Now entering his third season in Tulsa, head coach Frank Haith, the once-embattled Missouri program leader, has continued his winning ways with the Golden Hurricane, posting a 43-23 mark in his first two seasons with trips to both the NIT and NCAA Tournament. What year three now holds in store for a transitioning Tulsa team is the question.
The Golden Hurricane were slow out of the gate, dropping their first game of the year to Jacksonville State at home, before being lambasted on the road by Wichita State. Tulsa then bounced back against a lesser-opponent in New Orleans, where the emergence of junior guard Jaleel Wheeler (15 points), who returned from a two-game NCAA suspension, seemed to change the flow for the team.