Preview: Illinois State at Tulsa

[December 07, 2016]  Tulsa looks to bounce back off a tough road loss when it hosts Illinois State in a non-conference contest Wednesday night. The Golden Hurricane had their three-game winning streak snapped by Little Rock on Saturday, while the Redbirds come into the contest having won their last three.

Coach Frank Haith had 10 different players make their Tulsa debuts this season as the team tries to find the right chemistry. One place the team improved is defensively, with the Hurricane allowing 82 points per game in their first two but tightening up to allow 67.3 in the last four. Illinois State has the complete opposite situation under coach Dan Muller, with four starters and seven letterwinners back from last year's squad. The Redbirds' Deontae Hawkins (15.7 points), Paris Lee (14.5 points, 6.5 assists) and MiKyle McIntosh (13.3 points) all have picked up where they left off a year ago offensively.

TV: 8 p.m. ET. ESPN3

ABOUT ILLINOIS STATE (4-2): Earlier this season, Lee couldn't come through with big plays near the end of close games, leading to losses. But Muller learned he needs to rest Lee at times in the second half of games to keep him fresh, and reserves Keyshawn Evans and Madison Williams played well in their stints relieving Lee. And Lee made the move pay off against New Mexico, scoring four points and forcing a Lobos turnover in the final 31 seconds of a victory.

ABOUT TULSA (3-3): As the Golden Hurricane continue to try to mesh all the new faces into a tight-knit unit, consistency is a problem. Tulsa finds itself falling behind early in games before finally settling in, but the team hasn't always been able to come all the way back in each game. Junior college transfer guard Jaleel Wheeler is Tulsa's leading scorer (15.8 points) and played steadily throughout games, but Haith is still looking for more leadership from the rest of his backcourt.

TIP-INS

1. Tulsa's bench averages 29.5 points this season, outscoring all but one opponent (Wichita State).

2. Lee dished out a career-best 11 assists against New Mexico, the most by an Illinois State player since December 2006.

3. Tulsa leads the series between the two former Missouri Valley Conference rivals 17-14, with the last meeting coming in March 1996 in the semifinals of the MVC tournament - a 67-52 victory for the Hurricane.

PREDICTION: Illinois State 75, Tulsa 71

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