Saturday, December 28
Tulsa, Okla.
4 p.m.
Tulsa
6-7,0-0AAC
96
vs
63
Southwestern Christian University
0-2
1
2
F
Southwestern Christ.
37
26
63
Tulsa
53
43
96
Photo by: Bill Powell
Golden Hurricane Takes Down Eagles 96-63
12/28/2024 8:52:00 PM | Men's Basketball
TULSA, Okla. – The University of Tulsa men's basketball team closed its nonconference schedule with a 96-63 victory over visiting Southwestern Christian State in the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Saturday afternoon.
The win pushed Tulsa to 6-7 as the Golden Hurricane led wire-to-wire for the second straight game. Saturday's contest counted as an exhibition for Southwestern Christian, who remains 4-8 and 2-7 in SAC play. Today was the fourth time this season TU has scored at least 90 points and second game in a row.
It was Tulsa's best shooting night of the season as the Hurricane connected on 56.1 percent of its shots and 53.3 percent on 3-pointers, both season highs. TU's 16 made 3-pointers was the most since doing the same against UTSA last season in the Reynolds Center.
Keaston Willis and Jesaiah McWright both hit four 3-pointers on their way to 14-point games. Tyshawn Archie led all scorers with 18 points and made three 3-pointers of his own. Reigning conference freshman of the week Ian Smikle had 15 points in the win. Braeden Carrington was 3-of-3 on triples for all nine of his points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the team and narrowly miss out on a double-double.
Freshman Jaye Nash knocked down his lone attempt from long range, his only shot on the day, but was a facilitator for the Hurricane, dishing out 10 assists. He also turned it over just once in the contest.
The visiting Eagles didn't shoot poorly, knocking down 40.7 percent of its efforts and hitting 11-of-21 (52.4) from 3-point range. Deondre Dunn led the way with 17 points. However, SCU hit 13 fewer shots than the Hurricane (37-24) while Tulsa knocked down five more 3-pointers.
Tulsa's dominance on the glass made for the massive difference in opportunities. TU doubled up the Eagles in rebounding 44-22 and didn't allow a single offensive board while collecting 10 of its ow, leading to a 12-0 advantage in second chance points. Not surprisingly, the Hurricane owned the paint, outscoring SCU 40-18.
HOW IT HAPPENED
IN THE FIRST HALF…
Tulsa took control from the tip, scoring the game's first 11 points thanks to four different players. Braeden Carrington put TU ahead 3-0 just 14 seconds into the contest. Back-to-back second chance putbacks from Ian Smikle had Tulsa ahead 7-0 before layups from Dwon Odom and Tyshawn Archie pushed the lead to double figures just three minutes in.
The Eagles settled in a bit as the game wore on, falling behind 17-4 at the first media timeout, but then connecting on eight of its next 11 shots, including five 3-pointers. But while the SCU offense had found its flow, the defense couldn't stop the Hurricane. Despite the hot shooting, Tulsa's lead remained at 10, 37-27 at the 7:17 mark of the half. During that same stretch, Jesaiah McWright made two 3-pointers and Archie and Keaston Willis each made one.
The Hurricane kept the Eagles at bay, resisting any attempt at a run through the remainder of the half. The lead got as low as nine, 41-32, with 4:16 to play before Tulsa finished the half outscoring the Eagles 12-5 to take a 53-37 halftime lead.
Tulsa shot a blistering 62.9 percent in the opening half (22-of-35) and made 6-of-14 (42.9 percent) of its 3-point attempts. Smikle led the way with 11 points and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor. Seven different Hurricane scored in the first half and five had eight or more, including nine from Archie and eight each from Willis, Odom and McWright.
IN THE SECOND HALF …
The Eagles opened the half with a 3-pointer before Tulsa rattled off 27 of the game's next 33 points to take a commanding 80-46 lead with 10:30 remaining. The run included six 3-pointers for Tulsa, including three back-to-back-to-back from Carrington, Willis and Archie to take the lead from 24-33 in less than a minute.
The lead eventually reached 37, 88-51, on another 3-pointer from Archie with 6:46 to play. From there the teams largely traded buckets with the lead going no higher than 37 and no lower than 31 on the way to the 96-63 final.
Tulsa didn't quite shoot with the same heat in the second half from the field but still knocked down 48.4 percent (15-of-31) of its efforts. Where the Hurricane shined was beyond the arc, knocking down 10 triples at a 62.5 percent clip. Nine different Hurricane scored in the second half, led by nine from Archie. The Eagles were held to 35.7 percent from the floor and 4-of-8 on 3-pointers in the second half.
GAME NOTES
• This was the second meeting between the schools, and Tulsa has won both meetings.
• Tulsa has won its past two games by a combined 78 points.
• Ian Smikle scored a career-high 15 points in the win … it's his second game with 10 or more points at Tulsa.
• Braeden Carrington equaled his season-high with 10 rebounds, his second time to do so at Tulsa.
• Tyshawn Archie set a new career mark with 18 points.
• This was Archie's ninth double figure scoring game this season and 20th of his career.
• Keaston Willis reached double figures in scoring for the eighth time this season and 94th in his career.
• Dwon Odom reached double figures in scoring for the 11th time this season and 63rd in his career.
• Jesaiah McWright reached double figures in scoring for the first time this season and fifth in his career.
• Jaye Nash dished out a career-high 10 assists with just one turnover.
Tulsa opens the American Athletic Conference play on New Year's Day against the Rice Owls in the Donald W. Reynolds Center. Tipoff for the Wednesday afternoon matchup is set for 2 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
The win pushed Tulsa to 6-7 as the Golden Hurricane led wire-to-wire for the second straight game. Saturday's contest counted as an exhibition for Southwestern Christian, who remains 4-8 and 2-7 in SAC play. Today was the fourth time this season TU has scored at least 90 points and second game in a row.
It was Tulsa's best shooting night of the season as the Hurricane connected on 56.1 percent of its shots and 53.3 percent on 3-pointers, both season highs. TU's 16 made 3-pointers was the most since doing the same against UTSA last season in the Reynolds Center.
Keaston Willis and Jesaiah McWright both hit four 3-pointers on their way to 14-point games. Tyshawn Archie led all scorers with 18 points and made three 3-pointers of his own. Reigning conference freshman of the week Ian Smikle had 15 points in the win. Braeden Carrington was 3-of-3 on triples for all nine of his points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the team and narrowly miss out on a double-double.
Freshman Jaye Nash knocked down his lone attempt from long range, his only shot on the day, but was a facilitator for the Hurricane, dishing out 10 assists. He also turned it over just once in the contest.
The visiting Eagles didn't shoot poorly, knocking down 40.7 percent of its efforts and hitting 11-of-21 (52.4) from 3-point range. Deondre Dunn led the way with 17 points. However, SCU hit 13 fewer shots than the Hurricane (37-24) while Tulsa knocked down five more 3-pointers.
Tulsa's dominance on the glass made for the massive difference in opportunities. TU doubled up the Eagles in rebounding 44-22 and didn't allow a single offensive board while collecting 10 of its ow, leading to a 12-0 advantage in second chance points. Not surprisingly, the Hurricane owned the paint, outscoring SCU 40-18.
HOW IT HAPPENED
IN THE FIRST HALF…
Tulsa took control from the tip, scoring the game's first 11 points thanks to four different players. Braeden Carrington put TU ahead 3-0 just 14 seconds into the contest. Back-to-back second chance putbacks from Ian Smikle had Tulsa ahead 7-0 before layups from Dwon Odom and Tyshawn Archie pushed the lead to double figures just three minutes in.
The Eagles settled in a bit as the game wore on, falling behind 17-4 at the first media timeout, but then connecting on eight of its next 11 shots, including five 3-pointers. But while the SCU offense had found its flow, the defense couldn't stop the Hurricane. Despite the hot shooting, Tulsa's lead remained at 10, 37-27 at the 7:17 mark of the half. During that same stretch, Jesaiah McWright made two 3-pointers and Archie and Keaston Willis each made one.
The Hurricane kept the Eagles at bay, resisting any attempt at a run through the remainder of the half. The lead got as low as nine, 41-32, with 4:16 to play before Tulsa finished the half outscoring the Eagles 12-5 to take a 53-37 halftime lead.
Tulsa shot a blistering 62.9 percent in the opening half (22-of-35) and made 6-of-14 (42.9 percent) of its 3-point attempts. Smikle led the way with 11 points and was a perfect 5-of-5 from the floor. Seven different Hurricane scored in the first half and five had eight or more, including nine from Archie and eight each from Willis, Odom and McWright.
IN THE SECOND HALF …
The Eagles opened the half with a 3-pointer before Tulsa rattled off 27 of the game's next 33 points to take a commanding 80-46 lead with 10:30 remaining. The run included six 3-pointers for Tulsa, including three back-to-back-to-back from Carrington, Willis and Archie to take the lead from 24-33 in less than a minute.
The lead eventually reached 37, 88-51, on another 3-pointer from Archie with 6:46 to play. From there the teams largely traded buckets with the lead going no higher than 37 and no lower than 31 on the way to the 96-63 final.
Tulsa didn't quite shoot with the same heat in the second half from the field but still knocked down 48.4 percent (15-of-31) of its efforts. Where the Hurricane shined was beyond the arc, knocking down 10 triples at a 62.5 percent clip. Nine different Hurricane scored in the second half, led by nine from Archie. The Eagles were held to 35.7 percent from the floor and 4-of-8 on 3-pointers in the second half.
GAME NOTES
• This was the second meeting between the schools, and Tulsa has won both meetings.
• Tulsa has won its past two games by a combined 78 points.
• Ian Smikle scored a career-high 15 points in the win … it's his second game with 10 or more points at Tulsa.
• Braeden Carrington equaled his season-high with 10 rebounds, his second time to do so at Tulsa.
• Tyshawn Archie set a new career mark with 18 points.
• This was Archie's ninth double figure scoring game this season and 20th of his career.
• Keaston Willis reached double figures in scoring for the eighth time this season and 94th in his career.
• Dwon Odom reached double figures in scoring for the 11th time this season and 63rd in his career.
• Jesaiah McWright reached double figures in scoring for the first time this season and fifth in his career.
• Jaye Nash dished out a career-high 10 assists with just one turnover.
Tulsa opens the American Athletic Conference play on New Year's Day against the Rice Owls in the Donald W. Reynolds Center. Tipoff for the Wednesday afternoon matchup is set for 2 p.m. and will air on ESPN+.
Team Stats
SWC
Tulsa
FG%
.407
.561
3FG%
.524
.533
FT%
.800
.600
RB
22
44
TO
10
10
STL
7
5
Game Leaders
Pts
18
FGM
7
3FGM
3
FTM
1
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
0
FTM
3
Pts
14
FGM
4
3FGM
4
FTM
2
Pts
14
FGM
5
3FGM
4
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's BasketballG
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballG
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