![Quincy Davis has missed just eight shots this season as he is shooting 71.4% from the field. [File photo by Michael Hebert]](https://images.sidearmdev.com/resize?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdxbhsrqyrr690.cloudfront.net%2Fsidearm.nextgen.sites%2Ftulanegreenwave.com%2Fimages%2F2004%2F11%2F29%2F55793.jpeg&height=300&type=webp)
Men's Basketball Plays at UNO on Tuesday
Nov 29, 2004 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 29, 2004
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2004-05 TULANE MEN'S BASKETBALL
Game 4 -- Tulane (1-2, 0-0) v. UNO (2-3, 0-0) -- Nov. 30, 2004
Lakefront Arena -- 7 p.m. (CST)
GREEN WAVE FACTS
2004-05 Record: 1-2
2003-04 Record: 11-17
2003-04 C-USA Record: 4-12/12th
Head Coach: Shawn Finney
Alma Mater/Year: Fairmont State/1985
Record at Tulane/Year: 51-70/5th
Career Record/Years: Same
President: Dr. Scott Cowen
Athletics Director: Rick Dickson
Ticket Office Phone: 504-861-WAVE
Website: www.TulaneGreenWave.com
TULANE 2004-05 SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Official UNO Athletics Website
PROBABLE STARTERS
11 Marcus Kinzer (Sr., 12.0 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.3 apg)
Has scored 28 points in the last two games
4 Vincent Camper (So., 9.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.0 apg)
12 pts, 6 rebounds, 7 assists against Prairie View
10 Taylor Rochestie (Fr., 11.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg, 25.0 mpg)
First freshman to earn a start this season
50 Quincy Davis (Jr., 14.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg, .714 FG%)
38 points on 18-of-23 shooting in last two games
22 Kory Castine (So., 2.3 ppg, 1.0 rpg)
Made first start of the season vs. Louisiana Tech
TULANE RESERVES
40 Vytas Tatarunas (Jr., 3.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 17.3 mpg
Made first start of the season on Saturday v. Prairie View
3 Chris Moore (So., 2.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg, 0.5 apg)
Excellent summer, upgraded defensive abilities
5 Donnie Stith (Fr., 5.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 13.7 mpg)
Six rebounds and a block against Prairie View
30 Ben Benfield (Sr., 4.0 ppg, 0.7 rpg, 1.3 apg)
10 points and a pair of threes on Saturday
21 David Gomez (Fr., 1.7 ppg, 2.3 rpg)
Three-time high school all-state selection
44 Ivan Pjevcevic (Sr., 1.7 ppg, 1.7 rpg)
Still battling knee injury
25 Matt Wheaton (Fr., 2.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg)
3 points and 5 rebounds against Prairie View
40 Robinson Louisme (Fr., 1.3 ppg, 1.0 rpg)
First collegiate points against Prairie View
NEWS & NOTES
On the Wave
Tulane won its 15th straight home opener on Saturday evening, defeating Prairie View, 84-63, behind a 60-percent shooting effort. The Green Wave looks to climb to .500 on the year on Tuesday evening, traveling across town to face UNO at Lakefront Arena. Following that game is another local showdown as next-door-neighbor Loyola visits Fogelman Arena for the Battle for Uptown on Friday evening at 7 p.m.
On the Air
All Tulane men's basketball games can be heard live on the ISP Radio Network (WTIX AM 690 in New Orleans) with Sean Kelly handling play-by-play duties for his fourth season, while Steve Barrios is the color commentator.
Home Openers
Tulane has not lost a home opener under Shawn Finney and overall, the Green Wave has a 15-year winning streak in home openers. Since World War II, the Green Wave is 51-5 in its first home games while all-time, the Wave is 77-16 in home openers (one year not available and one year all games played on the road).
UNO News
UNO and Preseason Sun Belt Player of the Year Bo McCalebb have opened the 2004-05 season with a 2-3 mark, though two of the losses have come to powerful LSU and N.C. State squads. The Privateers defeated Siena and West Florida. The 6-0 McCalebb is leading the team with 23.4 points and 4.8 assists per game, while 6-10 juco transfer Shawn Malloy has 10.6 points and 6.2 rebounds per game. Ben Elias, another 6-10 big man, has 10.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
UNO Series
Tulane leads the series with UNO, 20-17, though the Privateers have snagged wins in three of the last four meetings. This is the 11th straight year the two teams will meet. In last year's meeting at Fogelman, the Privateers used a three-point buzzer-beater by Kyle Buggs to escape with a 69-66 triumph.
Quincy on Target
Junior Quincy Davis has been on fire for the last two games, connecting on 18-of-23 (.783) of his shots in the win over Prairie View and the loss to Louisiana Tech. For the season, the 6-9 Davis is averaging 14.3 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 71.4% from the field.
Freshmen into the Fire
Tulane's freshmen class is averaging 62 minutes per game and 20.0 points per game after two games. The five-man group has been led by 6-1 guard Taylor Rochestie who is averaging 9.7 points per game with four steals. 6-6 swingman Donnie Stith has 5.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game.
Coming Up Next...
Following the Tuesday meeting with UNO and Friday's match with Loyola, the Green Wave hits the road, playing at Northwestern State on Monday, Dec. 6 in its final game before final exams. The 11-day exam-break is followed by a Dec. 18 meeting with Savannah State at Fogelman Arena.
Run T-M-V
In Saturday's game against Prairie View, Coach Shawn Finney started all three of his point guards: Taylor Rochestie, Marcus Kinzer and Vincent Camper. The trio combined for 34 points on 13-of-17 shooting and registered 13 assists and 12 rebounds.
Shooters' Touch
Tulane came out red-hot against Prairie View, connecting on 12 of its first 15 field-goal attempts, and finished shooting 60.0 percent (33-of-55) from the field. That was the highest field-goal percentage for the Green Wave in a game since Dec. 1, 2002 when it nailed 34-of-53 shots in a win over Southeast Missouri State.
Filling the Box Score
When David Gomez connected on a free throw late in the Prairie View game, he became the 13th Green Wave player to score in the game. The last time Tulane had 13 players score in one game was Jan. 25, 1992 when 13 cracked the scoring solumn in a 99-75 victory over Temple University.
Rebound that Basketball
In Tulane's loss to Louisiana Tech, the Green Wave was out-rebounded 37-22, including allowing 19 offensive rebounds. The Bulldogs had a 25-11 edge in second-chance points and a 46-30 advantage in points in the paint. This past Saturday against Prairie View, the Wave held the advantage on the glass at 46-32, and won handily. Tulane dominated 48-10 in the paint.
Over 50%
For the first time since March 5, 2003 (a 72-60 loss to USF), Tulane allowed an opponent to shoot over 50 percent from the field. Louisiana Tech connected on 31-of-61 shots (.508) in its victory on Sunday. That snapped a stretch of 32 straight games in which the Wave held opponents to 50 percent or lower from the field.
On the Road
The LSU opener marked just the second time since 1994 that Tulane has not opened the season at home. Two years ago, Tulane dropped its opener on the road at Rice, while in 1994-95, the Wave fell to Michigan in Hawaii at the Maui Classic. It is just the second time since the 1979-80 campaign (20 seasons) that the Green Wave has opened its year on its opponent's court (there have been three neutral openers in that time). Since World War II, Tulane is now 18-38 in road openers.
Finney vs. Louisiana
Shawn Finney and the Green Wave will meet five Louisiana schools in 2004-05. Last season, Tulane faced off against seven Louisiana opponents. In his first four years at the helm of the Wave, Finney has recorded a 12-6 mark against in-state opponents, including 4-3 last year.
Ch-ch-ch-Changes
Tulane is one of the six members of Conference USA that will remain with the league next season when the latest round of conference-hopping continues. The league will bid farewell to basketball members Charlotte, Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette, Saint Louis, South Florida and TCU while adding newcomers Marshall, Rice, SMU, Tulsa, UCF and UTEP. Next season, Conference USA will consist of 12 schools competing in all sports.
Tough Schedule, Version 03-04
Tulane faced nine 20-win squads (Mississippi State, Louisville, Southeastern La., Memphis, DePaul, Cincinnati, UAB, Rice, Charlotte) and five teams who were ranked at some point during the year in 2003-04. Thirteen of the Green Wave's games were against teams which qualified for postseason play.
Tough Schedule, Version 04-05
After last year's grueling schedule, things don't look any easier for the Wave in 2004-05. Thirteen of the Green Wave's potential opponents (including tournaments) on this year's schedule advanced to the postseason last year. Ten reached the NCAA Tournament (UL-Lafayette, Princeton, Alabama State, UTEP, DePaul, UAB, Louisville, Memphis, Charlotte, Cincinnati) and three advanced to the NIT (LSU, Saint Louis, Marquette).
Seventy is Plenty
Throughout Finney's tenure, 70 points has proven to be a good total for the Green Wave. When scoring 70 or more points last season, Tulane posted a 9-1 record. In Finney's first four years combined, the Wave was 41-17 when scoring 70 or more points.
Quincy, M.D., the Doctor of Block
Green Wave junior Quincy Davis set a school record for single-season blocks by swatting 67 shots last season. He now has 81 for his career and still needs 111 more to reach the Green Wave's all-time leader, John "Hot Rod" Williams, who had 192 in his career. Davis currently ranks seventh all-time in blocks.
Bombs Away By Benfield
Ben Benfield led the Wave by hitting 36 three-pointers last season. The River Ridge, La., product has now connected on 62-of-167 career three-point attempts (37.1%). He ranks 10th all-time at Tulane in both makes and attempts from long-range, while his percentage is the fifth-best in school history.
Kinzer in Rare Company
Senior point guard Marcus Kinzer was one of five players in Conference USA to average more than 10.0 points, 3.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game last season. The others were Josh Fisher (Saint Louis), Francisco Garcia (Louisville), Eddie Basden (Charlotte) and Mike Cook (East Carolina).
Return Man
Returning to the Wave lineup for 2004-05 is seven-footer Ivan Pjevcevic, who redshirted the 2003-04 season after injuring his knee eight minutes into the season-opener. He entered this season as Tulane's all-time leader in three-point percentage at .439 (50-114).
Progression
Vytas Tatarunas had amazing jumps in production from his freshman year (3.2 ppg, 1.3 rpg) to his sophomore year (9.3 ppg, 7.2 rpg). With another jump of equal proportions, Tatarunas would average 27.1 points and 39.9 rebounds per game in 2004-05.
Weighing In
Tulane has a bulky front line which Green Wave football coach Chris Scelfo may be eyeing for some action on the gridiron. The Green Wave's heaviest five players (Kory Castine, Quincy Davis, Robinson Louisme, pounds, an average of 252.6 per player. That is the heaviest five on any Conference USA team; next closest is Memphis, which has five players who average 251.8 pounds. The Wave's average height of those five players (6-8 1/2) is the fourth-tallest in the league; Marquette has the tallest five (6-9 3/4).
Veteran Coach
Shawn Finney is entering his fifth season as the head coach of the Green Wave, which pushes him into a tie for the fourth-longest tenured coach in Conference USA. Cincinnati's Bob Huggins is the dean of C-USA coaches as he is entering his 16th year with the Bearcats. Bobby Lutz is preparing for his seventh year with the Charlotte 49ers and Marquette's Tom Crean is in his sixth year in Milwaukee. Finney is tied with Memphis' John Calipari. Bill Herrion is entering his sixth year guiding East Carolina, but the Pirates have only been in Conference USA for two years.
Lucky Number 13
For the first time in Coach Shawn Finney's tenure, he will have 13 scholarship players to open the season. With the addition of five freshmen this year, Tulane will field a roster which features three seniors, two juniors, three sophomores and five freshmen. Last season, the Wave opened the year with 12 scholarship players and quickly went down to 11 with Pjevcevic's injury.
The Future
Tulane signed two players during the early signing period. The Green Wave has added 6-2 point guard Ryan Williams of Jonesboro, Ark., and 6-7 forward Daniel Puckett from McEwen, Tenn. Puckett averaged 21 points, 8.7 rebounds and three assists per game and was an all-state selection and the district player of the year while leading his young team to a 21-10 record and second place in the district. Williams averaged 23.4 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. He is a two-time all-state selection and also collected all-conference honors in each of his two years.
Global Games
Vytas Tatarunas picked up some international experience this summer, representing Lithuania at the Global Games which were held in Texas. The 6-6, 250-pounder averaged 15.0 points per game in the tournament. He scored 19 points in a victory over the United States and tallied his best performance with 24 points against Argentina in a losing effort in the silver medal game.
Tulane Globetrotter
Freshman Taylor Rochestie had a challenging introduction to post-high school basketball this summer when he went on a eight-day tour of Chili with other college basketball players from around the United States. The team played six games against teams from Chili and Argentia.
Mirror, Mirror
Once again the Green Wave will play three "mirror" games in 2004-05. Every team in Conference USA plays every other team once, with each team having three teams which it plays twice in order to total 16 league games. Tulane's three mirror opponents will again be TCU, UAB and Southern Miss. The Wave was 2-4 against its mirror opponents last year.
Linton Johnson in the "League"
Former Tulane standout Linton Johnson earned a spot on the Chicago Bulls roster last year in training camp and proceeded to average 17.9 minutes per game while starting 20 games. His performance in Chicago drew attention from around the league, and he signed a free agent deal with the San Antonio Spurs in the offseason and will suit up next to the likes of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Emanuel Ginobli this season.
Graduation Continues
The Green Wave had three players graduate in May as Brandon Brown, Marc Siegel and Wayne Tinsley each earned their Tulane degrees. Of the 11 seniors who have played for Finney, only George Brown has not graduated; he remains in school and is on track to earn his degree in May of 2005.
TulaneGreenWave.com
Comprehensive coverage of Tulane Basketball, including game notes, PDFs of key documents (including these notes), updated statistics, links to newspaper articles and to Tulane game broadcasts, are available on the official athletics site of Green Wave Athletics, www.TulaneGreenWave.com.
