Tulane University
Rice
Tinsley and Benfield Lead Green Wave Over Rice
Dec 6, 2003 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 6, 2003
NEW ORLEANS, La. - Wayne Tinsley and Ben Benfield led Tulane University to a gutsy 73-67 victory over Rice University in men's basketball action on Saturday evening at Fogelman Arena.
Tinsley matched his career-high with 17 points while adding a career-best eight assists, five rebounds and three steals. Benfield, meanwhile, hit for double figures for the fourth game this year, finishing with 18 points to go with seven rebounds and three assists.
Tulane (4-1), which lost a heartbreaker to UNO on Wednesday night, trailed for much of the game. However, a fast-break lay-in by Marcus Kinzer (11 points, 6 assists) made it 54-52, giving the Green Wave its first lead of the since the fifth minute of the game.
Rice (4-2) knotted the game at 54 on a jumper by J.R. Harrison, but a tip-in by Vytas Tatarunas (12 points, 8 rebounds) put the Wave on top for good. The Owls hit one-of-two free throws but Kinzer connected on his first three-pointer of the season to push the margin to four with 7:29 to go.
A jumper by Jason McKrieth (22 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists) with 4:37 to go pulled the Owls within two at 64-62 but Tulane kept its composure with Kinzer and Tatarunas converting back-to-back hoops on offensive rebounds.
Despite struggling from the line (Tulane hit just 7-of-19 free throw attempts), the Wave scored four points on free throws in the final 1:21 to hold on to the victory.
"I have to say, we showed a lot of character tonight," Tulane head coach Shawn Finney said. "They fought for 40 minutes. We came out and had a sluggish start, but we showed a lot of heart and effort and we did a great job on the glass, especially in the second half. I am really proud of this team."
Tulane connected on 46.8 percent (29-of-62) of its shots while Rice hit 49.1 percent (26-of-53) from the field. The Wave held a 39-32 advantage on the boards, including 12 offensive rebounds, while turning the ball over just 14 times (just five in the second half).
"I think we learned at the end of the game when you have a lead, you've got to continue to be aggressive, keep attacking and keep trying to score the basketball."
Entering the game, Rice had just one loss, a 60-56 decision at the hands of nationally-ranked Stanford. The Owls had been allowing just 52.4 points per game.
"Wayne Tinsley did a great job," Finney said. "The difference in the basketball game for us was Wayne offensively. He shot when he was supposed to; he dished when he was supposed to. Wayne played with a lot of confidence tonight."
In an evenly played first half, Rice pulled away with a 10-0 run midway through, but Tulane rallied itself and trailed 38-32 at the break.
Tulane returns to action on Tuesday evening, hosting Southeastern Louisiana at Fogelman Arena at 7 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 504-861-WAVE.
