Transfer Brandon Betson settling in to new role at Tulsa
The ability to shoot and hit clutch shots haven't been in enough supply for Tulsa in the past few seasons.
Enter Brandon Betson. He should help change that.
Because Betson, a 6-foot-1 combo guard, can light it up. Oh, and he prides himself on sharing the ball as well.
Last season in a rough year for outmanned Chicago State, Betson twice came through with game winners in the closing seconds.
Most notably, a driving, contested layup with 2 seconds remaining against New Mexico State broke a tie to give Chicago State the late season win in a game in which he scored 17 points. His jumper in the paint with 3 seconds left against California Baptist broke a tie as well.
Beating New Mexico State is noteworthy considering that, besides being ranked, New Mexico State went on to win a first round NCAA tournament game a few weeks later versus UConn.
For Chicago State last season, Betson was a second-team All-WAC selection, averaging 14.2 points, 2.8 assists, 2.4 rebounds, and shot 37 percent on three-pointers while playing 34.5 minutes per game.
Betson's journey to Tulsa has been a long one. From Hercules, California, part of the San Francisco Bay area and located 10 miles north of Berkeley, Betson went to jucos at San Bernardino College (California) and Daytona State (Florida), each for a year, before landing at Chicago State in 2021.
Considering Chicago State finished 0-9 the year before he got there, and had won a combined 7 games the two seasons before that, obviously Chicago State was in for a rough year. So finishing 7-25 in 2021 was actually a significant improvement with Betson there.
"Lance Irvin was at Chicago State, but when I got there, he got fired, so I wondered what would happen to my scholarship," Betson said. "Coach (Gerald) Gillion, he's my man forever, he gave me a chance, and I just took it."
But even with his great relationship with his coach, the situation for the Chicago State program was so up in the air that Betson thought it was best to enter the transfer portal.
"There was a whole lot of uncertainty at Chicago State," Betson said. "They didn't have a conference, they just backed out of the WAC. Our athletic director stepped down. I didn't want to be put in the position with a lot of things I couldn't control."
So what was it about TU that made it the winner in getting Betson?
"The conference, Coach Konkol, and some of the guys they have here, like Sam Griffin," Betson said. "I feel like me and Sam can improve each other a lot, and great things can happen here.
"I love the competition in this conference, the American conference has some of the best guards."
Betson is one of three players that can handle point guard duties, along with Griffin and Anthony Pritchard, who is starting at the position. Pritchard has been playing mostly point guard, while Betson and Griffin have both been playing off the ball most of the time.
"I'm a point guard, but my shooting can get me to play anywhere," Betson said. "The best part of my game is getting my teammates involved. Just being a constant threat."
Living in Tulsa is a lot different from his stints on the coasts, and from the Windy City. But one thing TU shouldn't have to worry about is academics.
A business major, Betson has academics covered. It started from his home growing up.
"The classes are going well. Everybody told me it would be tough, but my mom has stressed school since I was young," Betson said. "She's been a teacher, and she's a middle school principal now."
With the level of play being upped considerably coming to TU, Betson is seeing a lot more competition in practice every day.
"I've got to fight every day," Betson said. "That's actually what I'm most happy about, because it's made me a better player."
Through five games this season, Betson is one of TU's first players off the bench, but he has also started one game. He is averaging 11.4 points and 2.2 assists per game, while shooting 38.1 percent from beyond the arc and 78.6 percent from the free throw line.