Tulsa
USF
Tulsa Takes on Bulls in Tampa on Wednesday
1/5/2021 1:50:00 PM | Men's Basketball
| GAME #10: TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE (6-3, 3-1) vs. USF Bulls (6-4, 2-2) | |
|---|---|
| Date/Time: | Wednesday • Jan. 6, 2021 • 3:00 p.m. (CT) |
| Site: |
Yuengling Center (10,411) • Tampa, Fla. |
| Coaches: | Tulsa – Frank Haith (Elon '88), 7th year USF – Brian Gregory (Oakland '90), 4th year |
| TV: | ESPN+ | Jim Louk (pxp) & Neil Solodnz (analyst) |
| Radio: | Big Country 99.5 FM (Bruce Howard & J.R. Rollo) |
| Live Stats: | Live Stats |
| Series: | 10th Meeting (Tulsa leads the series 9-0) |
| Twitter: | @TUMBasketball | @TulsaHurricane |
| Instagram: | TulsaMBasketball |
| Game Notes: | Tulsa (PDF) | USF |
| Game Program: | Game Day Program |
The Game
• Tulsa will take on the USF Bulls in a conference road matchup at the Yuengling Center Wednesday on ESPN+.
• The game is the 10th contest for Tulsa (6-3) this season ... the Bulls are 6-4 on the season winning their last contest 68-61 at home in a intrastate rivalry game against UCF on Jan. 2.
Scouting the Bulls
• USF was picked to finish 5th in the preseason American Athletic Conference Coaches Poll ... the Bulls return 4 starters and 4 of their top 5 scorers from last season, when the team went 14-17 and 7-11 in conference play .... finishing tied for 8th in the AAC.
• USF added two key pieces in Mississippi State transfer Prince Oduro and true freshman, Youngstown, Ohio native, Caleb Murphy.
• The Bulls return David Collins who averaged 13.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists last season ... USF also returns 6'8" senior forward Alexis Yetna who sat out due to injury last season.
• The Bulls opened their season with a 94-84 victory over Florida College at home ... they have lost two of their last three contests ... both loses were conference games to Wichita State at home 82-77 in overtime and Memphis on the road 58-57.
• USF is led in scoring by David Collins who is averaging 13.1 points, 4.3 rebounds and 4.0 assists per game ... Alexis Yetna is averaging 11.3 points and 7.8 rebounds while Caleb Murphy is averaging 10.7 points and 3.4 assists for the Bulls.
• USF is led by Head Coach Brian Gregory, who was been at the helm of the Bulls for the last 4 seasons and holds a 54-57 record.
The Series
• This is the 10th meeting against USF ... the Hurricane hold a 9-0 series lead over the Bulls.
• Tulsa is 5-0 at home against the Bulls and 4-0 on the road.
• Tulsa's last win in Tampa, Fla. came last season on Feb. 15, 2020 as the Hurricane won 56-48.
• The first game between the two teams came in the 2014-15 season as Tulsa defeated the Bulls on the road with a final of 75-58.
A Tulsa Win Would
• Give the Hurricane its seventh win of the season, moving Tulsa to 7-3 on the year and 4-1 in conference play.
• Move Tulsa's all-time record against USF to 10-0.
Last Win Against the Bulls
• Tulsa hit 15-of-16 free throws down the stretch in the second half to secure a 56-48 victory over USF at the Yuengling Center on Feb. 15, 2020.
• Brandon Rachal led all scorers with 18 points on 5-of-13 shooting from the field and 8-of-8 from the free throw line ... Lawson Korita scored in double-figures with 10 points ... Korita and Rachal grabbed 6 rebounds sharing the team-high for the game.
• With 4:32 left in the game and Tulsa leading47-43, Rachal took over by scoring 8 straight points for the Hurricane capping off the stretch with a dunk to put the Golden Hurricane ahead 51-44.
• The Hurricane finished the game shooting 36-percent (15-of-42) from the field and 19-percent (3-of-16) from the three-point line. Tulsa went to the free throw line 28 times during the game converting 23 of the attempts for an 82-percent clip.
• Tulsa forced 18 turnovers in the game, including 13 in the first half, and converted 20 points off USF turnovers. The Hurricane captured the edge on the boards 31-to-29, in fast break points 13-to-7 and in second chance points 7-to-5.
Rachal Recognized for Clutch Performances
• Brandon Rachal was named Jersey Mikes Naismith Trophy Player of the Week and American Athletic Conference Player of the Week, averaging 23.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.5 blocks against Houston and Cincinnati.
• The senior combined to shoot 67-percent from the field, knocking down 14-of-21 field goals, 63-percent (5-8) from three and also converted 93-percent (14-15) from the free throw line.
• Rachal scored 22 points and grabbed 8 rebounds against the No. 5-ranked Cougars, making two free throws with 0.1 seconds left to give the Hurricane a 65-64 victory.
• Against the Cincinnati Bearcats, Rachal notched his third double-double of the season scoring 25 points and pulling in a career-high 13 rebounds ... with 12.0 seconds left, he made two free throws to give Tulsa a 70-66 win.
Taking Down Cincinnati on their Court
• Brandon Rachal scores 25 points and grabs 13 rebounds to lead the Golden Hurricane to a 70-66 victory over the Cincinnati Bearcats at the Fifth Third Arena.
• Rachal, for the second straight game, knocked down two free throws in the last seconds of the game to beat the Bearcats on the road for the first time since 1967.
• Rey Idowu tied his career-high in points with 16, shooting 7-8 (88%) from the field while grabbing 4 rebounds ... Darien Jackson had 8 points and 3 rebounds and Keyshawn Embery-Simpson had 8 points and 2 assists.
• TU never trailed in the game, leading the contest for 38:22 of the game. Tulsa's largest lead of the game at 12 came at 23-11 in the first half.
• In the game TU shot 57-percent (25-44) from the field, 28-percent (5-18) from three and 79-percent (15-19) from the free throw line, while Cincinnati shot 34-percent (21-61) from the field, 32-percent (6-19) from three and 67-percent (18-27) from the line.
#LoyalAlwaysTrue
