University of Connecticut Athletics
University of Connecticut
Tulsa
UConn Falls to Tulsa in Final Seconds
2/15/2018 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
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HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) Sterling Taplin scored a career-high 30 points and Tulsa beat UConn 73-71, sweeping the season series from the Huskies.
Junior Etou had 15 points and DaQuan Jefferies added 14 for Tulsa (15-10, 8-5), which extended its winning streak to four on Thursday night.
Christian Vital had 13 of his 20 points in the first half for UConn (12-14, 5-8) when the Huskies built up a 12-point lead. The Huskies, who have lost five of their last six, led 40-31 at intermission.
Tulsa began chipping away in the second half and Taplin's seventh 3-pointer of the game gave the Golden Hurricane a 51-50 lead with just over seven minutes left, their first since 8-7.
They stretched that to 68-61 on a 3-pointer by Lawson Korita.
Late in the game, back-to-back 3-pointers by Terry Larrier brought UConn within a point at 68-67 and the Huskies took the lead back on Vital's free throws with 54 seconds left.
Layups by Taplin and Jefferies made it 72-69 Tulsa, before Isaiah Whaley got underneath to cut the lead to a point with nine seconds left.
Etou missed one of his two foul shots on the other end, but Jalen Adams' drive to the basket failed to find the bucket or a whistle as the buzzer sounded.
BIG PICTURE
Tulsa: This was Tulsa's first win over UConn in Connecticut. The Golden Hurricane were 0-4 before Thursday night, but 4-0 against the Huskies in Oklahoma.
UConn: The Huskies won the rebounding battle 35-30 after going eight games without outrebounding an opponent. Tulsa, meanwhile, had outrebounded its foes by an 11.3 margin in its last three games.
UP NEXT
Tulsa: The Golden Hurricane head home for two games against South Florida on Sunday and UCF on Feb. 21.
UConn: The Huskies embark on a two-game road trip, facing East Carolina on Sunday and Cincinnati on Feb. 22.
