NCAA Men's Soccer
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You essentially have to let them know in advance if you are willing to eat the costs to pay for that and Tulsa doesnt have the money right now. Unlike at Creighton, there are bigger priorities right now. So if we only got screwed in the sense that we screw ourselves because we spend the money available to the program on bigger priorities.
Plus, we are lucky to be in the thing at all. Wisconsin only lost twice since September -- both to Number 1 Maryland. And ... didnt get in despite beating Creighton in Omaha 3-1. If there is screwage, it is Kentucky getting a first round bye out of Conference USA after loses to FIU, UAB and Furman. The tie to Lipscomb doesnt help their case either.
They can beat Creighton and should beat Kentucky, even though it is on the road. Playing at Number 1 Maryland after that, well... that's a challenge a player hopes they get the chance to take.
Plus, we are lucky to be in the thing at all. Wisconsin only lost twice since September -- both to Number 1 Maryland. And ... didnt get in despite beating Creighton in Omaha 3-1. If there is screwage, it is Kentucky getting a first round bye out of Conference USA after loses to FIU, UAB and Furman. The tie to Lipscomb doesnt help their case either.
They can beat Creighton and should beat Kentucky, even though it is on the road. Playing at Number 1 Maryland after that, well... that's a challenge a player hopes they get the chance to take.
I didn't realize that hosting a game was a pay to play thing. TU can beat both Creighton and Kentucky. Earlier this year in an exhibition with a weird format, TU beat Maryland in one session, tied another, and got hammered in the 3rd. TU's strength is its ability to counter quickly and get numbers forward quickly putting a lot of pressure on the back line. Their weakness, IMO, is a lack of aggressiveness in the back in attacking the ball as on ball defender and defending set pieces.
From Omaha.com...
The last time Creighton saw Tulsa, the Golden Hurricane were on their heels, on the verge of suffering a third straight shutout loss.
The Jays had shut Tulsa out for the first 85 minutes on that Oct. 11 night and looked to close out a 1-0 win.
But with 4:11 left, Tulsa got the equalizer on an Alejandro Chavez goal. Less than three minutes later, Matthew Puig added a goal of his own, and suddenly the Hurricane left their home field with an improbable 2-1 victory.
That win turned the fortunes for Tulsa’s season as the Hurricane have gone 4-0-3 since then.
Now the teams will square off again in the first round of the NCAA tournament Thursday at 7 p.m. at Morrison Stadium.
“They’re very athletic. Individually, they have very good players,” Creighton coach Elmar Bolowich said. “A very attack-minded team. They like to use their athleticism to get behind the defense, so we have to be anticipating that and be proactive.”
Tulsa coach Tom McIntosh said he liked how his team played the first time against the Jays, even if it didn’t score until the 86th minute.
“More than the result, we created a lot of chances in the game. We scored those two goals late in the game, but we created chances throughout the game,” McIntosh said. “I think that was the biggest improvement we needed at that point of the season.
“We’ve been creating chances ever since that game.”
During its eight-game unbeaten streak, Tulsa (10-4-5) is averaging 2.1 goals per game.
“I think we’re playing well,” said McIntosh, whose team won the American Athletic Conference tournament in a shootout over South Florida on Sunday. “We’re not conceding too many good chances. I think we’ve been playing pretty good defensively during the past eight games.”
Creighton (11-6-3) is coming off a 2-1 loss to Butler in the Big East final, a game in which Bolowich said the Jays “ran out of juice” playing a second road game in four days.
But the Jays have been better at producing offensive results in recent weeks. They have 10 goals in four November games.
“Overall, the team is together, united, which is important. The confidence is there,” said Creighton senior Ricardo Perez, who had an assist on Sunday’s goal. “Overall, I think the mentality is positive.”
There were a lot of scoring chances for both teams in the first Tulsa-Creighton meeting — the Hurricane took 18 shots, the Jays 15.
And as far as playing for the second time this fall, McIntosh said that isn’t a major factor. Tulsa and Creighton have played in each of the past five years, going 2-2-1.
“Elmar’s teams play a certain way, so I think we certainly have an understanding of how they want to play. And they have an understanding of how we play,” McIntosh said. “It just comes down to who executes the best on Thursday night.”
Both teams have gotten solid goalkeeping as Tulsa’s Jake McGuire has a 0.99 goals-against average, while Creighton’s Alex Kapp’s average is 0.77.
Riggs Lennon leads CU with 10 goals this season, while Ricky Lopez-Espin has seven of his nine goals in the last 11 games. Puig, a freshman, leads Tulsa with eight goals.
“I think their midfield is really, really good,” McIntosh said. “They caused us problems in the last game, so we have to find a way to neutralize their midfield.”
The last time Creighton saw Tulsa, the Golden Hurricane were on their heels, on the verge of suffering a third straight shutout loss.
The Jays had shut Tulsa out for the first 85 minutes on that Oct. 11 night and looked to close out a 1-0 win.
But with 4:11 left, Tulsa got the equalizer on an Alejandro Chavez goal. Less than three minutes later, Matthew Puig added a goal of his own, and suddenly the Hurricane left their home field with an improbable 2-1 victory.
That win turned the fortunes for Tulsa’s season as the Hurricane have gone 4-0-3 since then.
Now the teams will square off again in the first round of the NCAA tournament Thursday at 7 p.m. at Morrison Stadium.
“They’re very athletic. Individually, they have very good players,” Creighton coach Elmar Bolowich said. “A very attack-minded team. They like to use their athleticism to get behind the defense, so we have to be anticipating that and be proactive.”
Tulsa coach Tom McIntosh said he liked how his team played the first time against the Jays, even if it didn’t score until the 86th minute.
“More than the result, we created a lot of chances in the game. We scored those two goals late in the game, but we created chances throughout the game,” McIntosh said. “I think that was the biggest improvement we needed at that point of the season.
“We’ve been creating chances ever since that game.”
During its eight-game unbeaten streak, Tulsa (10-4-5) is averaging 2.1 goals per game.
“I think we’re playing well,” said McIntosh, whose team won the American Athletic Conference tournament in a shootout over South Florida on Sunday. “We’re not conceding too many good chances. I think we’ve been playing pretty good defensively during the past eight games.”
Creighton (11-6-3) is coming off a 2-1 loss to Butler in the Big East final, a game in which Bolowich said the Jays “ran out of juice” playing a second road game in four days.
But the Jays have been better at producing offensive results in recent weeks. They have 10 goals in four November games.
“Overall, the team is together, united, which is important. The confidence is there,” said Creighton senior Ricardo Perez, who had an assist on Sunday’s goal. “Overall, I think the mentality is positive.”
There were a lot of scoring chances for both teams in the first Tulsa-Creighton meeting — the Hurricane took 18 shots, the Jays 15.
And as far as playing for the second time this fall, McIntosh said that isn’t a major factor. Tulsa and Creighton have played in each of the past five years, going 2-2-1.
“Elmar’s teams play a certain way, so I think we certainly have an understanding of how they want to play. And they have an understanding of how we play,” McIntosh said. “It just comes down to who executes the best on Thursday night.”
Both teams have gotten solid goalkeeping as Tulsa’s Jake McGuire has a 0.99 goals-against average, while Creighton’s Alex Kapp’s average is 0.77.
Riggs Lennon leads CU with 10 goals this season, while Ricky Lopez-Espin has seven of his nine goals in the last 11 games. Puig, a freshman, leads Tulsa with eight goals.
“I think their midfield is really, really good,” McIntosh said. “They caused us problems in the last game, so we have to find a way to neutralize their midfield.”
I followed on Twitter. Give up 2 goals in the first 6 minutes before you get your legs under you and start creating chances. Can't do that. First came off of a corner....TU's set piece defense has been pretty bad this year.
3rd goal was a counter late in the 2nd when TU started to commit numbers to the attack trying to get a goal and then work for an equalizer. From what it sounds, TU had plenty of quality chances but no finishes. They lose 3 seniors...Ray Saari, Quinton, and Jake McGuire. The back-up keeper returns next year and my understanding is he has the potential to be really special. I expect Ryan Alpers to pick things up and step in at back for Quinton. And TU has a plethora of MF talent to step in for Ray. TU has the chance to be one of those really special teams next year with a lot of experience and scoring returning.
3rd goal was a counter late in the 2nd when TU started to commit numbers to the attack trying to get a goal and then work for an equalizer. From what it sounds, TU had plenty of quality chances but no finishes. They lose 3 seniors...Ray Saari, Quinton, and Jake McGuire. The back-up keeper returns next year and my understanding is he has the potential to be really special. I expect Ryan Alpers to pick things up and step in at back for Quinton. And TU has a plethora of MF talent to step in for Ray. TU has the chance to be one of those really special teams next year with a lot of experience and scoring returning.
Would've been a good year for TU to make the Cup, since it's Houston I believe. I would've met Huffy at the airport and then we'd buy that keg on our way to the venue. One of these days, man.
Cannot wait until the day I make good on the promise of buying everyone a keg, renting a smoker, then eating and drinking before the game like we are all going to the electric chair the next morning.
