Larry Lewis
ITS Senior Writer
It was a horrifying loss in almost every aspect.
A subpar Tulsa defensive performance, combined with Arkansas State being out of their minds, hitting ridiculous runners it probably couldn't hit again in years, resulted in a 66-63 loss Saturday afternoon in front of 3,074 stunned fans at the Reynolds Center.
Tulsa (7-2) lost despite shooting 51.1 percent from the field. But defensively for the Golden Hurricane, it was a horror show. And ASU also shot an identical 51.1 percent.
Without question, playing without Lawson Korita hindered Tulsa's defense. TU coach Frank Haith has often said how important Korita is to the defense, as he gets everyone in their correct positions. The 6-5 senior guard/forward from Little Rock couldn't play due to an ankle injury.
"We heard about Lawson's deal this morning," Haith said. "It makes it tough for us when you have a rhythm, you have a rotation, and then you don't have that guy. It kind of gets everything out of kilter a little but. But we had great opportunities. Next man up."
Arkansas State (7-2) fell behind 20-11, but then Tulsa went stone cold for a while, and the Red Wolves couldn't miss, going on a 15-0 run to go up 26-20. Tulsa never regained the lead.
"They didn't go away, and they made some tough shots, then all of a sudden its a ball game," Haith said. "We didn't have any resolve in us to win a tight game. Our execution was poor. Lack of execution will beat you every time."
A shot that typified the game for ASU was when Tulsa had a great defensive sequence where the shot clock almost ran out. Then Jerry Johnson shot a runner as he was falling backwards out of bounds. Of course, the shot went in, and the Red Wolves led by seven early in the second half.
Still, Tulsa fought back and had a chance to take the a late lead, but, of course, Martins Igbanu's good looking hook shot from four feet away in the lane went in and out with 2:21 left with Tulsa trailing 58-57. Then Johnson hit a three-pointer on the next possession.
TU had another chance to tie the game with less than a minute, but bad possession ensued, and Jeriah Horne's desperation three-point attempt before the shot clock left drew air with 35 seconds left. Then ASU hit its free throws, and it was over.
"They thew a bunch of shots in at the end of the clock and made some really tough shots. And we didn't execute like we needed to," Haith said. "We didn't have great resolve when they snapped back at us and got back into the game, and that was really, really disappointing.
"You've got to be able to fight through it make plays, and we didn't. We didn't make plays on that end of the court and they made some tough shots."
The loss broke a 19-game home non-conference winning streak for the Golden Hurricane.
Brandon Rachal had 17 points and five rebounds to lead the Golden Hurricane. He made six of eight shots from the field. Igbanu added 12 points and four rebounds.
Johnson came off the bench to lead ASU with 16 points, while Marquis Eaton scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Wolves. A Sun Belt conference team, ASU was 13-19 last season
TU next plays Boise State at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night.
ITS Senior Writer
It was a horrifying loss in almost every aspect.
A subpar Tulsa defensive performance, combined with Arkansas State being out of their minds, hitting ridiculous runners it probably couldn't hit again in years, resulted in a 66-63 loss Saturday afternoon in front of 3,074 stunned fans at the Reynolds Center.
Tulsa (7-2) lost despite shooting 51.1 percent from the field. But defensively for the Golden Hurricane, it was a horror show. And ASU also shot an identical 51.1 percent.
Without question, playing without Lawson Korita hindered Tulsa's defense. TU coach Frank Haith has often said how important Korita is to the defense, as he gets everyone in their correct positions. The 6-5 senior guard/forward from Little Rock couldn't play due to an ankle injury.
"We heard about Lawson's deal this morning," Haith said. "It makes it tough for us when you have a rhythm, you have a rotation, and then you don't have that guy. It kind of gets everything out of kilter a little but. But we had great opportunities. Next man up."
Arkansas State (7-2) fell behind 20-11, but then Tulsa went stone cold for a while, and the Red Wolves couldn't miss, going on a 15-0 run to go up 26-20. Tulsa never regained the lead.
"They didn't go away, and they made some tough shots, then all of a sudden its a ball game," Haith said. "We didn't have any resolve in us to win a tight game. Our execution was poor. Lack of execution will beat you every time."
A shot that typified the game for ASU was when Tulsa had a great defensive sequence where the shot clock almost ran out. Then Jerry Johnson shot a runner as he was falling backwards out of bounds. Of course, the shot went in, and the Red Wolves led by seven early in the second half.
Still, Tulsa fought back and had a chance to take the a late lead, but, of course, Martins Igbanu's good looking hook shot from four feet away in the lane went in and out with 2:21 left with Tulsa trailing 58-57. Then Johnson hit a three-pointer on the next possession.
TU had another chance to tie the game with less than a minute, but bad possession ensued, and Jeriah Horne's desperation three-point attempt before the shot clock left drew air with 35 seconds left. Then ASU hit its free throws, and it was over.
"They thew a bunch of shots in at the end of the clock and made some really tough shots. And we didn't execute like we needed to," Haith said. "We didn't have great resolve when they snapped back at us and got back into the game, and that was really, really disappointing.
"You've got to be able to fight through it make plays, and we didn't. We didn't make plays on that end of the court and they made some tough shots."
The loss broke a 19-game home non-conference winning streak for the Golden Hurricane.
Brandon Rachal had 17 points and five rebounds to lead the Golden Hurricane. He made six of eight shots from the field. Igbanu added 12 points and four rebounds.
Johnson came off the bench to lead ASU with 16 points, while Marquis Eaton scored 15 points and grabbed six rebounds for the Wolves. A Sun Belt conference team, ASU was 13-19 last season
TU next plays Boise State at 7 p.m. on Wednesday night.
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