TAMPA, Fla., (Jan. 28, 2022) – South Florida begins a two-game road trip with a Saturday night date at Tulsa.
In their first game in eight days the Bulls suffered a 77-54 setback to SMU Wednesday.
The Golden Hurricane dropped their seventh consecutive American Athletic Conference game Wednesday in a 97-63 curb stomping by Tulane.
RunningTheBulls.com has your quick facts and what to watch for against Tulsa:
Quick Facts
Matchup: USF (6-12, 1-5 AAC) at Tulsa (6-12, 0-7 AAC)
Date: Saturday, Jan. 29
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Tulsa, Okla. | Reynolds Center
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: USF Bulls Unlimited
History: This will be the 11th meeting between Tulsa and USF. The Bulls are winless against the Golden Hurricane.
The Opponent: Tulsa is an experienced team with five seniors – forwards Rey Idowu and Jeriah Horne, and guards Darien Jackson, LaDavius Draine and Curtis Haywood II. Despite this, the Golden Hurricane have not won an AAC game since Feb. 16, 2021.
The well-traveled Horne is back in a Tulsa uniform. He his 17.4 points per game leads the team and is fourth in the AAC. Horne’s 7.0 rebounds per contest leads Tulsa and is second in the AAC. Horne is athletic, can shoot it with range – 40 percent on three-point attempts – and plays hard. He also makes 83.3 percent of his free throws, so USF must defend him without fouling.
UT-Arlington transfer Sam Griffin has been a strong pickup by Tulsa. The Miami native’s 15.8 points per game is ranked fifth in the conference. Griffin is excellent in ball screens and in transition and a very good shooter. He can go either way but prefers to drive left. When he does drive, he’s most effective when he pulls up for a jumper.
Jackson is a do-everything guard for Tulsa. At 6-foot-3, 203-pounds, Jackson is making 60.7 percent of his shots inside the arc. He is a strong, hard playing shooting guard who wants to get to the rim or, at least, into the paint to score. Jackson isn’t looking to shoot threes, but he is a capable shot maker if he is wide open and has time. USF should use short close outs on Jackson or he’ll drive right by you.
Sophomore center Nikita Konstantynovskyi (Con-stan-tee-nov-ski) has started the last six Tulsa games but has yet to clock 20-minutes of playing time. Despite this Konstantynovskyi has averaged 2.3 OREB and just under one block in those six games. He has good hands and feet and is stronger than he looks but is an average athlete. Tulsa guards will pass it to Konstantynovskyi when he rolls to the basket after he sets a screen.
Idowu (Eee-doe-woo) grabbed my attention when he had 16 points at Cincinnati and scored 13 points and grabbed five rebounds against Memphis. The 6-foot-9, 243-pounder is strong and agile. He leads Tulsa in OREB by getting good position and having a quick second jump. Idowu mainly scores off drop-offs and stick backs. Do not let him out work you, wall him up and make him score over you.
Defensively Tulsa is known for its match-up zone but the Golden Hurricane is playing man defense more frequently (60.1 percent) this season. Neither defense has worked well this season as Tulsa is allowing opponents to make 46.3 percent of its shots and 39.1 percent of its three-point attempts. Both rank last in the AAC.
Keys To A Win
USF must have good ball movement against the Tulsa zone and attack it. The Bulls cannot just run their offense from 30 feet. Passes must be snappy and crisp. Win the rebound battle, make Horne work for everything and defend without fouling.
