Tulsa ends losing skid, defeats Tulane in overtime
Tim Dalger's hustle and energy epitomized the entire Tulsa team effort Saturday night, and were pivotal in TU finally breaking through for a much deserved win over a quality Tulane team.
Dalger had 15 points and 13 rebounds, including key ones down the stretch, as Tulsa pulled out a 81-79 overtime win against Tulane in front of a crowd of 7,071 at the Reynolds center.
Also noteworthy on Legends Night at Tulsa in the only Saturday night home game of the season was TU setting the Guiness World Record mark for the largest Pizza Party with 3,357 participants. It shattered the former mark of 1,046 set in Italy in 2019.
"What a day," said Tulsa coach Eric Konkol. "Thanks to the city of Tulsa. What an environment. What a gritty performance by our team, and I thought, what a total team effort."
Tulsa (5-13, 1-6 AAC) got four key offensive rebounds by Dalger in the second half, including two consecutive ones in the final minute, that helped TU tie the game at 71-71 and send the game into overtime.
Dalger rebounded a missed long two-pointer by Brandon Betson and missed the tip-in attempt, but his second highly-contested, subsequent tip-in attempt off his own miss finally banked in with 23.5 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game. Tulane's Jalen Cook couldn't convert a three-pointer on the final possession of regulation, and then it was on to overtime.
"It felt great to come through for my team," Dalger said. "I feel like I haven't been able to do so much because of some things personally that I haven't been taking care of as far as character wise. I appreciate coach holding me accountable for things like that. Just when the opportunity presented itself, I just wanted to make sure I took it."
Dalger's team-leading plus/minus ratio of 13 against Tulane contrasted his previous struggles in conference play. He had only been averaging 4.7 points and 4 rebounds in 18.2 minutes, compared with 7.2 points and 4.5 rebounds in 21.3 minutes for the season.
"He was really under control, he kept things simple, he played really, really hard," Konkol said of Dalger. "I mean really, really hard. He keeps the ball there for us at the end to get us into overtime, But just some big, big hustle plays. I'm just really proud of Tim."
Another offensive rebound by Dalger off a Betson miss started off overtime. After a couple of passes, Bryant Selbangue got one of his 12 rebounds when he grabbed a missed three-pointer by Dalger from the left side on Tulsa's first possession of OT.
Dalger then received the pass back from Selebangue in the same spot, where he drained the three-pointer to give Tulsa a 74-71 lead. The bucket was TU's first lead since early in the second half, and gave the Golden Hurricane a huge momentum boost.
A three-pointer by Anthony Pritchard broke a 77-77 tie with 1:36 remaining in OT, and Pritchard made his second free throw attempt with 49.7 seconds left to make the lead 81-79. A shot clock violation gave Tulane what appeared to be a last second attempt, and Sam Griffin's steal of Cook's pass appeared to seal the game.
But Griffin's premature celebration resulted in a traveling call with 0.9 seconds left, giving the Green Wave a final attempt, which was badly missed by Jaden Coleman, and Tulsa could finally celebrate for real.
Tulane (12-7, 5-3) had defeated Tulsa 93-77 in New Orleans just 17 days ago. But that game was a pivotal one for TU, since the Golden Hurricane showed a lot of life in the second half after battling back from a huge deficit. TU had lost to then No. 3 Houston by 39 points the previous game.
After that Tulane loss on Jan. 4, Tulsa then lost the next three games by a total of just 11 points, including a heartbreaking 79-76 overtime loss Wednesday to SMU at the Reynolds Center.
Tulsa was way overdue for a win.
"Just coming together," Dalger said of the key to Tulsa's recent better play. "We've been struggling with some stuff. Just kind of buying into what coach is saying, listening to the game plan, and going out and executing, together."
In a season that has looked bleak for Dalger and TU as a whole, it would have been easy for the Golden Hurricane to fold. But obviously, the opposite is the case, as TU is playing its best basketball in Konkol's first year as coach.
"I have a fire inside of me, and so does the team," Dalger said.
Pritchard was another player who came through down the stretch, finishing with 10 points, 9 assists and 5 rebounds at point guard with only 3 turnovers.
"Anthony Pritchard was timely with some baskets and getting to the rim," Konkol said. "He's got that aggressiveness of getting into the paint, and just keep working on those decisions, and he made some awfully good ones tonight."
The only sore spot for TU was foul shooting, as the Golden Hurricane was 9 of 20 (45 percent) from the line, while Tulane was 18 of 25 (76 percent). Pritchard (3 of 7) and Selebangue (2 of 7) particularly struggled at the line for most of the game.
Griffin led Tulsa with 23 points, and Betson added 13 points, while the pair of guards combined for 7 three-pointers. TU finished 12 of 33 (36.4 percent) from beyond the arc, while Tulane was just 7 of 25 (28 percent).
Tulsa's defense, in particular, of Jalen Forbes and Cook, was critical. The 6-foot-5 Forbes, who averages 19.4 points, and the 6-foot Cook, who averages 18.1, were contained well, combining to go 1 of 11 on threes (9 percent).
Forbes was 0 of 4 on three-pointers, which is significant considering he has made 52 triples on the season at a 38.8 percent clip. He ended up with only 8 points on 3 of 14 shooting (21.4 percent). Cook led Tulane with 23 points, but was only 6 of 17 (35.3 percent) from the field, including 1 of 7 on three-pointers (14.3 percent).
"Those two guys can really score the ball," Konkol said. "We were really focused on trying to limit Forbes' three-point attempts. For him to go 0 for 4 is a big, big deal for us, in switching some screens, and trying to get to him.
"Those guys, together, are so dangerous. Jalen Cook can just dance with that basketball. He can get to the basket. He's just so strong and tough."
Konkol was justifiably ecstatic about the win and the entire atmosphere for the game. For a guy who was a graduate assistant at TU in its glory days over 20 years ago, Konkol knows what TU basketball has been and can be.
"I don't think there's a more fun place than the Reynolds Center in the city of Tulsa and watching the University of Tulsa basketball team," Konkol said.