The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff will look to bounce back on Thursday as the women’s basketball team plays its final nonconference road game of the year.
UAPB will play the University of Tulsa at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Reynolds Center in Tulsa, Okla. This will be the fifth and final daytime education or elementary day game the Lady Lions play this year.
UAPB (3-6) enters this game 1-0 against the American Conference after defeating Memphis 69-64 in its season opener. This game will be a rematch of last season’s 63-60 Tulsa win in which the Golden Hurricane hit a buzzer-beating 3-pointer after UAPB had led the entire fourth quarter until the final 17 seconds.
The Lady Lions had their two-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday by No. 9 TCU but didn’t have long to think about it as they made the trip north of the Red River from Fort Worth, Texas.
UAPB committed a season-low 11 turnovers against the Horned Frogs after ball security had been a major issue all season. That likely helped UAPB score its third-most points this season, 54, make the second-most shots it has in a game, 23, and tie its season-high in made 3-pointers, six.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
The Lady Lions will try to continue that trend against a Tulsa (6-4) team which is forcing 19.8 turnovers per game with an average of 9.1 steals.
The Golden Hurricane is also coming off a road loss to a Big 12 team. Oklahoma State defeated Tulsa 90-58 in Stillwater, Okla., on Monday. It was Tulsa’s second straight loss to a major conference opponent after losing on Dec. 7 at Creighton.
Tulsa has had better luck against the SWAC this season, defeating Prairie View A&M 79-59 on Nov. 9 and Mississippi Valley State 101-53 on Dec. 4.
In UAPB’s three wins this season, the Lady Lions have held their opponents to 64 or fewer points. Tulsa averages 73.1 points per game, a point total UAPB has only matched against non-Division I foe Arkansas Baptist this season. UAPB’s defense has held each of its non-Power Four opponents to 79 or fewer, but the offense has struggled to take advantage.
Tulsa junior guard Mady Cartwright, a Greenwood native, leads the Golden Hurricane with 16.3 points per game. Redshirt senior forward Hannah Riddick follows with 12.8 points and 8.0 rebounds per game.