Tulane University
UCF
Tulane holds on to knock off UCF, 65-63
Mar 10, 2016 | Men's Basketball
ORLANDO, Fla. – The Tulane men's basketball team held on to knock off seventh-seeded UCF in the opening round of the American Athletic Conference Tournament, 65-63, Thursday evening at the Amway Center. Senior Louis Dabney led four Tulane players in double figures with 13 points, while A.J. Davis paced the Knights with 20 on the evening.
Tulane (11-21, 3-15 American) led for nearly the entire second half, but the Knights (12-18, 6-12 American) were able to keep it within two possession. With 7:07 left in the game, a jumper from A.J. Davis sparked a 10-0 run for UCF that saw it eventually go up by six with 4:40 left to play.
Redshirt junior Malik Morgan broke up the scoring spree with five straight points. Redshirt sophomore Cameron Reynolds followed suit with five points of his own to put the Green Wave up, 59-55, with 1:45 left in the game.
The two teams traded buckets in the final seconds and UCF got within one with 19 seconds left, but Reynolds buried a pair of free throws to extend the late lead.
Freshman Von Julien had a big first half for the Green Wave, who led 29-21 at the break as he put up nine points in the first period.
Despite being out-rebounded, 47-34, Tulane outscored the Knights 36-22 in the paint. The Green Wave committed just 10 turnovers in the game, while forcing UCF into 21 mishaps.
This was the first post-season win for the Green Wave since topping North Texas in the Conference USA Tournament in the 2013-14 season.
Tulane returns to the Amway Center for round two of the conference tournament on Friday, March 11 for a 7 p.m. game against second-seeded Houston.
