Tulsa to Host Temple on Senior Day this Sunday at the Reynolds Center

GAME #30: TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE (18-11, 10-6) vs TEMPLE OWLS (16-13, 8-9)
Date/Time:	Sunday • March 4 • 2 p.m.
Site:	Reynolds Center (8,355) • Tulsa, Okla.
Coaches:	Tulsa – Frank Haith (Elon '88), 4th year Temple – Fran Dunphy (La Salle '70), 12th year
TV:	ESPN3 (Chad McKee and Bryndon Manzer)
Radio:	Big Country 99.5 FM (Bruce Howard and J.R. Rollo)
Live Stats:	Live Stats
Series:	Tulsa leads, 6-2
Twitter:	@TUMBasketball \| @TulsaHurricane
Instagram:	TulsaMBasketball
Game Notes:	Tulsa \| Temple

TULSA, Okla. — The University of Tulsa men's basketball team will close out the regular-season with a 2 p.m. matchup against Temple on Sunday, March 4 at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.

Sunday also is Fan Appreciation Day, where fans can purchase upper bowl tickets for just $5. In addition, hot dogs, popcorn and sodas will be just $1 each and the Storm Center will discount everything in the store 50-percent on gameday. Tickets can be purchased on TulsaHurricane.com, by calling 918-631-GoTU (4688) or in person at the Reynolds Center Box Office.

Prior to Sunday's matchup, TU will honor seniors Junior Etou, Corey Henderson Jr., Jaleel Wheeler and student-manager Max Griffin.

The Golden Hurricane (18-11, 11-6) have won seven of its last eight games, including a 72-58 win at ECU on Thursday night. With Memphis' loss against USF later in the night, TU locked up the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye in next week's American Athletic Conference Championship. Martins Igbanu led six players in double-figures with 16 points, while Etou recorded his seventh double-double during conference play with 10 points and 10 rebounds.

Etou will enter the final game of the regular-season as the only player ranked among the conference's top five for scoring and rebounding.

Meanwhile, the Owls (16-13, 8-9) have dropped three of their last four games, including a 72-66 setback at UConn on Feb. 28. Quinton Rose leads three players averaging in double-figures for the season at 14.9 ppg to go along with 4.4 rpg. Rose is shooting 43.9-percent from the floor and 36.3-percent behind the arc. Shizz Alson Jr. checks in at 13.2 ppg, while Obi Enechionyia is averaging 11.0 points and a team-leading 6.2 rebounds per game.

Tulsa leads the all-time series, 6-2, including a 3-0 mark at home.

Fast Break Points
• Tulsa is in its 107th season of basketball and fourth season in the American Athletic Conference.
• TU will close the regular-season with a 2 p.m. contest against Temple on Sunday, March 4 at the Reynolds Center.
• TU will honor Junior Etou, Corey Henderson Jr., Jaleel Wheeler and student-manager Max Griffin prior to the start of Sunday's game as part of Senior Day festivities.
• Sunday's game will mark just the ninth meeting between Tulsa and Temple. Tulsa leads the all-time series, 6-2, including a perfect 3-0 mark at home. Temple won the previous matchup this season, 59-58, in Philadelphia.
• Tulsa is coming off a 72-58 win at ECU on Thursday night as Martins Igbanu led six players in double-figures with 16 points. Junior Etou registered his eighth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the win.
• With its win on Thursday along with Memphis' loss to USF, Tulsa is locked into the No. 4 seed of next week's American Athletic Conference Championship in Orlando, Fla. The Hurricane will open play at 1 p.m. (CT) on Friday, March 9.
• Tulsa was picked to finish eighth in The American Preseason Poll. TU is the first program in conference history to finish better than its preseason prediction for four consecutive seasons, all under head coach Frank Haith.
• Tulsa has surpassed last season's overall (15) and conference (8) win totals and the program now has recorded at least 15 wins in 11 consecutive seasons.
• Etou leads the team at 15.4 ppg and 7.8 rpg and those marks rank fifth and third in The American, respectively. His 8.7 rpg during conference play lead the league. He is the only league player to rank in the top five of both categories.
• After posting a -4.5 rebound margin through its first six games, TU has recorded a +4.6 rebound margin since. TU has outrebounded its opponent by double-digits six times during that stretch.
• TU has notched 45 league wins since joining The American, which ranks third behind only Cincinnati (56) and SMU (51) during that span (2014-present).

Notes
The Game
• Tulsa will host Temple at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 4 in the regular-season finale for both squads. The Hurricane will honor seniors Junior Etou, Corey Henderson Jr., Jaleel Wheeler and student manager Max Griffin prior to the game.
• Sunday's game can be seen on ESPN3, while fans in the Tulsa area can tune to Big Country 99.5 FM with Bruce Howard and former Hurricane player J.R. Rollo calling the action. Live audio from the game also can be found on tulsahurricane.com or by using the TuneIn app.

The Series
• Sunday's game will mark just the ninth all-time meeting between Tulsa and Temple with the Golden Hurricane leading the series, 6-2. The Hurricane is a perfect 3-0 against the Owls in Tulsa.
• Last season, the Hurricane defeated the Owls 74-55 in the Reynolds Center for its largest-ever margin of victory in the series.
• The series dates back to Dec. 9, 1995, when Tulsa defeated Temple 64-60 in Philadelphia.
• Temple rallied in the final minutes to take a 59-58 victory in the previous meeting this season at Liacouras Center.

Scouting the Owls
• Temple will enter Sunday's matchup having dropped three of its last four games, including a 72-66 decision at UConn on Feb. 28. The other two Owls losses in the stretch came against No. 11 Wichita State and No. 25 Houston.
• The Owls can finish as high as fifth in the American Athletic Conference standings and as low as seventh.
• Quinton Rose leads three players averaging in double-figures for the season at 14.9 ppg to go along with 4.4 rpg. Rose is shooting 43.9-percent from the floor and 36.3-percent behind the arc.
• Shizz Alson Jr. checks in at 13.2 ppg, while Obi Enechionyia is averaging 11.0 points and a team-leading 6.2 rebounds per game.
• Freshman guard Nate Pierre-Louis has come on strong during conference play, where he is averaging 10.1 ppg.
• Temple is 8-8 away from home this season, including 3-5 during league action.

Last Meeting
• Junior Etou rregistered a double-double of 12 points and a career-high 15 rebounds, but Temple outscored Tulsa 7-2 in the final three minutes to rally for a 59-58 win on Jan. 17 at Liacouras Center.
• TU shot 51.9-percent in the second half and held a 44-39 advantage on the glass.
• Lawson Korita hit a jumper with 2:33 left that gave TU a 58-54 lead, but Obi Enechionyia hit a 3-pointer as part of 15 second-half points and Josh Brown's layup with 28 seconds left provided the final margin.
• Quinton Rose led the Owls with 19 points and Temple shot just 32.4-percent. However, the Owls scored 15 points off 18 Tulsa turnovers.

Last Time Out
• Martins Igbanu led six players in double-figures with 16 points as Tulsa pulled away from ECU in the second half for a 72-58 win on Thursday night at Minges Coliseum.
• Tulsa limited the Pirates to just 35.5-percent shooting for the game and 26.7-percent shooting in the second half.
• Junior Etou notched his eighth double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds, while Curran Scott (12) Corey Henderson Jr. (10) and DaQuan Jeffries (10) also scored in double-figures.
• TU extended a two-point halftime lead with a 16-4 run over the first 11 minutes of the second half and led by double-digits the rest of the night.

The Back Nine
• Here's a closer look at the first eight games of Tulsa's "back nine", which has allowed the Hurricane to climb out of seventh place to fourth place in The American standings and earn a first-round bye in next week's league tournament.
• During the stretch, Tulsa has outscored its opponents by an average of 6.1 ppg (74.0-67.9). Five of the seven wins have come by single-digits, including a pair of two-point wins over Tulane (Feb. 8) and UConn (Feb. 15).
• TU has produced a +5.8 rebound margin (37.2-31.4) during the stretch by outrebounding six of its eight opponents, including a pair of games with a double-digit rebound margin.
• Tulsa has taken care of business at home, where four of its wins have come during the stretch. TU is 12-2 at the Donald W. Reynolds Center this season.
• In addition to holding teams to an average of 30.7 rebounds, the TU defense has limited opponents to 42.5-percent shooting and has committed 116 fouls (14.5 pg) that have led to just 102 free throws (12.8 pg).

Conference Call
• TU has finished better than its preseason prediction in all four years under head coach Frank Haith, becoming the first American program to outperform its prediction in four consecutive seasons.
• This is the 20th time in Tulsa history and the fourth time in the last five seasons that TU has produced at least 11 conference wins. TU has finished with 11 or more conference wins in three of its four seasons in The American.
• In 17 of those previous 19 seasons, Tulsa has advanced to postseason tournament play. Most recently, the 2015-16 team went 12-6 in The American and earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament.
• Only once (1991-92) has a Tulsa team registered at least 12 conference wins and not made a postseason tournament.

The Schedule
• Tulsa experienced a tough January stretch that saw the the Golden Hurricane play all seven of its games against opponents that are currently ranked in the top 125 of the RPI, with four of those matchups coming on the road.
• TU faced No. 11 Wichita State (12), Houston (20), Temple (43), UConn (109) and Memphis (117) in January.
• Tulsa had wins over SMU (104), UConn (109) and UCF (72) in February. TU will close the regular-season at home against Temple (43).
• TU head coach Frank Haith has dubbed the final nine games of the regular season (Feb. 1-March 4), "the back nine" and the Hurricane has carded seven "birdies" (7-1) during the stretch.

Trending
• Tulsa has won seven of its last eight games to climb out of a tie for seventh place in the league standings to fourth place and a first-round bye in next week's American Athletic Conference Championship in Orlando, Fla.
• Etou has eight double-doubles this season, including seven during conference play. Those seven double-doubles during league play are the most in the circuit.
• The Hurricane has surpassed last season's overall (15) and conference (8) win totals and the program now has recorded at least 15 wins in each of the last 11 seasons.
• TU is 56-8 under head coach Frank Haith when leading at halftime, including a 14-2 mark this season.

Pick Your Poison
• Tulsa's balanced offensive attack has kept opponents off-guard all season, but particularly during American Athletic Conference play.
• During conference action, TU has four different players averaging in double-figures: Junior Etou (13.5 ppg), Sterling Taplin (11.9 ppg), Corey Henderson Jr. (11.5 ppg) and Martins Igbanu (11.1 ppg).
• Five different players have led TU in scoring during its 17 conference games (four listed above and DaQuan Jeffries).
• For the season, Tulsa has three different players that have scored 30 points in a game, which is tops in the league and tied for third in the nation, while its five different 20+ point scorers is tied for 10th in the country.

Etou Leads the Way
• Senior forward Junior Etou, a preseason second-team all-conference pick, leads the Hurricane in scoring (15.4 ppg) and rebounding (7.8 rpg). Those marks rank fifth and third in the conference, respectively, and he is the only player in the circuit to rank in the top five of both categories.
• With 446 points this season, he is the 26th player in TU history to score 400 or more points in two or more consecutive seasons. This is the 93rd time that a TU player has topped 400 points in a single season.
• Etou has scored in double-figures 26 times, including seven games of at least 20 points. He has recorded eight double-doubles, seven of which have come during conference play.
• Etou has been named the conference's Player of the Week twice (Jan. 2, Feb. 5) and to the league's weekly honor roll four times.

Henderson Dialing Long Distance
• Senior guard Corey Henderson Jr. is TU's top threat behind the arc and he will enter Sunday's matchup against Temple ranked fifth in The American with 48 3-pointers (2.8 per game) made during conference action.
• After hitting just two treys in the first five games of the season, Henderson Jr. has had at least two 3-pointers in 19 of the last 24 games. He has hit at least four triples in a game seven times, including five times since the start of conference play.
• He is the 10th player in TU history to record 50 or more triples in two or more consecutive seasons and the 17th player in program history to register at least 60 3-pointers in a single season.

Crashing The Boards
• After being outrebounded in five of its first six games with a rebound margin of -4.5 rpg, Tulsa has crashed the glass and outrebounded its opponents by +4.6 margin (39.0-34.4) in its last 23 contests.
• TU has outrebounded six opponents (UTSA, Illinois State, Kansas State, Tulane [2x], USF) during that stretch by double-digits, including three games (UTSA, Illinois State, Tulane) with at least a +20 rebound margin.
• During that stretch, Junior Etou has led the way by averaging 8.1 rebounds per game, including a career-high 15 boards against Temple (Jan. 17) and SMU (Feb. 1). Martins Igbanu also has helped crash the glass at 5.7 rpg.
• The Hurricane is 14-2 this season when outrebounding its opponent.

Just Tap It In
• Junior point guard Sterling Taplin has developed into one of the top point guards in The American and he has emerged as a team leader in his third season under head coach Frank Haith.
• The East Amherst, N.Y., native ranks second on the team and 23rd in the league in scoring at 11.9 ppg. Taplin also leads the team and ranks fifth in the conference at 4.4 assists per game.
• Taplin has set career highs this season in field goals (120), 3-pointers (38), points (334), rebounds (105) and assists (123). In addition, he has climbed to No. 19 on the program's career-assists charts with 266.

Free Fallin'
• The Hurricane rank second in the league and 67th in the nation with 665 free throws attempted, while it also ranks second in the league and 54th in the country with 483 free throw makes.
• TU is connecting at a 72.6-percent mark at the charity stripe to rank fourth in The American.
• TU has shot more free throws than its opponent 22 times this season and own a 16-6 record in those games.
• TU is averaging more free throws made per game (16.7) than its opponents attempt (15.6). The Hurricane rank 17th in the nation with just 463 fouls committed (15.9 per game) this season.
• The Golden Hurricane rank 22nd in the nation in free-throw rate (40.9) by kenpom.com.
• Junior Etou leads the team and ranks second in The American with 175 free throws attempted and 126 free throws made.

Tulsa's Success in The American
• Since joining the American Athletic Conference prior to the 2014-15 season, the Golden Hurricane has posted 45 league wins, ranks third in the circuit during that time.
• Only Cincinnati (56 wins) and SMU (51 wins) have earned more victories than Tulsa's 45.
• TU has finished better than its preseason prediction in each of Haith's four seasons. The Golden Hurricane was picked to finish eighth in the conference prior to the 2017-18 season. Tulsa is the first program in The American history to finish better than its preseason prediction in four consecutive seasons.

TU To Participate In Coaches vs. Cancer 3-Point Challenge
• Making 3-point shots this basketball season takes on even more meaning this year for head coach Frank Haith and The University of Tulsa men's basketball team. The Golden Hurricane will square off against teams across the nation to fight cancer as part of the American Cancer Society's Coaches vs. Cancer 3-Point Challenge.
• Fans can pledge a donation for each 3-point shot that TU makes over the final 16 games of the regular-season (Jan. 3-March 4) to support American Cancer Society research, education and patient programs at:
pledgeit.org/cvc18-tulsa. Fans also have the option of a fixed donation and Haith started the Golden Hurricane campaign with a contribution of $500.
•So far, Tulsa has made 140 3-pointers in 14 games during the challenge.

Tulsa 3 Party
• Tulsa hit a then-American Athletic Conference record 17 3-pointers in its Jan. 3 double-overtime win over UConn. The total was just one shy of the program's record, set against North Texas on Dec. 8, 1998.
• Other than its program-record 18 triples in 1998, TU last hit 15 3-pointers against Jackson State on Dec. 17, 2009.
• Corey Henderson Jr. hit eight 3-pointers, which ties for the second-most in a single game in program history. James Woodard went 10-of-16 from deep against SMU on March 8, 2015, for the program record, while Jason Parker also hit eight treys against Wichita State on Dec. 4, 2002.
• Henderson became the sixth player in American Athletic Conference history to hit at least eight 3-pointers in a game and the first to do it since UCF's Matt Williams hit a league-record 11 on Jan. 17, 2017.

Haith In His Fourth Season at TU
• Head coach Frank Haith is in his fourth season at Tulsa, where he has compiled a 76-51 record and made a pair of postseason appearances during his tenure. Overall, he has an on-court record of 281-180 in his 14th season.
• His 76 wins puts him in seventh on the program's all-time wins list and he moved ahead of former coaches Bill Self and Tubby Smith (each with 74) when Tulsa defeated UCF on Feb. 21.
• Haith has led the Golden Hurricane to a pair of 20-win seasons and postseason appearances (2015 NCAA Tournament, 2016 NIT) during his first three seasons.
• With a win over No. 9 Wichita State in 2015-16, he led TU to its first win over a top-10 squad since 2000. Later that season, TU won at No. 16 SMU for its first road win against a top-16 program since 1981.

Haith in Exclusive Coaching Company
• Head coach Frank Haith is the only active Division I coach to take teams in four of the Power 6 conferences to the NCAA Tournament. Haith guided Tulsa (The American) to the Big Dance in 2015, Missouri (SEC) in 2013, Missouri (Big 12) in 2012 and Miami (ACC) in 2008.
• In addition, Haith is one of just 20 active coaches that have taken at least three different teams to the NCAA Tournament.
• Haith has faced three other coaches on that list this season when TU matched up against Tubby Smith (Memphis), Kelvin Sampson (Houston) and Bruce Weber (Kansas State).

New Faces
• Along with the eight returning letterwinners, Tulsa has five newcomers, four of which made their debut in the season opener against Lamar.
• The newcomers eligible for 2017-18 are sophomore guard Curran Scott, junior guard/forward DaQuan Jeffries, freshman guard Darien Jackson and freshman guard Elijah Joiner. Sophomore forward Jeriah Horne will sit out the season after transferring from Nebraska.
• Scott redshirted the 2016-17 season after transferring from Charlotte, where he averaged 10.3 ppg as a freshman in 2015-16. He practiced with the Golden Hurricane last season.
• TU's four newcomers have totaled 528 points (18.2 ppg), led by 237 points (10.3 ppg) from DaQuan Jeffries.

Tulsa Enters 20th Season at the Reynolds Center
• After hosting the first TU men's basketball game on Dec. 29, 1998, the Golden Hurricane will play its 20th season in the Donald W. Reynolds Center this year.
• Tulsa has posted an overall record of 238-72 (.768) in its 19+ seasons, including a 12-2 mark this season.
• The building has seen 42 sellouts and 1,848,825 fans have witnessed Tulsa basketball at the Reynolds Center.

Look Who's Back
• Tulsa returns eight letterwinners, including four starters, and 72-percent of its offense from last season's team.
• Returning starters include senior forward Junior Etou (32 starts), sophomore forward Martins Igbanu (17), junior guard Sterling Taplin (30) and senior guard Jaleel Wheeler (29).
• Other returners include junior forward Geno Artison, senior guard Corey Henderson Jr., sophomore guard Lawson Korita and junior forward Alex Foree.
• In all, Tulsa returns 68.8-percent of its minutes, 66.9-percent of its rebounding, 79.8-percent of its assists and 65.5-percent of its steals.

Offense Shines In Exhibition Wins
• Tulsa improved to 66-2 all-time in exhibition games, including a run of 37 consecutive victories, with wins over Northwestern Oklahoma State (96-65) and Missouri S&T (113-56) prior to the start of the 2017-18 season.
• TU put up impressive numbers in the wins as the team averaged 104.5 points and shot 56.6-percent from the floor, including 46.9-percent from behind the arc. Tulsa also recorded 46 assists to just 21 turnovers and out-rebounded its two opponents by a combined total of 99-46.
• Five players averaged in double-figures during exhibition play, led by Junior Etou's 17.0 ppg. Joining him were Corey Henderson Jr. (16.0 ppg), DaQuan Jeffries (12.5 ppg), Curran Scott (12.5 ppg) and Geno Artison (11.5 ppg).
• TU made 20 3-pointers in the win over Missouri S&T (the program's regular-season record for a game is 18), with half of that total coming from Henderson (6) and Artison (4).

TU Adds Three in the Early Signing Period
• Tulsa has signed three student-athletes — Chris Barnes, Peter Hewitt and Zeke Moore — to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period.
• All three signees are enrolled at junior colleges and will have three years of eligibility at TU.
• Barnes is a 6-foot-4 guard from Compton, Calif., who played his freshman season at UTEP. He appeared in 16 games for the Miners after earning all-conference honors as a senior at Compton HS. He is redshirting this season at Angelina College.
• Peter Hewitt is a 6-foot-10 forward from Mountain View, Calif., who redshirted last season at UC Davis. He currently plays for Las Positas College and is averaging 10.6 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Hewitt was a three-year letterwinner at Saint Francis High School and led the Lancers to a pair of West Coast Athletic League titles.
• Zeke Moore is a 6-foot-7 guard from St. Louis, Mo., who played his freshman season at Saint Louis. He saw action in 29 games and averaged 5.3 points and 2.0 rebounds before transferring to Southwest Illinois CC, where he is redshirting this season. Moore was a standout at Riverview Gardens HS for his father, head coach Gerard Moore, and he averaged 21.1 ppg as a senior.

Up Next
• Fourth-seeded Tulsa will open play at the 2018 Aaron's American Athletic Conference Championship at 1 p.m. (CT) on Friday, March 9, against the winner of the 5 vs. 12 game, which will be played on Thursday afternoon.

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Tulsa to Host Temple on Senior Day this Sunday at the Reynolds Center

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Players Mentioned

Geno Artison

Junior Etou

Alex Foree

Corey Henderson Jr.

Jeriah Horne

Martins Igbanu

Darien Jackson

DaQuan Jeffries

Elijah Joiner

Lawson Korita

Curran Scott

Sterling Taplin

Jaleel Wheeler