Tulsa Concludes Nonconference Slate at West Palm Beach Classic

GAMES 11 & 12:
Tulsa (5-5) at the West Palm Beach Classic
Palm Beach Atlantic University
Rubin Arena (2,000) • West Palm Beach, Fla.

vs. Montana (4-5)
11:00 a.m. Central - Friday, December 20, 2024

vs. #18/16 Tennessee (9-0)
10:00 a.m. Central - Saturday, December 21, 2024

RADIO: 1300 AM/93.5 FM The Patriot
LIVE STATS: Click Here
TV: BallerTV ($)
GAME NOTES: Tulsa
GAME NOTES: Montana
GAME NOTES: Tennessee
AAC Release: Click Here

THE COACHES:
Tulsa: Angie Nelp (Colorado State '02), 4^th year
Career Record: 63-39
School Record: Same

Montana: Brian Holsinger (Western Washington '99), 4^th year
Career Record: 82-78
School Record: 60-42

Tennessee: Kim Caldwell (Glenville State '11), 1st year
Career Record: 226-31
School Record: 9-0

Tulsa's Probable Starters
5          G         Delanie Crawford, 5-11, Sr-3L, Piedmont, Okla., 16.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg
7          G         Paige Bradley, 5-10, RJr-TR, Dallas, Texas, 8.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.7 apg
21        G/F      Hadley Periman, 6-2, Jr-2L, Tuttle, Okla., 6.9 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 1.4 apg
22        G         Mady Cartwright, 5-10, So-1L, Greenwood, Ark., 9.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg
24        G         Elise Hill, 5-7, So-1L, Tulsa, Okla., 10.5 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.9 apg

Montana's Probable Starters
2          G         Mack Konig, 5-9, Jr, Milton, Ontario, 12.1 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 5.9 apg
13        F          Izabella Zingaro, 6-4, RJr, Bolton, Ontario, 8.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg
23        G         MJ Bruno, 5-1, Sr, Spokane, Wash., 5.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg
33        G         Adria Lincoln, 6-1, So, Monroe, Wash., 7.0 ppg, 2.8 rpg
40        F          Dani Bartsch, 6-2, Sr, Helena, Mont., 8.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg

Tennessee's Probable Starters
2          G         Ruby Whitehorn, 6-0, Jr, Detroit, Mich., 12.1 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.7 apg
7          G         Samara Spencer, 5-7, Sr, Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., 13.7 ppg, 5.4 apg
11        F          Zee Spearman, 6-4, Jr, Dacula, Ga., 11.1 ppg, 5.3 rpg
21        G/F      Tess Darby, 6-1, 5th, Greenfield, Tenn., 10.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg
55        G         Talaysia Cooper, 6-0, RSo, Turbeville, S.C., 19.3 ppg, 6.7 rpg, 4.3 apg

Tulsa at the West Palm Beach Classic

Winners of three straight, the Golden Hurricane women are set to take part in the West Palm Beach Classic, hosted by Coast 2 Coast Thursday through Saturday, Dec. 19-21, at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Fla.
TU will face Montana (4-5) Friday at 11 a.m. Central. Then, the Hurricane will open Saturday with a 10 a.m. game against #18/16 Tennessee (8-0).
These will be Tulsa's first-ever games versus Montana and Tennessee.
Both of TU's games will stream on BallerTV. Fans can make a one-time purchase of $20 for an event pass to access the action.
Tulsa is 35-34 all-time in nonconference regular season events and tournaments.

Scouting the Lady Griz

Not only will this be the Hurricane's first game against Montana, it will be their first game played against a Big Sky Conference program.
Montana is 4-5 to start the year with wins over Southeastern (NAIA), Washington, North Dakota, and Evergreen State (NAIA).
The Griz enter the tournament on a two game losing streak after falling to North Dakota State and South Dakota State in the Big Sky-Summit League Challenge.
Mack Konig, a 5-9 guard, has been key in directing the Griz's offense this season, leading the Big Sky with 53 assists at a 5.9 average per game.
Montana has a deep roster and often thrives on strong bench play. The Griz's bench points per game rank 18th in the nation and first in the league with 32.0 per contest this season.

Taking a Look at the Ranked Lady Volunteers

Saturday marks the first-ever meeting between the Hurricane and Tennessee. A win by TU over the ranked Lady Vols would make for the Hurricane's first victory over a ranked team.
The Lady Vols are No. 18 in the latest AP Poll and No. 16 in the USA Today Coaches' Poll.
Tulsa is 4-20 against SEC teams, with two wins over Arkansas, one over Alabama and one against Florida. TU beat Arkansas and Florida last season.
Tennessee is undefeated at 9-0, highlighted by wins over (RV) Middle Tennessee, (RV) Florida State and #17/20 Iowa.
The Vols' game against Tulsa will be their third game in four days as they beat Memphis on the road Wednesday night and must face Richmond for their first game in the West Palm Beach Classic on Friday.
As a team, they lead the nation in scoring (97.4), offensive boards (21.9), threes (12.9), and opponent turnovers (28.78) per game.

Dynamic Crawford Leads the Way

It's no surprise that All-American senior guard Delanie Crawford has been one of Tulsa's most prominent scorers, rebounders and assisters.
The multi-level scorer has reached double-figure points in all but one game, peaking with 26 points against Marshall (11/23).
She enjoyed her 18th career 20+ scoring game against Chicago State (11/27) and had 12 points last time out against Kansas City (12/15).
This season, Crawford is averaging 16.5 points off 5.7 FG, 2.4 3PT and 2.7 FT per game.
She's shooting .380 from the field (57-150), .316 in threes (24-76) and .871 at the charity stripe (27-31).
Crawford leads the AAC for field goal attempts (150) and free throw percentage (.871), ranks second for three-point attempts (76), third for points per game (16.5), fourth for threes made (24) and total points (165), fifth for triples per game (2.4), seventh for FG percentage (.380) and eighth for three-point percentage (.316).
She leads Tulsa with 57 total rebounds and ranks only behind teammate Hadley Periman (6.7) in boards per game with 5.7.
Crawford also has the second-most assists on the team with 22 (2.2), one behind Kristol Ayson's 23.
She earned her first AAC Weekly Honorable Mention nod after earning a double-double with 25 points and 13 rebounds vs Chicago State.
This season, Crawford has led Tulsa in scoring seven times and paced the Hurricane in rebounds and assists three times.

Hill Stepping up on Offense

Sophomore guard Elise Hill has scored in double-figures in seven of 10 games this season and in nine of her last 13 games for the Hurricane dating back to the end of her freshman season last year.
She has scored exactly 12 points four times this year, 13 points against Marshall (11/23), a season-high 18 points against Grambling (12/5) and 11 points last time out against Kansas City (12/15).
Tulsa is 2-2 when Hill records five or more field goals in a game.
Hill called her own number in the waning seconds of the season-opener against UAPB, sinking the game-winning three-pointer with less than a second to go to seal the 63-60 win.
She has also recorded five assists in two of the last three games.
Hill grabbed her first career AAC Weekly Honorable Mention award after she scored a team-leading 18 points, while adding five assists and six rebounds in the win over Grambling (12/5).

Tidbits on the TCU Transfer Paige Bradley

Redshirt junior Paige Bradley, an offseason transfer from TCU, has made an immediate impact for the Hurricane with nine starts in 10 games played.
She came to Tulsa with only three double-digit scoring games in her career. She already has three this season, with 17 points and 15 points highlighting her last two games.
Bradley is second on TU in rebounds (53) and boards per contest (5.3).
She averages 8.3 points, the Hurricane's fourth-best mark.
Bradley had her first double-figure scoring game for Tulsa against Marshall (11/23) in the WBCA Showcase.
She also brought down a career-high 10 rebounds against Marshall (11/23), helping her achieve her first double-double.
The Hurricane is 4-2 when Bradley records three or more field goals.
Bradley took home her first career AAC Weekly Honorable Mention after averaging 16 points and eight boards in wins over San Jose State (12/10) and Kansas City (12/15)

Cartwright the Swiss Army Knife

Mady Cartwright, a sophomore guard, shines on both offense and defense for the Hurricane.
She is one of three players to start every game this season, along with Delanie Crawford and Elise Hill.
Cartwright is sixth in the American Athletic Conference with a .794 free throw percentage (27-34) and 12th for defensive boards a game (4.3).
Cartwright shot a perfect 8-8 game at the line against Marshall (11/23) for TU's 14th all-time perfect free throw game of over eight attempts.
She has reached double-digit scoring in five of the last six games.
On offense, Cartwright leads the team for free throws (27) and ranks third for points (92), scoring average (9.2) for rebounds per game (5.3).
On the defensive end, Cartwright is second on the team for steals (1.2 for 12 steals) and total boards (53), third for rebounds per game (5.3) and fourth for blocks (4).
Cartwright had her first career double-double against San Jose State (12/10) with 12 points and 10 rebounds against the Spartans.
Tulsa is 3-0 this season when Cartwright steals the ball two or more times in a game ... she peaked with four against Chicago State (11/27).

Periman on the Blocks and Boards

After missing the first two games of the season and the Chicago State game (11/27) with injury, junior guard/forward Hadley Periman is still the Hurricane's top rebounder per game with a 6.7 average.
She has 434 career rebounds with a career rate of 6.03 per game, marking the 10th-best average among all active players in the AAC.
Only two players in the league - ECU's Amiya Joyner (703) and South Florida's Carla Brito (484) have more career boards than Periman.
Periman also blocks the ball well with 10 blocks on the year at a 1.4 average. She had three against Creighton (12/1) and Grambling (12/5).
She ranks eighth in program history with 91 career rejections.
Last time out, Periman had her best career game with a career-high 20 points to go with 11 boards for her first-ever double-double.

Ayson Adds Veteran Experience to Tulsa

Kristol Ayson, a senior transfer from Jacksonville State and Arizona Western, has seen action in all 10 games for the Hurricane, averaging 22.4 minutes per game off the bench.
She leads TU with 17 steals at 1.7 per contest.
She also leads the Hurricane in assists with 23 total for 2.3 per game.
Ayson has hit three or more assists in five games, with a season-best five assists against San Jose State (12/10).
Tulsa is 4-1 when she records three or more assists in a game.
She had a 13-point game against Oral Roberts for her first double-figure scoring game with the Hurricane.
Ayson came to Tulsa after leading Jax State with 8.1 points, 1.7 assists and 1.1 steals per game while securing 3.7 rebounds in 26.1 minutes per contest.
At Arizona Western, a junior college, she recorded three double-doubles and 34 double-digits scoring games across two seasons. She was an NJCAA All-American Honorable Mention as a sophomore after averaging 14.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.

Defense Finds Ways to Slow Down Opponents

The Hurricane has excelled at turning opponents over and stealing the ball this season, ranking third in the American Athletic Conference with 91 steals at 9.10 per game, led by Kristol Ayson's 17 steals at a 1.7 average.
Tulsa has outstolen opponents 91-79 on the year.
The Hurricane is 2-2 when recording double-digits steals as a team. They peaked with 14 against Chicago State (11/27).
Tulsa is handling the ball better than its opponents through the first eight games of the season with a positive turnover margin per game (+1.0), the fourth-highest among all AAC teams.
Opposing teams have struggled overall to shoot the ball against Tulsa. The Hurricane's defense is second in the AAC for field goal percentage defense, holding foes to .363 shooting on the year.

Deadly Free Throw Shooters

Tulsa has been effective at the line, thanks in part to two of the AAC's top free throw shooters in Delanie Crawford and Mady Cartwright.
Crawford leads the league at .871 after shooting 27-31 with Cartwright at sixth at a 27-34 clip for an .794 mark.
Cartwright has had four perfect games from the stripe, including a 4-4 mark in the season-opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (11/6), an impressive 8-8 tally against Marshall (11/23) for Tulsa's 14th-ever perfect free throw game when making over eight free throws and another 4-4 contest against Chicago State (11/27).
Crawford had an 8-9 game against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (11/6) and a 5-5 contest against Georgia (11/21).
Crawford is one of five players in the league shooting above 80% in free throws after averaging 2.5 free throws made per game.
Paige Bradley is 13-18 (.722) on the year in free throws at 1.3 per contest ... she is outside the threshold of 2.5 FT per game required to be ranked in the league.
Tulsa ranks third in the conference with a team free throw mark of .694.
TU shot its 19th perfect free throw game in program history against Chicago State (11/27), going 10-10 from the line … it's TU's third time ever having a perfect free throw game with over 10 attempts (10-10 vs. Hawaii (2-27-03); 12-12 vs. Nevada (3-8-03).
The Hurricane went 10-14 in free throws in the fourth quarter to outscore Arkansas-Pine Bluff (11/6) 15-5 in the final period to complete a 17-point comeback victory, the largest in school history.

Nelp Over Halfway to Century Mark in Wins.

Tulsa's Angie Nelp won her 60th career game in her four seasons with a 63-60 win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in the 2024-25 season opener on Nov. 6, 2024.
She is currently 64-39 six games into her fourth season.
No previous Tulsa coach had reached 50 wins in their first three seasons … only three other Tulsa head coaches won more than 60 games in their careers.

Crawford and Periman Climbing the Career Charts

Delanie Crawford through 102 career games in four seasons with the Hurricane stars in multiple top 10 career charts in program history.
She ranks third in three-pointers made with 208 ... she has a chance to set the team record this season as she is just 14 treys behind Kara Pongonis-Paslay's (2002-06) 222 and 25 behind Kelsee Grovey's (2012-16) 233.
Crawford is sixth for career points (1,360) and field goals made (463).
Hadley Periman has played 72 games for Tulsa as a junior. She ranks eighth in TU history with 91 blocks and needs four more to pass Kendrian Elliott's (2016-20) 94 rejections.

Fun Facts About Player Names

Tulsa is one of two teams in the country (Sacramento State) to have four players with a last name that starts with the letter "A", including Tobi Ademuwagon, Brooklyn Alexander, Kennedi Alexander and Kristol Ayson.
TU is also the only team in the country with over the half the roster having last names starting in the A-C letter range. This list includes Tobi Ademuwagon, Brooklyn Alexander, Kennedi Alexander, Kristol Ayson, Paige Bradley, Mady Cartwright, Jade Clack and Delanie Crawford.

Tulsa Concludes Nonconference Slate at West Palm Beach Classic

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Brooklyn Alexander

Kennedi Alexander

Kristol Ayson

Paige Bradley

Mady Cartwright

Jade Clack

Delanie Crawford

Elise Hill

Hadley Periman

Tulsa Concludes Nonconference Slate at West Palm Beach Classic

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Brooklyn Alexander

Kennedi Alexander

Kristol Ayson

Paige Bradley

Mady Cartwright

Jade Clack

Delanie Crawford

Elise Hill

Hadley Periman

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