TU game the apple of its eye
By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
3/21/01
Hurricane can go to New York by toppling Mississippi State tonight.
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Tulsa wants to take another bite out of the Big Apple, but the road to New York City runs through the Southeastern Conference.
Fresh off its triumph in the land of Hubert H. Humphrey, the Golden Hurricane moves on to play at "The Hump," Mississippi State's so-called Humphrey Coliseum.
The Hurricane visits MSU here Wednesday night for a quarterfinal game in the National Invitation Tournament, and the winner plays in the semifinals next Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Mississippi State has never advanced this far in the NIT and Tulsa hasn't been this far since winning its first and only championship 20 years ago. But both teams had impressive road victories in the second round on Monday night.
The Bulldogs (18-12) rallied for a 66-61 victory over Pittsburgh of the Big East Conference, while Tulsa pulled out a 76-73 overtime victory at Minnesota of the Big Ten.
The Hurricane flew home from Minneapolis late Monday night, spent Tuesday in Tulsa and were to fly by charter to Starkville on Wednesday. Head coach Buzz Peterson said it's important that his players get their batteries recharged quickly.
"That's a good team we're playing, typical of the SEC, a very athletic team with physical players," said Peterson. "It's really important that we're mentally prepared because Mississippi State will be. We have to make sure we're ready to go. Our kids are tired. (Minnesota) was a very intense game.
"I look at (MSU's) schedule and I see some quality wins. They won at Arizona (75-74 in the Fiesta Bowl Classic in December) and that was a good win for them. I look at their RPI and I see where they have the sixth-toughest schedule in the country."
The Bulldogs were just 3-8 away from Humphrey Coliseum, with a capacity of 10,500, but were 13-3 at home, beating SEC foes Arkansas, Ole Miss, Alabama, Auburn, Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
Senior guard Antonio Jackson, who scored 22 points in the upset of Arizona, leads the Bulldogs with 13 points per game and two others average in double figures. But Peterson is worried about the Bulldogs' rugged inside game.
"They outrebound their opponents 41-33 (average per game). That concerns me. We have to do a good job on the boards," he said.
Tulsa blew an 18-point lead in Minneapolis, but held up in overtime to win a game Peterson said almost made up for the disappointment of missing the NCAA Tournament.
"The Hawaii game (in the final of the WAC Tournament) was one of the toughest I've ever been around as a player or a coach," he said. "There was a 48-hour period where I thought I'd lost somebody in my family. But winning this game takes some of the sting out."
Still no respect: WAC commissioner Karl Benson watched Monday's game from courtside, sitting next to TU director of athletics Judy MacLeod. Afterward, he said he was "disappointed" that Tulsa wasn't rewarded with hosting the quarterfinal game. "Maybe someday the NIT will give us a break," he said.
By MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
3/21/01
Hurricane can go to New York by toppling Mississippi State tonight.
STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Tulsa wants to take another bite out of the Big Apple, but the road to New York City runs through the Southeastern Conference.
Fresh off its triumph in the land of Hubert H. Humphrey, the Golden Hurricane moves on to play at "The Hump," Mississippi State's so-called Humphrey Coliseum.
The Hurricane visits MSU here Wednesday night for a quarterfinal game in the National Invitation Tournament, and the winner plays in the semifinals next Tuesday at Madison Square Garden.
Mississippi State has never advanced this far in the NIT and Tulsa hasn't been this far since winning its first and only championship 20 years ago. But both teams had impressive road victories in the second round on Monday night.
The Bulldogs (18-12) rallied for a 66-61 victory over Pittsburgh of the Big East Conference, while Tulsa pulled out a 76-73 overtime victory at Minnesota of the Big Ten.
The Hurricane flew home from Minneapolis late Monday night, spent Tuesday in Tulsa and were to fly by charter to Starkville on Wednesday. Head coach Buzz Peterson said it's important that his players get their batteries recharged quickly.
"That's a good team we're playing, typical of the SEC, a very athletic team with physical players," said Peterson. "It's really important that we're mentally prepared because Mississippi State will be. We have to make sure we're ready to go. Our kids are tired. (Minnesota) was a very intense game.
"I look at (MSU's) schedule and I see some quality wins. They won at Arizona (75-74 in the Fiesta Bowl Classic in December) and that was a good win for them. I look at their RPI and I see where they have the sixth-toughest schedule in the country."
The Bulldogs were just 3-8 away from Humphrey Coliseum, with a capacity of 10,500, but were 13-3 at home, beating SEC foes Arkansas, Ole Miss, Alabama, Auburn, Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
Senior guard Antonio Jackson, who scored 22 points in the upset of Arizona, leads the Bulldogs with 13 points per game and two others average in double figures. But Peterson is worried about the Bulldogs' rugged inside game.
"They outrebound their opponents 41-33 (average per game). That concerns me. We have to do a good job on the boards," he said.
Tulsa blew an 18-point lead in Minneapolis, but held up in overtime to win a game Peterson said almost made up for the disappointment of missing the NCAA Tournament.
"The Hawaii game (in the final of the WAC Tournament) was one of the toughest I've ever been around as a player or a coach," he said. "There was a 48-hour period where I thought I'd lost somebody in my family. But winning this game takes some of the sting out."
Still no respect: WAC commissioner Karl Benson watched Monday's game from courtside, sitting next to TU director of athletics Judy MacLeod. Afterward, he said he was "disappointed" that Tulsa wasn't rewarded with hosting the quarterfinal game. "Maybe someday the NIT will give us a break," he said.
