Tulsa Defeats North Carolina in 1982 Oil Capital Classic
1/24/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 18, 1982 Tulsa World
By Randy Krehbiel World Sports Writer
Playing with the kind of underdog tenacity some feared was lost with 1982's five seniors, The University of Tulsa rallied for 52 second-half points and a stunning 84-74 defeat of national champion North Carolina in Friday's first round of the Oil Capital Classic.
It is the second time in three years TU has beaten a reigning NCAA champion early in the season. Its 1980 victory over Louisville, with a team of untested transfers, presaged a National Invitation Tournament title.
This year's team, loaded with underclassmen and transfers, was also unproven. Tulsa coach Nolan Richardson, however, declined drawing comparisons. "I don't like comparing games," he said. "I don't like comparing teams. I don't like comparing players. Every game that we have a chance to win and do win helps us. This game will particularly help us."
UNC coach Dean Smith, whose Tar Heels lost for the third time in six games, expressed a sort of ironic surprise that Tulsa had beaten North Carolina with the kind of deliberate offense Smith himself champions.
"You know, think of Tulsa as a running team," Smith said wryly. "But tonight, we were trying to speed the game up and they were trying to slow it down.
"Maybe," Smith said with a thin smile, " we should've gone to the delay when it was 47-42."
Until that point five minutes into the second half, the Tar Heels had marched TU to the edge of the precipice several times. But they were unable to nudge Tulsa over despite leading by as many as eight in the first half and shooting 60.7 percent from the field.
When the Tar Heels began leaving Steve Harris open for 15-foot jumpers from the left corner, and could not keep Bruce Vanley off the boards, their advantage slipped away like a shadow. Not even Michael Jordan, the swift, smooth superman Tulsa never really stopped, could rescue it. Jordan scored 28 points and fouled Harris out of the game. But All-America teammate Sam Perkins was outplayed by Vanley and Harris scored a career-high 26 points to negate Jordan's performance.
Vanley, unimpressive through most of the early season, outscored Perkins, 23-15, and outrebounded him, 11-9. His three-point play to pull Tulsa within two points six minutes into the second half, Smith said, was the turning point of the game.
But Richardson was prouder of Tulsa's 11 straight free throws when the game was on the line.
"That was the best thing to come out of this game," he said.
Vanley, not a good foul shooter in the past, was seven-of seven and Harris was six-of-six. Vanley was also eight-of-nine from the field.
North Carolina scored the first points of the game and took a 14-8 lead with three straight baskets five minutes into the first half. The lead grew to seven points before Tulsa tied it on an outside shot by Ricky Ross, a three-point play by Herbert Johnson and a Harris jumper from the left corner with six minutes left in the half.
The Tar Heels surged in front again, however, with a 9-1 run that included a six-point possession two minutes before halftime.
Brad Daugherty began the rally by making the first free throw while in the bonus and missing the second. Carolina rebounded, however, and Daugherty scored and was fouled by Johnson. Again he missed the free throw, and this time Jordan soared above the rim to tap in a disputed basket that gave UNC a 37-29 advantage.
Ross, who scored 20 points and seven rebounds, made three of four free throws and Jim Braddock hit an 18-footer with three seconds left to make the halftime score 39-32.
Baskets by Jordan and Buzz Peterson seemed to keep North Carolina in control, 47-40, before the Tar Heels began coming apart at the seams.
It happened quickly. Mike Smith hit two free throws; Vanley scored his decisive three-point play after scooping up a loose ball; Harris from the corner; then Vanley again on a follow to tie the game at 49. After fewer then two minutes the Carolina offense, which had performed for 25 minutes with the precision of a Marine drill team, was in disorganized retreat,
The game was tied three more times, but North Carolina never took the lead again. Only Jordan was a factor then, and he could not make up the difference alone, especially when North Carolina kept inviting Harris to shoot jump shots from five paces.
Tulsa's lead swelled to as many as 11 points in the final minutes, when the Hurricane ruthlessly cut down the Tar Heels' last hopes at the free throw line.
-- Game story published by The Tulsa World on December 18, 1982. Special thanks to the Tulsa World for permission to reprint this story.
