Tulsa Wins C-USA Men's Basketball Championship - Mar 16, 2014
James Woodard (6'3''-G-94) scored 27 points to lead Tulsa to a spot in the NCAA tournament with a 69-60 victory Saturday against Louisiana Tech in the Conference USA tournament final. Woodard, the tournament MVP who scored 18 points in the second half, made 7 of 8 free throws down the stretch to help Tulsa hold off the Bulldogs. The victory put the Hurricane in the NCAA tournament for the first time since the 2003 season. Tulsa (21-12), which was the No. 2 seed, will carry an 11-game win streak into the tournament. The Bulldogs (27-8) were led by Kenneth Smith (6'3''-G-93) with 16 points and Kenyon McNeaill (6'1''-PG-91) with 15. Alex Hamilton (6'4''-G) finished with 12. The Bulldogs led 35-34 at the half in a game with 16 lead changes. Neither team led by more than five points until Tulsa took control in the final 5 minutes, pushing the advantage to 10 points on a free throw by Woodard with 1:12 left.
All-Tournament MVP:
James Woodard (6'3''-G-94) of Tulsa Player of the Year:
Shawn Jones (6'8''-F-92) of Middle Tenn.St. Defensive Player of the Year:
Kenneth Smith (6'3''-G-93) of Louisiana Tech Freshman of the Year:
Vince Hunter (6'8''-F-94) of UTEP Newcomer of the Year:
Chad Frazier (6'4''-G-92) of UAB Sixth Man of the Year:
Kenyon McNeaill (6'1''-PG-91) of Louisiana Tech Coach of the Year:
Danny Manning of Tulsa
Manning
