1996–97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane men's basketball team

The 1996–97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane men's basketball team represented the University of Tulsa as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) during the 1996–97 college basketball season. The Golden Hurricane played their home games at the Tulsa Convention Center. Led by head coach Steve Robinson, they finished the season 24–10 overall and 12–4 in conference play to finish second in the WAC Mountain division standings. After losing in the championship game of the WAC tournament, the team defeated Boston University in the opening round[2] of the NCAA tournament, before falling to No. 4 seed Clemson in the round of 32.[3]

1996–97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane men's basketball
NCAA tournament, Second round
ConferenceWestern Athletic Conference
DivisionMountain
Record24–10 (12–4 WAC)
Head coach
Home arenaTulsa Convention Center
Seasons
1996–97 WAC men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Mountain
No. 2 Utah 15 1   .938 29 4   .879
Tulsa 12 4   .750 24 10   .706
No. 11 New Mexico 11 5   .688 25 8   .758
TCU 7 9   .438 22 13   .629
SMU 7 9   .438 16 12   .571
Rice 6 10   .375 12 15   .444
UTEP 6 10   .375 13 13   .500
BYU 0 16   .000 1 25   .038
Pacific
Fresno State 12 4   .750 20 12   .625
Hawaii 12 4   .750 21 8   .724
UNLV 11 5   .688 22 10   .688
Colorado State 10 6   .625 20 9   .690
Wyoming 8 8   .500 12 16   .429
San Jose State 5 11   .313 13 14   .481
San Diego State 4 12   .250 12 15   .444
Air Force 2 14   .125 7 19   .269
1997 WAC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll[1]

Roster

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1996–97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 21 Shea Seals 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Sr Tulsa, Oklahoma
F/C 51 Michael Ruffin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) So Denver, Colorado
Head coach

Steve Robinson

Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

[4]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Regular season
Nov 20, 1996*
at No. 5 UCLA
Preseason NIT
W 77–76 OT 1–0
Pauley Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
Nov 22, 1996*
Oklahoma State
Preseason NIT
W 72–54  2–0
Tulsa Convention Center 
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Nov 27, 1996*
No. 22 vs. No. 6 Duke
Preseason NIT
L 67–72  2–1
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
Nov 29, 1996*
No. 22 vs. Evansville
Preseason NIT
W 55–51  3–1
Madison Square Garden 
New York, New York
Dec 2, 1996*
No. 21 Delaware State W 79–50  4–1
Tulsa Convention Center 
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Dec 4, 1996*
No. 21 at Houston L 77–79 2OT 4–2
Hofheinz Pavilion 
Houston, Texas
Dec 7, 1996*
vs. Saint Joseph's L 64–67  4–3
Boardwalk Hall 
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Dec 14, 1996*
Temple W 67–60  5–3
Tulsa Convention Center 
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Dec 19, 1996*
at Wichita State W 56–53  6–3
Levitt Arena 
Wichita, Kansas
Dec 27, 1996*
vs. Southwest Texas State
All-College Tournament
W 76–60[5]  7–3
Myriad Convention Center 
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Dec 28, 1996*
vs. Oklahoma
All-College Tournament
W 78–75  8–3
Myriad Convention Center 
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
WAC Tournament
Mar 6, 1997*
at UNLV
Quarterfinals
W 68–65  23–8
Thomas & Mack Center 
Las Vegas, Nevada
Mar 7, 1997*
vs. TCU
Semifinals
L 59–64  23–9
Thomas & Mack Center 
Las Vegas, Nevada
NCAA Tournament
Mar 14, 1997*
(5 MW) vs. (12 MW) Boston University
First round
W 81–52  24–9
Kemper Arena 
Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 16, 1997*
(5 MW) vs. (4 MW) No. 14 Clemson
Second round
L 59–65  24–10
Kemper Arena 
Kansas City, Missouri
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest.
All times are in Central.

[6]

Rankings

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[7]

Awards and honors

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References

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  1. ^ sports-reference.com 1996-97 Western Athletic Conference Season Summary
  2. ^ "Call TU the Boston Strangler". Tulsa World. March 15, 1997. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
  3. ^ "Minnesota Cruises Past Temple; Clemson Ousts Tulsa". The New York Times. March 17, 1997. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  4. ^ "1996-97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane Roster and Stats". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  5. ^ "Sealed and Delivered: Guard Scores 24 as Tulsa Outmuscles Southwest Texas". The Oklahoman. December 28, 1996. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
  6. ^ "1996-97 Tulsa Golden Hurricane Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved February 9, 2022.
  7. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 1053–1054. ISBN 0-345-51392-4.