History Between Teams:
Loyola has won both of the two previous matchups against Tulsa. The last game was a 100-72 victory for our Ramblers in 1965. That year Loyola would go on to finish 22-3 and 6th in the final AP poll.
Main Storyline For This Game:
Tulsa comes into the Myrtle Beach Tournament splitting their opening two games. New head coach Eric Konkol takes the reins at Tulsa after the Golden Hurricanes struggled to an 11-20 finish last season. Konkol comes from Louisiana Tech after mild success and no NCAA Tournament appearances. Coach Konkol talks in “The Almanac” that his team is young and inexperienced. So far this season, I think most Rambler fans would agree that we’ve seen a bunch of inexperienced mistakes in our two games. Maybe a game against a similar team would do us some good. We should focus on holding on to the ball, great shot selection, and using fast break at opportune times.
Rambler fans with a detailed eye might recognize the 6’1” guard lining up for Tulsa. Brandon Betson played last year for Chicago State and transferred to Tulsa this past summer. He had a very good game against the Ramblers, scoring 21 points, sinking 4 threes, but he did turn the ball over 5 times. Hopefully, the Ramblers can figure out a way to play better defense on Betson this time around.
Hot or Not:
HOT:
- Tom Welch has started the season by making all 12 of his shot attempts to average 14 points and 9.5 rebounds over the first two games.
- Phil Alston has scored the ball efficiently and effectively in his 3 halves for Loyola. Look for the Ramblers to score or get to the free throw line when they’re struggling to score.
- Tulsa’s Sam Griffin had a 29 point performance in a loss to Oregon State to open their season. He sunk 5 threes and only turned the ball over once.
NOT:
- Loyola is shooting 20% from three point range. That is good for 358th of 363 Division 1 basketball teams on the young season.
Game Time, Broadcast Info, Ticket Availability
- Thursday November 16th at 8:30 PM.
- ESPN U
- Myrtle Beach Invitational Tickets
Probable Starting Lineups:
Loyola
G: Braden Norris
G: Marquise Kennedy
F: Saint Thomas
F: Phil Alston
C: Bryce Golden
Tulsa
F: Selebangue
F: Dalger
G: Pritchard
G: Gaston-Chapman
G: Griffin
injured/unavailable: Marquise Kennedy (knee)
By The Numbers:
- Points Per Game
- Loyola: 79 points/game
- Tulsa: 77.5 points/game
- Points Allowed Per Game
- Loyola: 72.5 point/game
- Tulsa: 76 points/game
- Interesting third stat
- Loyola: shooting 72.7% from 2 point range, 2nd in college basketball
- Tulsa: shooting 44.7% from 2 points range, 315th in college basketball
