The performances of Anthony Pritchard and Darien Jackson highlighted that this Tulsa squad has the ability to beat good basketball teams.

And has had the ability all year.

Pritchard, Jackson, and the rest of the Golden Hurricane looked strong, played with purpose and fire, and deserved their 83-77 victory over Cincinnati Saturday night on Legends Night in front of an announced crowd of 3,405 at the Reynolds Center.

The win was a much-needed respite to what has been an incredibly frustrating season for Tulsa (8-15, 2-10 AAC), where TU has dropped close game after close game.

"We were just starved for a win, almost to the point that we were in terrible shape," said TU coach Frank Haith. "It just feels good. And in a game where we finished it the right way. We made some plays down the stretch even when they made a big three or a big shot. We executed so well on offense."

Pritchard was the catalyst for an important terrific start where Tulsa never trailed. Jumping out to a 17-6 lead, TU led by as many as 12 points at 35-23 in the first half before settling on a 39-34 halftime lead.

Back in the starting lineup, the freshman point guard from Webster HS got Tulsa's offense rolling by facilitating amazing ball movement with pass after pass that found his open teammates. Pritchard finished with a double-double of 11 points and 10 assists, and added 7 rebounds and two blocks, and only had two turnovers in 32 minutes of playing time.

"I'm glad coach Haith trusts me to be on the floor," Pritchard said.

Pritchard's drives to the basket and his willingness to take shots on his drives led to Cincy defenders over-committing to defend his shots. That is when Pritchard took advantage and got his assists to players who would make the most of their scoring opportunities.

"He really played his butt off. Proud of him," Haith said of Pritchard. "He only had two turnovers and they pressured the crap out of him, but he made good decisions. He had such a great floor game. The kid's maturation is going in the right direction."

Jackson was one of those players who benefitted from the good ball movement. He scored 21 points for the second time this season against the Bearcats. He was 8 of 10 from the floor, including 2 of 2 on three's. Jackson also had 5 rebounds and two steals.

Just as important as offense, or even more so, was Tulsa's defense that was a throwback to years past under Haith when TU's defense often thrived. Cincinnati was held to 37.8 percent from the field and 33 percent (12 of 36) on three-pointers. This is significant because TU's defense this year has been disappointing, frequently allowing over 50 percent from the field and on three's.

"We got stops when we needed them," Haith said. "They shot 37 percent, and those are the numbers we want. I thought our defense was good. We changed defenses. We started out playing man. We played a lot of man this game, probably about 50-50."

In contrast, Tulsa shot 52.5 percent from the field. Things were going so well that Tulsa even out-rebounded the athletic, solid rebounding Bearcats 41-40.

Jeriah Horne was a force for the Golden Hurricane, scoring 21 points and grabbing 9 rebounds. Rey Idowu had another strong game with his inside presence on offense with 14 points.

"We focused on defense because that is what has been hurting us in our other games," Jackson said. "If we play good on defense, our offense will come to us."

Tulsa led by as many as 10 in the second half over Cincinnati (16-8, 6-5), the last time coming at 71-61 with just over 6 minutes remaining. But in the next 2 minutes, the Bearcats were able to cut the margin to 73-71 with under 5 minutes remaining.

But instead of going, oh boy, here we go again, Tulsa got busy and built the lead back, and the game was never closer than 6 points in the final 3:14 until it got cut to 5 points in the final 8 seconds.

Jackson wasn't going to let the previous heartbreaking losses ruin this game.

"If we don't let what happened previously affect us, the sky's the limit," Jackson said. "This gave us confidence. It shows that we can come out and play with the best."

For Pritchard, the game was payback for the 90-69 loss at Cincinnati less than a month ago.

"The retaliation. We went to their crib, and they put it on us. So we just knew, coming into the game, on the defensive end, we had to fight our hardest," Pritchard said.

Besides finally winning a close game this season, the win was welcome to Golden Hurricane fans who remember the last 3 times Cincinnati has played in Tulsa, including last season. In all three of those games, Tulsa has blown leads in the final minute in heartbreaking losses.

But not this time.

"These guys deserved it. They kept working," Haith said. "It's hard going through what they've gone through, with the tough losses in close games. To come in every day and work and get after it, I just feel happy for them. I'm proud of how they finished."

Tulsa next plays Monday night at Central Florida (14-8, 6-6).