Tulsa withers late in loss to AAC-leading Cincinnati


by Tulsa World Sports Writer Kelly Hines
@kellyhinestw


Posted: Wednesday February 1, 2017 10:29 pm

Against the savvy conference leader, the young University of Tulsa basketball team withered in the closing minutes.

Before falling 57-55 to No. 14 Cincinnati on Wednesday night at the Reynolds Center, the Hurricane had a double-digit cushion with six minutes left and appeared primed to end the Bearcats’ 12-game win streak.

Instead, TU was outscored by 16-3 down the stretch. After Sterling Taplin missed the front end of a one-and-one free throw with 51 seconds left, Cincinnati scored the last five points of the game.

Veteran guard Troy Caupain delivered a three-point play to knot the score, then he hit the winning jump shot with four seconds left following a turnover by the Hurricane. TU also turned the ball over on its last possession.

TU, which moved into a tie with Memphis for third in the league, put up a hard fight against the American’s top team only a week removed from stumbling at ninth-place East Carolina.

Despite leading scorer Junior Etou getting into foul trouble, the Hurricane responded to a deficit early in the second half with a 10-0 burst. Pat Birt found Jaleel Wheeler for back-to-back baskets, and TU led 42-36.

With a putback from Taplin on his own miss, the Hurricane had a 52-41 advantage. The cushion dwindled to four with three minutes to go after a pair of bad possessions by the Hurricane and five unanswered points by Cincinnati top scorer Jacob Evans.

After a putback by Kyle Washington trimmed the Bearcats’ deficit to two, Etou hit a free throw with 79 seconds left. Evans missed a 3-pointer that would have tied the game, and Taplin headed to the free-throw line with a chance to seal the win.

TU (12-9, 6-3 AAC) lost despite a stellar defensive performance against a team that averages 78.5 points and makes 48.1 percent of its shot attempts. Cincinnati, led by Caupain’s 15 points, shot 35.3 percent from the field.

Etou and fellow forwards Martins Igbanu and TK Edogi were excellent on defense and also combined for 28 points and 22 rebounds, including a career-high 13 from Edogi.

The game was tied at 30 at halftime after Cincinnati weathered a cold-shooting start, affected by the stifling Hurricane defense. The Bearcats missed their first six shots while TU jumped out to a 9-0 lead.

Etou started 3-for-3 from the field, scoring seven of the Hurricane’s first 14 points. Edogi had similar success, delivering a monster one-handed dunk to put TU up 19-12 before an ensuing technical for taunting.

The advantage again reached nine points when Wheeler blocked a 3-pointer and converted a fast-break layup, but on the other end, Etou was whistled for his second foul.

With Etou on the bench, Cincinnati rattled off a 12-0 run that included back-to-back 3-pointers from Caupain. TU’s drought featured 10 consecutive misses before a basket by Igbanu, and the Hurricane made three free throws in the last 19 seconds of the half.

kelly.hines @tulsaworld.com

http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/tu...74021.html

Caupain's late jumper lifts No. 14 Cincinnati past Tulsa

TULSA, Okla. -- Troy Caupain hit a 16-foot jumper with 4.4 seconds left to lift No. 14 Cincinnati to a 59-57 victory over Tulsa on Wednesday night.

Caupain scored on a three-point play with 39 seconds remaining to pull the Bearcats to a 55-all tie after trailing by 11 points with about 6 minutes to go in the second half. Tulsa's Pat Birt then had his entry pass stolen and Caupain pulled up for the game-winner.

Caupain finished with 15 points for the Bearcats (20-2, 9-0 American Athletic Conference). Kyle Washington and Jacob Evans scored 10 each, and Gary Clark added nine points and 11 rebounds.

Jaleel Wheeler scored 13 points to lead Tulsa (12-9, 6-3). Junior Etou and Martins Igbanu had 10 each and T.K. Edogi added eight points and 13 rebounds.

Tulsa led 55-52 and had one of its top free throw shooters at the line in Sterling Taplin, but he missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 1:19 left.

The Golden Hurricane led the vast majority of the game before collapsing with uncertain offense, bad shots and several of its 16 turnovers in the final minutes.

Trailing 36-32 early in the second half, Tulsa went on a 20-5 run to lead 52-41 with 6:01 left. Washington stopped the run with two free throws and a basket. Evans hit a jumper in traffic and a 3-pointer to pull the Bearcats to 54-50 with 2:47 left.

Tulsa jumped out to a 9-0 lead in the first four minutes and led 19-12 after a vicious dunk by Edogi, following which he was called for a technical for taunting. Wheeler blocked a 3-pointer by Kevin Johnson and drove for a layup to give Tulsa a 25-16 edge with 6:29 left.

Caupain made two 3s to fuel a 12-0 Bearcat run that gave Cincinnati its first lead at 28-27 and the teams were knotted at 30 at the half. The Bearcats made four fewer field goals but made 12 of 16 free throws to 6 of 9 for Tulsa.

Tulsa finished with a 38-28 edge in rebounding and outshot the nation's second-ranked field-goal percentage defense team 40 percent to 35.3 percent.

BIG PICTURE

As much as Cincinnati pulled a rabbit out of its hat over the final two minutes, it was a heartbreaking setback for Tulsa, which didn't score in the final 1:19 and saw its chances for getting into the AAC race take a huge setback.

UP NEXT

Cincinnati looks to extend its 21-game home winning streak Saturday against UConn.

Tulsa concludes a three-game home stand against second-place SMU on Saturday.

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketb...=400916610

UC comes back, holds off Tulsa upset bid
Tom Groeschen , tgroeschen@enquirer.com Published 11:24 p.m. ET Feb. 1, 2017 | Updated 13 minutes ago


TULSA, Okla. – Senior point guard Troy Caupain hit a 16-foot jumper from just above the foul line with 4.4 seconds left, lifting the Cincinnati Bearcats to an improbable 57-55 comeback win over Tulsa here Wednesday night.

UC trailed 54-45 with 3 ½ minutes left, before a fierce rally led by Caupain (15 points overall), sophomore wing Jacob Evans (10 points) and junior forward Kyle Washington (10 points). The Bearcats outscored Tulsa 12-1 in the final 3-plus minutes.

After Caupain’s jumper, Tulsa got the ball and had to go the length of the floor after a timeout. As Tulsa guard Sterling Taplin raced downcourt and neared the basket with the ball, Taplin then had the ball knocked away by UC redshirt freshman forward Tre Scott before a shot could be taken. Game over.

The No. 14 Bearcats (20-2, 9-0 American Athletic Conference) won their 13th straight game. Tulsa fell to 12-9 overall and 6-3 in the AAC.

The game matched the first- and third-place teams in the AAC. The Golden Hurricane had won their their last 12 conference home games, entering Wednesday.

UC trailed by as much as 11 points, 52-41 with six minutes left.

UC achieved its seventh consecutive 20-win season, with the six previous all resulting in NCAA Tournament appearances. This is UC’s longest run of 20-win seasons since the Bob Huggins teams did it for 11 straight years (1991-92 season through 2001-02).

BAD START: UC got off to a terrible start, falling behind 9-0 in the first four minutes. In that span, the Bearcats were 0-for-6 from the floor and had two turnovers.

The Bearcats shot only 3-for-13 from the field in the first 11 minutes. UC trailed on a few occasions by as much as nine points, the latest at 25-16 with 6:28 left before halftime.

Caupain led a 14-5 UC surge in the final 6-plus minutes of the half, including back-to-back 3-pointers by the senior point guard. UC grabbed its first lead, 26-25, on a trey by Caupain with 2:28 left in the half. Caupain led UC with 10 points in the opening half.

On the defensive end, UC was able to get some stops later in the first half when the Bearcats went to a matchup zone.

The Bearcats were happy to settle for a 30-30 halftime tie, having shot 30.4 percent from the field (7-for-23). A point of halftime discussion probably involved working the ball inside. In the first half, the Bearcats were outscored 18-4 in the paint.

UC pulled out to a 36-32 lead early in the second half, but it would not last. The Bearcats seemed doomed when the deficit went to 11 points, but Tulsa became tentative offensively and UC picked up the pace. By game’s end, the Tulsa crowd was stunned into silence.

BROOKS OUT: Freshman center Nysier Brooks (hyperextended right knee) made the Tulsa trip but is on crutches. Coach Mick Cronin has not said how long Brooks might be out, but word is that Brooks could miss a couple of weeks. Brooks was hurt last Sunday against USF.

Brooks is averaging 3.0 points and 1.6 rebounds off the bench, and also 0.9 blocks in limited time. The 6-foot-11, 240-pound Brooks is UC’s biggest player and will especially missed as a defensive presence. It could mean more playing time for junior forward Quadri Moore, who also has played limited minutes.

UP NEXT: The 25th anniversary of UC’s 1992 NCAA Final Four team will be celebrated at the Bearcats’ next game, against UConn on Saturday (4 p.m.) at Fifth Third Arena.

Most every member of the ’92 squad is expected to attend, according to team member Terry Nelson. Nelson, who now works in the UC athletic department and does some Bearcats radio/TV work, helped organize the reunion. Nelson said that ’92 head coach Bob Huggins, now coach at West Virginia, has taped a message that will be displayed on the Fifth Third Arena video board.

Fans can meet members of the team and gather autographs two hours before tipoff, in the fourth floor lobby of the Lindner Athletics Center next to Fifth Third Arena. Members of the team also will be recognized during the game.

THE ROCK: Mike “Rock” Reicheneker, a member of the ’92 Final Four team, watched Wednesday night’s Tulsa game from behind the UC bench. Reicheneker, who lives in Arkansas, said is trying to make arrangements to attend the Final Four reunion Saturday.

HOT TICKET: Only 350 tickets remain for Saturday’s UC-UConn game, athletic director Mike Bohn said Wednesday.

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/sports/c.../97355378/

CBS Sports Wed Winners and Losers

WINNER: Cincinnati Bearcats 's underrated season
The Bearcats are still undefeated in the American. Now at 20-2 overall and with an 8-0 mark in the conference, it's time to give Mick Cronin's team some long overdue attention. I'll have a column on UC on Thursday afternoon. On Wednesday night the Bearcats won 57-55 at Tulsa, this after Cincinnati came back from 11 points down.

This was the loss that was supposed to wake up UC, only that they won again.

(02-02-2017 06:09 AM)SuperFlyBCat Wrote:  This was the loss that was supposed to wake up UC, only that they won again.

Nice when you can get woke up and still win, what a difference a year makes,

(02-02-2017 09:57 AM)CincyBro Wrote:  

(02-02-2017 06:09 AM)SuperFlyBCat Wrote:  This was the loss that was supposed to wake up UC, only that they won again.

Nice when you can get woke up and still win, what a difference a year makes,

Yep, could not hit the broad side of the barn but still got a road W.

Thanks for the posts ctip!