Tulane Readies for Conference Debut vs Cincinnati
Dec 26, 2014 | Women's Basketball
| Game 12: (RV) Tulane (9-2) at Cincinnati (3-8) | |
| When | Sunday, Dec. 28, 2014 | 1 p.m. CT |
| Where | Cincinnati, Ohio | Fifth Third Arena (13,176) |
| Tickets | $5 adults | $3 children |
| Listen Online | Tulane All-Access |
| Listen Locally | WRBH 88.3 FM - Gus Kattengell (play-by-play) |
| Live Stats | Gametracker |
| Interviews | Kolby Morgan | Jamie Kaplan |
| Printable Notes | Tulane |
| Social Media | @GreenWaveWBB  | #RollWave | Facebook  | YouTube |
| Tulane Probable Starters | |||||||||
| Pos. | No. | Name | Ht. | Yr. | PPG | RPG | Other | ||
| G | 3 | Kolby Morgan | 5-8 | Fr. | 13.5 | 5.5 | .486 field goal percentage | ||
| G | 23 | Jamie Kaplan | 5-8 | Sr. | 6.5 | 2.5 | 479 career assists | ||
| G | 20 | Danielle Blagg | 5-11 | Sr. | 8.7 | 3.4 | 26th member of 1,000 career point club | ||
| F | 22 | Tiffany Dale | 6-1 | Sr. | 8.3 | 5.5 | 11.2 ppg in December | ||
| C | 30 | Tierra Jones | 5-9 | Jr. | 6.4 | 4.6 | .614 field goal percentage | ||
CINCINNATI, Ohio - Scattered across the country for the holidays, the Tulane women's basketball team reconvened in Cincinnati, Ohio on Friday in preparation for Sunday's match vs the Bearcats. The Green Wave's first official conference match in The American will be tipped-off at 1 p.m. CT, inside the Fifth Third Arena.
The Wave achieved its fifth 9-2 start in the past six years. In each of those instances, Tulane reached the postseason, including an NCAA Tournament berth in 2010.
Last time out, the Olive and Blue fell 65-54 to Florida State on Dec. 22. Despite, the loss, the Green Wave still limited FSU's top-20 nationally ranked offense to a season low 65 points and forced the Seminoles to commit a season high 22 turnovers.
"I think we've created a pretty good resume in the non-conference (part of the schedule)," Tulane head coach Lisa Stockton stated. "We have 18 conference games ahead of us now and every one of them is important. We can't let any game not matter."
Tulane's defense continues to be a driving force for this year's squad, limiting foes to 54.8 points per game and 35.5 percent shooting, which ranks 25th and 48th in the country, respectively. Furthermore, the Wave's turnover margin of 3.73 ranks 61st in the nation.
In addition, senior forward Tiffany Dale continues to break out in the month of December. After averaging 5.8 points per game in six games in November, Dale has totaled 56 points through five December contests, good for an average of 11.2. Dale is fresh off of a season high 17-point performance vs Florida State in which she shot 7-of-11 from the field.
Sunday's contest will mark the 27th encounter between the two programs, as Cincinnati enjoys a 15-11 overall series lead. The series dates back to Dec. of 1979, in which the Wave defeated the Bearcats 65-56 in the Metro Conference Tournament. Tulane has won five of the last eight against Cincinnati.
After starting the season with a 73-57 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Cincinnati then dropped eight straight. Since, the Bearcats rebounded with two straight wins, including a 70-38 rout over Detroit.
The Bearcats are led by Ana Owens with 13.3 points per game. The freshman guard is a threat from long range, connecting on 50 percent (22-44) of her shots from three. Also, Marley Hill follows suit with 12.7 ppg, leading the squad with 10.4 rebounds per game.
"In a league like ours, anyone can come up and beat you. 18 games is a lot. The team that's mature and stays focused will definitely be there in the end," Stockton added.
Single-game tickets for Sunday are priced at $5 for adults and $3 for children and are available for purchase at the gate of the arena. Finally, local New Orleans fans can listen live on WRBH 88.3 FM or follow the live stats made available on tulanegreenwave.com.
