Tulsa
UCA
Tulsa Takes Down Central Arkansas, 65-52
12/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Dec. 9, 2007
Box Score
TULSA, Okla. (AP) - Ben Uzoh set career highs with 28 points and 14 rebounds Sunday to help Tulsa snap a three-game losing streak with a 65-52 victory against UCA.
The Golden Hurricane (3-5) rallied from a five-point halftime deficit with a 21-5 run to start the second half. Uzoh had the highlight of the run when he stole a pass, got fouled during a slam dunk and converted the three-point play. Calvin Walls followed that with a tip-in that gave Tulsa a 46-36 edge.
Uzoh's 3-pointer with 2:41 to play pushed Tulsa's lead to 59-45 and got him past his previous career scoring best - a 23-point performance in his college debut last season.
"This win was crucial for us," Tulsa coach Doug Wojcik said. "We regained our identity as a team that works hard and plays defense. We just could not make a basket. But it was a phenomenal effort by Ben Uzoh."
Nate Bowie scored 22 points to lead Central Arkansas (8-2), and Marcus Pillow added 11.
The Bears had won eight straight games after losing their season opener at Kentucky, and they got out to a strong start against cold-shooting TULSA. The Golden Hurricane shot only 25 percent in the first half and trailed 31-25 at the break.
Uzoh went 8-for-16 from the field and 3-for-4 from 3-point range to offset poor shooting performances by Rod Earls (1-for-11) and Jerome Jordan (1-for-8), and Walls finished with 13 points and nine rebounds.
Tulsa outrebounded Central Arkansas 47-31 and held the Bears to 35 percent shooting. The Golden Hurricane had allowed two of their last three opponents to shoot over 50 percent after never allowing that to happen in Wojcik's first two seasons at Tulsa.
