Tulane University
Memphis
Men's Basketball Snaps Streak Against Memphis
Jan 3, 2015 | Men's Basketball
MEMPHIS - It was 15 years and 22 games since the Tulane men's basketball team last accomplished what they did on Saturday evening.
The Green Wave (11-3, 2-0 American) defeated Memphis (8-5, 1-1 American), 74-66, for the first time since Feb. 9, 2000 behind a 24-point performance by sophomore Jonathan Stark in the FedEx Forum.
Stark, a native of nearby Munford, Tennessee, poured in a season-high in points, added four rebounds, four assists and three steals in 37 minutes on the court. He also drained three 3-pointers, including two in the final four minutes of the game, one that cut the deficit down to 62-60 with 4;12 left and another that gave the Green Wave the lead for good, 65-63, with 2:53 remaining in the contest.
The first of those three-pointers from Stark sparked a 15-1 Tulane run over the next three minutes that gave the Green Wave a nine point lead. The run included three lay-ups by Tre Drye, nine points by Stark and four of Tulane's 12 steals.
Drye finished the game with 14 points and five rebounds, while fellow senior Jay Hook added 13 points.
"It was really a total team effort tonight," Tulane head coach Ed Conroy said. "We've been together here for the last several days. We've been preaching about taking care of the basketball. When you take care of that basketball like that, you have a chance to go on the road and win anywhere."
Tulane, who closed out an eight-day road trip with the win, committed just eight turnovers in the game.
The Green Wave got the victory despite losing guard Louis Dabney early in the contest with an ankle injury. Sophomore Kajon Mack and freshman Keith Pinckney both filled in for the injured junior. Mack had seven points and five rebounds, while Pinckney had five points and three rebounds. Each dished out a pair of assists.
"Louis Dabney went down early and we had to go to the next man up," Conroy said. "We had to be resilient. We had to pick our heads up and move on. Our guys had to step up. I thought several of our guys stepped up big time. I thought Kajon Mack and Keith Pinckney played great roles off of the bench tonight."
Tulane, who also won in Memphis for the first time since Dec, 9, 1992, forced 19 Memphis turnovers and converted those into 24 points, including the last six points of the run that put the game away in the final minutes.
The game went back and forth since the tip and saw 16 lead changes and was tied nine times and until Tulane's nine-point lead with just over a minute left in the game, neither team had more than a five-point advantage. The game was tied up, 29-29 at the half.
Memphis was led by Austin Nichols' game-high 28 points and nine rebounds, while Shaq Goodwin had 14 points and nine boards.
Tulane shot 44.4 percent (28-63) from the floor, but managed only three-of-15 from three-point range. The Green Wave connected on 15-of-22 free throws. Memphis shot 43.9 percent (25-57) from the floor and hit just three-of-14 from outside the arch. The Tigers connected on just 13-of-22 free throws as well.
Tulane will return to Devlin Fieldhouse for the conference home-opener against Temple on Wednesday for a 6 p.m. CT tip.
Season ticket prices for Tulane's inaugural season in The American are $300 for premium chairback seating, $200 for bleacher seating, and $400 for the family zone (2 adult/2 youth for both men's and women's basketball seasons). In addition, men's basketball season ticket holders will have the exclusive opportunity to purchase half-priced women's season tickets.
For additional information, call the Tulane Ticket Office at (504) 861-WAVE (9283), reserve your seats on-line at www.TulaneGreenWave.com, or visit the Tulane Team Shop in person on the ground floor of the James W. Wilson, Jr. Center Monday thru Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
GAME NOTES
- Tulane snapped a 22-game losing streak to Memphis, a streak that spanned 15 seasons. The last Green Wave win over the Tigers came on Feb. 9, 2000, 64-63, in New Orleans. The win also marked Tulane's first in Memphis since an, 86-85, win on Dec. 9, 1992.
- Sophomore Jonathan Stark scored in double figures for the 11th time this season and the 38th game of his career with 24 points tonight. Stark's 20-plus points mark his 14th game with at least 20 points in his career and the second this season.
- Senior guard Jay Hook scored in double figures for the 10th time this season and the 33rd game of his career with 13 points tonight.
- Senior forward Tre Drye scored in double figures for the third time this season and the 13th game of his career with 14 points tonight.
