Tulsa Cruises Past Northern Arizona, 90-55

Tulsa scored the game’s first 19 points en route to a 90-55 victory over the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks Tuesday night in front of 4,752 fans at the Donald W. Reynolds Center. The Hurricane closed out non-conference action with an 8-4 record heading into next Tuesday’s league opener against the SMU Mustangs. NAU fell to 2-9 on the season.
 
Six Tulsa players scored in double-figures as Shaquille Harrison led the way with 15 points, followed by 13 each from Sterlin Taplin and D’Andre Wright, 12 points from James Woodard and 11 each by Rashad Smith and Rashad Ray. NAU’s Ako Kaluna had a game-high 23 points.
 
Tulsa shot 56-percent from the field and 41-percent from three-point range, while outscoring the Lumberjacks 30-3 off turnovers and 20-2 in fast-break points. NAU shot just 31-percent from the field and 26-percent from beyond the arc.

"We competed for 40 minutes. I thought our guys competed hard. We flew around, shared the ball – 20 assists. We did a lot of good things tonight,” said Tulsa Head Coach Frank Haith. “It was a great win. It was good to see how Smitty has been coming on. His game has been taken to another level – he's flying around. It's good to see him elevate his game. It was good to see Dre play better in the second half too. All-in-all it was a great team effort."
 
The Hurricane built its lead to 31 points within the first 20 minutes and led by as many as 41 points in the second half, when Wright’s two free throws made the score 78-37 with just 5:50 remaining in the contest. Taplin scored the first four points of the second half on layups to put the Hurricane ahead again by 31 points at 51-20, as the Hurricane lead never dipped to under 30 points the remainder of the second half.
 
The 35-point win was the largest of the season and the biggest advantage for the Hurricane since Feb. 15, 2014 when Tulsa defeated Old Dominion by 39 points, 76-37, also at the Reynolds Center.
 
The Hurricane scored the game’s first 19 points in a dominating first half that saw the Hurricane lead by as many as 31 points. Tulsa’s 19-0 run saw the Hurricane connect on 7-of-9 field goals in the first 4:35. NAU’s Torry Johnson’s layup at the 12:24 mark ended the Lumberjacks drought.
 
Tulsa took its first 20-point lead when Smith’s layup made the score 23-2 with 11:24 left on the first-half clock.
 
Ray’s second of three first-half three-pointers put Tulsa ahead by 31 points at 41-10 with 4:19 remaining before intermission. The Lumberjacks scored the next eight points to cut the Hurricane lead to 41-18 at the 2:21 mark. Tulsa scored the final five points of the first 20 minutes to take a 47-20 halftime lead.
 
Tulsa ended the first-half, shooting 59-percent from the field and 63-percent from three-point range, as the Hurricane connected on 17-of-29 from the field and 5-of-8 from behind the arc. NAU shot just 25-percent from both the field and three-point range. The Hurricane dished out 10 assists, while scoring 20 points off of 16 Lumberjack turnovers. Tulsa’s 47 first-half points was a season-high in the first 20 minutes, while NAU’s 20 points was a first-half season-low for a Tulsa opponent.
 
Smith, Harrison and Ray shared the first-half scoring lead for the Hurricane with nine points apiece.
 
Tulsa will be off for the Christmas holiday before returning to the Reynolds Center next Tuesday, Dec. 29, to begin American Athletic Conference play against the defending league champion SMU Mustangs. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00 p.m.