Thursday, November 21, 1996
M. HOOPS:
UCLA falls to Tulsa for second time in a row in overtime,
77-76By Hye Kwon
Daily Bruin Staff
For a game that was supposed to be a refreshing start of a new
era, the UCLA men’s basketball team ended up with a result that
only succeeded in rehashing their most painful memories of the
past.
The fifth-ranked Bruins were knocked out of the National
Invitational Tournament by Tulsa, which managed to fend off a late
UCLA charge in a 77-76 overtime win.
The Golden Hurricane, the same team that bounced the Bruins out
of the 1994 NCAA tournament, succeeded in upsetting UCLA on
national television for the second straight time.
"Whenever we play, I think that we have a chance to win (against
anyone)," Tulsa head coach Steve Robinson said. "If I don’t think
that we’re going to win, I wouldn’t put my team on the floor."
UCLA actually had a good chance to win the game itself, when
Kris Johnson found himself wide open at the top of the key with
four seconds remaining in regulation and the game deadlocked at 70.
Johnson’s attempt caromed off the rim and so did J.R. Henderson’s
desperation put back try.
In overtime, the Bruins had a chance to go up by four points
with two minutes remaining on the clock, but Henderson missed both
of his free throw tries. Tulsa then went on a 5-2 run that
ultimately sealed the victory.
"I’m not into moral victories and no coach is," UCLA interim
head coach Steve Lavin, who made his debut Wednesday night, said.
"But we actually sent the game into overtime and had a chance to
win. That was impressive."
After the loss, Lavin tried to stress the positives of his
team’s play.
"I’m going to learn a lot from this," Lavin said. "If I have to
watch tape until six in the morning then I’ll do it.
"What’s most important to me is that we play with heart," he
went on. "If we play with heart, I know … we’re going to have a
special season. The way they fought back and showed heart was what
was most important to me."
As expected, All-American Shea Seals led the Golden Hurricane
with 19 points. However, he went 6-of-19 from the field, thanks in
large part to Toby Bailey’s pressure defense.
Jelani McCoy led the Bruins with 19 points and 7 rebounds.