Late surge lifts Hurricane over Jackson State
BY BILL HAISTEN World Sports Writer
Thursday, November 22, 2012
11/22/12 at 6:04 AM
During a second-half sequence, Danny Manning glanced at the University of Tulsa bench.
The first-year Golden Hurricane coach saw sophomore Rashad Smith wearing street clothes - and a protective boot on his injured left foot.
Manning saw redshirt freshman Brandon Swannegan - who, also with a recently injured foot, entered the arena on crutches.
Manning saw freshman forward D'Andre Wright, who was sidelined with four fouls.
Manning then glanced at the Reynolds Center scoreboard and saw that a 17-point Golden Hurricane lead over Jackson State had dwindled to two points (53-51).
In spite of Tulsa's diminished depth, and in spite of a combined total of 48 points from Jackson State guards Kelsey Howard and Christian Williams, the Hurricane buried the visitors with a late surge and prevailed 86-66 on Wednesday night.
"It doesn't matter who runs out there on the court," Manning said. "Our expectations don't change."
The Hurricane improved to 4-1 as freshman guard James Woodard scored 27 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field. Freshman Shaquille Harrison finished with 12 points. During the final 10 minutes, TU outscored the 0-2 Tigers 33-15.
"James was outstanding," Manning said. "I thought he could have had 30 tonight. He passed up a couple of shots. The best thing was that he had 11 rebounds. He knew we were short-handed on the glass, and he went in there and made plays for us.
"It's a great team win. We've just got to continue to grind and get better."
As Wright coped with foul issues and Smith was inactive, TU senior Scottie Haralson - usually a catch-and-shoot 3-point specialist - spent a significant percentage of his 37 minutes at the power forward position. He scored 16 points, sparking the Hurricane late in the game with consecutive baskets on a low-post finish and a transition 3-pointer.
"I just wanted to be aggressive. I tried to give my team a little boost," said Haralson, who connected on four of his nine 3-point attempts. "Regardless of (whether) we have players hurt, we still expect a lot from our team. I'm going to do my best to help my team win."
Smith and Swannegan apparently were injured since the Hurricane returned from its three-game weekend trip to San Diego. Smith was a starter in each of Tulsa's first four games, averaging 14.5 points. Off the bench, Swannegan averages seven minutes and 2.3 points per game.
"Hopefully, (Smith) will be back in a couple of weeks," Manning said. "I'd like for him to be back tomorrow. (Swannegan) will be down a little bit longer."
After hosting Stephen F. Austin for a 3 p.m. Saturday contest, Manning's young team gets its toughest test so far - a road game next Wednesday at Wichita State. The Hurricane then returns to the Reynolds Center for meetings with Missouri State (Dec. 5) and TCU (Dec. 8).
Against Jackson State, Tulsa shot 48 percent from the field overall, 8-of-24 on 3-point tries and 16-of-22 from the foul line. Wright was limited to 20 minutes of participation, but contributed to nine points and seven rebounds. The 6-foot-8 freshman from Lawton was 5-of-6 on free throws. For the season, he is 19-of-23 (83 percent).
College basketball
TU 86, Jackson State 66
Up next
Vs. Stephen F. Austin
3:05 p.m. Saturday
Radio: KRMG am740, fm102.3
Original Print Headline: Late surge carries Hurricane
Bill Haisten 918-581-8397
bill.haisten@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
TU's D'Andre Wright fights for a rebound with Jackson State's Sydney Coleman in the first half Wednesday night. ERIK CAMPOS/ For the Tulsa World
TU's Kauri Black (0) and Shaquille Harrison fight for a rebound against Jackson State on Wednesday night at the Reynolds Center. ERIK CAMPOS/For the Tulsa World
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