA.
• Tulsa's 8-4 record through 12 games was its best record since the 2009-10 season.
• Tulsa is 12-3 at home this season, 6-6 on the road, and 2-2 in neutral-site games.
• The Hurricane owns the only non-conference top-25 victory in The American, with its 77-67 win over
   No. 9 Wichita State on Nov.17.
• James Woodard is one of only three players in Tulsa history to total at least 60 3-pointers in three
   consecutive seasons.
• Harrison ranks 40^th in the nation in steals (1.9 spg).
• The Hurricane has scored 90 points in four games so far this season. It is the most 90-point games since
   2013-14, when Tulsa scored 90 points five times, and is the second-most since 2000-01.
• Tulsa has reached the postseason in each of its two seasons under head coach Frank Haith. TU reached
   the second round of the NIT last season. Haith is coaching in his fourth NCAA Tournament, and has led
   10 of his 12 teams to postseason play.

Tulsa NCAA History
     Tulsa is making its 16th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and second in three years. The Golden Hurricane last played in the NCAA Tournament in 2014. TU played in 13 NCAA Tournaments from 1982-2003, including eight in 10 years between 1994-03. Tulsa has reached the Sweet Sixteen three times (1994, 1995 and 2000) and the Elite Eight once (2000).

All-American Athletic Conference Honors
     Shaquille Harrison was awarded the American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Scholar Athlete of the Year. He and James Woodard earned all-conference honors, as Woodard was named to the All-American Athletic Conference First Team, and Harrsion was a second-team selection.

Tulsa Career Top-10 Rankings
     James Woodard ranks fourth in TU career scoring with 1,872 points, and second with 60 career 3-pointers. He needs 80 points to match Ben Uzoh (2006-10) for third place (1,951) and 39 threes to match Shea Seals (1993-97) for first place (299).
     Harrison ranks third at TU with 243 career steals, and fourth with 456 career assists. He needs 28 steals to match Steve Harris (1981-85) for second place (271), and one assist to match Byron Boudreaux (1983-87) for second place (457).
     Brandon Swannegan has 145 career blocks, ranking fourth in TU history. He needs 106 blocks to match Kevin Johnson (1999-03) for third place.

Other Statistical Notes
     Tulsa averages 31.9 points in the paint per game, and has scored 988 points, or 43 percent of its season total, in the paint – that is 7.1 ppg more than its opponents. Tulsa averages 16.6 points off turnovers per game, and has scored 514, or 22 percent of its season total, off turnovers – 5.6 ppg more than its opponents. Tulsa averages 8.4 fastbreak points per game, and outscores opponents by an average of 4.9 fastbreak points per game. The Tulsa bench averages 19.5 points per game. Rashad Ray has a 2.8 assist-turnover ratio this season (59 assists to 21 turnovers). For his career, Ray has a 1.8 assist-turnover ratio, including a 2.4 ratio over his last three years.

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Tulsa vs. Michigan: NCAA First Four Preview

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Players Mentioned

Pat Birt

Marquel Curtis

Shaquille Harrison

Rashad Ray

Rashad Smith

Brandon Swannegan

James Woodard