Men's Basketball Begins Conference Tournament Journey Thursday Against Tulsa

GAME 31: No. 10 TULANE GREEN WAVE (6-24, 3-15 AAC) vs. No. 7 TULSA GOLDEN HURRICANE (14-16, 8-10 AAC)
When:	March 9, 2017
Where:	Hartford, Conn. \| XL Center
Watch:	ESPNews \| WatchESPN
Commentators:	Allen Bestwick (Play-by-Play) and Tim Welsh (Color)
Radio:	Fox Sports AM 1280 New Orleans \| Listen Online
Radio Talent:	Todd Graffagnini (Play-By-Play)
Live Stats:	StatBroadcast
Notes:	Tulane \| Tulsa \| American Conference
Social Media:	Twitter: @GreenWaveMBB \| #RollWave

NEW ORLEANS – After reaching the semifinals of last year's tournament in Orlando as the No. 11 seed, Tulane will begin its journey through the 2017 American Athletic Conference Championship field in Hartford as the No. 10 seed when it meets seventh-seeded Tulsa in Thursday's first round at 5 p.m. (CT) at the XL Center.

The winner will advance to Friday's quarterfinals and take on second-seeded and 15th-ranked Cincinnati at 6 p.m. (CT).

MEDIA COVERAGE
• The game will be televised nationally on ESPNews and available on the WatchESPN app with Allen Bestwick on the call and Tim Welsh providing color commentary.
• Todd Graffagnini's radio coverage can be heard on 1280 AM FOX Sports New Orleans and through the Tune-in app.

TULANE QUICK NOTES
• Redshirt junior Cameron Reynolds ranks sixth in The American in scoring (17.0) and fourth in 3-point field goals made (75) and 3-point field goal percentage (.393)
• Reynolds has scored double-digit points in 17-straight games and has one dozen 20-point performances this season, including three in the last four contests.
• Sophomore Melvin Frazier the league leader in steals per game (1.9) and second in total steals (55). He has forced opponents into at least three turnovers 13 times on the year.
• Redshirt senior Malik Morgan is seventh in assists per game (4.4) and has tallied at least 10 points, five rebounds and five dimes in each of his last four appearances.
• Senior Ryan Smith is sixth in The American in blocks per game (1.4).

INSIDE THE MATCHUP
• Tulane and Tulsa (14-16, 8-10 AAC) meet for the second time in as many games, after the Green Wave toppled the Golden Hurricane, 81-69, on Senior Day in New Orleans on Sunday.
• The last time Tulane faced the same opponent in consecutive games was March 6 and 10 of the 2003-04 campaign. The Green Wave dropped a 79-65 road decision at Charlotte in its regular-season finale, before falling again to the second-seeded 49ers, 78-48, in the first round of the Conference USA Tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio.
• The Green Wave also faced Saint Louis (2002) and Southern Miss (1994) in back-to-back games, but has never come away with consecutive wins in those scenarios.

SCOUTING TULSA
• The Golden Hurricane leads the league in free throw percentage (.731) and ranks fifth in rebounding margin (+1.6) and three-pointers made per game (7.4), but is last in offensive rebounds (9.7) and blocks (2.4) while standing second-to-last in field goal percentage defense (.433) and assists (11.6).

THE SERIES
• Thursday's matchup marks the 24th all-time meeting between the Green Wave and Golden Hurricane, as Tulsa leads the series, 17-6.
• Tulane's win snapped an eight-game skid against Tulsa, with its last victory coming in a 75-72 decision at home on Jan. 19, 2013 when both programs were still members of Conference USA.
• In the first matchup this season in Tulsa, the Green Wave began the game with a 15-3 scoring run, but eventually suffered an 89-82 defeat at the Reynolds Center on Jan. 18.
• In two games against Tulsa this season, Cameron Reynolds is averaging 25.5 points and nine rebounds, while shooting 15-for-34 (.441) from the field, 8-for-16 (.500) from 3-point range and 13-for-14 (.929) at the free throw line.

LAST TIME OUT
• Cameron Reynolds scored 23 of a career-high 31 points in the first half as Tulane defeated Tulsa, 81-69, on Sunday, March 5 in its regular-season finale.
• Reynolds made seven 3-pointers, which were a personal-best and tied for the second most in a single game in program history. He also became the first player with 30 points in a game since Louis Dabney scored 32 in a triple-overtime victory at East Carolina on Feb. 10, 2016.
• Melvin Frazier added 18 points and four steals, as Malik Morgan scored 15 points to go with six rebounds and eight assists.
• Martins Igbanu led four Golden Hurricane in double-figures with a double-double comprising 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Men's Basketball Begins Conference Tournament Journey Thursday Against Tulsa

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Players Mentioned

Louis Dabney

Melvin Frazier

Malik Morgan

Cameron Reynolds

Ryan Smith

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