Sports editor Jaralynn Tammi Morellano says Tulsa scored in the hundreds against Pine Buff
The University of Tulsa’s men’s basketball team hosted Arkansas-Pine Buff for its second home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 9 in the Donald W. Reynolds Center. The Golden Hurricane entered the 100-point zone for the second time under the coaching of Eric Konkol. This put it soaring over the Golden Lions 103–80 to start the season off strong with a 2-0 record.
“We asked our team for a total team effort and to put 40 minutes together,’ head coach Eric Konkol said. “We had some game goals of improvement and that’s, again, what this whole thing is about. Number one, we wanted to take care of the basketball and I’m really pleased to see just seven turnovers on there, so that was a good effort by our guys. We wanted to then share the basketball and get good shots, and to see the 24 assists is really, really important.”
Despite the amazing turnout, the Golden Hurricane did not start off hot, the players not making any field goals more than five minutes into the first half. All first of its eight points were made by free throws. A three-pointer by the reliable Isaiah Barnes would end this trend and propel the Golden Hurricane into a double-digit score to put it further ahead 11-7. Barnes would continue to push Tulsa towards victory. The next few plays would see him connecting free throw after free throw to push the Golden Hurricane into a 11-2 scoring run. By the time the half was midway through, it was tightly holding the lead of 26-15.
UAB was able to stay in the game and chip away until it was just a seven-point game. The hope would not last for long, Tyshawn Archie and Braeden Carrington posted back-to-back three pointers to extend its lead to 13. Unfortunately for the Golden Lions, that would be the last time the Golden Hurricane led by less than double-digits. It would be a back-and-forth battle for the remainder of the half. Before hitting the locker rooms, Tulsa would score five more points to have the lead 52-36.
Though the Golden Hurricane had a hefty lead, it came roaring out of the locker room to keep victory out of the Golden Lions’ hands. Shortly after the whistle blew for the second half, Tulsa went on a 10-3 scoring run and forced UAB to take a timeout just a minute in. This break would not make its engine go cold, and Tulsa would launch itself to a 27-point lead (67-40).
UAB just couldn’t come back and for every point it could score, the Golden Hurricane would force one right back to keep the wide gap of points. Its lead would eventually reach 30-points when Jaye Nash would steal possession from a Golden Lion and connect with Jessiah McWright on the other end of the court. He would make a layup off of his fast break and bring the score 89-59. McWright would also make the three-pointer that put the Golden Hurricane at 99 points.
The Golden Hurricane would be brought into the 100s by freshman Ian Smikle when a steal and pass from Ari Seals would find him in the perfect position down the court for this memory-making layup. Its final point would be scored in the last 30 seconds of the game by sophomore Tyler Behrend, his layup bringing the game to its final score of 103-80.
With such an impressive start to the season, Golden Hurricane fans can only wait for anticipation for the next home game. Lucky for them, it will come soon when Tulsa men’s basketball will host Oral Roberts in its home court at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 13.
