Tulane University
Towson
Men's Basketball Heads to Atlantic City for Boardwalk Battle
Dec 20, 2018 | Men's Basketball
| GAME 11: TULANE Green Wave (4-6) vs. TOWSON Tigers (3-7) |
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| Â When: | Â Dec. 21, 2018Â |Â 4 p.m. (CT) |
|  Where: |  Atlantic City, New Jersey | Boardwalk Hall |
| Â Watch: | Â FloHoops |
|  Commentators: |  Gavin Schall (Play-by-Play) & Matthew Drexler (Color Analyst) |
|  Radio: |  1280 AM New Orleans | Listen Online |
| Â Radio Talent: | Â Todd Graffagnini (Play-By-Play) |
| Â Live Stats: | Â SIDEARM |
|  Notes: |  Tulane | Towson |
| Â Social Media: | Â Twitter: @GreenWaveMBB | #RollWave |
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. - The Tulane men's basketball team will close out its non-conference schedule with its final two games of 2018 at the Boardwalk Battle, beginning Friday, December 21 against Towson. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m. (CST) at Boardwalk Hall and the game will be streamed online by FloHoops.
With a victory, the Green Wave advances to Saturday's championship game at 1:30 p.m., against the winner of La Salle/Alabama A&MÂ following the third-place contest scheduled for 11 a.m.
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STARTING FIVE
  1. Tulane enters its final weekend of non-conference competition and plays its fourth game on a neutral court this season in a first-time meeting with Towson in the Boardwalk Battle in Atlantic City, N.J. on Friday.
  2. Tulane is 1-2 playing on a neutral court this year, with all three games coming at the Gulf Coast Showcase in Estero, Florida Nov. 19-21. The Green Wave are 3-9 on neutral courts under third-year head coach Mike Dunleavy, Sr.
  3. The Green Wave have won two of their last three games, most recently earning a 77-70 home win over Texas Southern on Monday night behind a career-high 28 points and 11 rebounds by Samir Sehic and another 21 points by Caleb Daniels.
  4. Sophomore guard Caleb Daniels has scored in double-figures in nine straight games and has led the Green Wave in points in four of those contests. During that span, he is averaging 18.0 points while shooting 56 percent overall and 44 percent from 3-point range. He has four 20-point efforts and is averaging just shy of three assists.
  5. In just 10 games this season, Tulane has had five different players record at least one 20-point scoring performance, the most among all American Athletic Conference teams. Caleb Daniels has three and freshman Kevin Zhang has two, while redshirt senior Jordan Cornish, redshirt junior Samir Sehic and redshirt freshman Shakwon Barrett have one apiece.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
• Towson (3-7) enters Friday's contest coming off a 10-day break after defeating UMBC, 80-76, in overtime on the road on Dec. 11.
• The Tigers own a 1-2 record in road games and are 0-4 in neutral site contests this season.
• Towson was picked to finish 10th in the Colonial Athletic Association's preseason poll at the beginning of the season.
• Towson is led by Brian Fobbs' 16.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, as he's shooting 56.4 percent overall and 42 percent beyond the 3-point arc for the year.
AAC WEEKLY HONORS
• Sophomore guard Caleb Daniels was selected to the American Athletic Conference Weekly Honor Roll on December 10, while freshman swingman Kevin Zhang was selected to the first listing of the 2018-19 season on November 12.
• Daniels averaged 20 points and nine rebounds per game while shooting 16-for-23 (.696) from the field in two games, as he registered his first career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds on 7-for-11 shooting in the 87-74 win over UT-Martin, before tallying his third 20-point performance of the season with 23 points and eight boards on 9-for-12 shooting at South Alabama.
• Starting in his college debut against 17th-ranked Florida State, Zhang scored a game-high 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds with two assists and just one turnover in 35 minutes. The Shenyang, China native shot 9-for-13 overall, including 4-for-5 from 3-point range, while 17 of his 24 points came in the second half.
KOKA'S PERFECTION
• Redshirt freshman center Buay Koka had his best performance to date coming off the bench at South Alabama on Dec. 8, shooting a perfect 5-for-5 from the floor for a career-best 11 points to go with a pair of blocks.
• Koka became the first Tulane player to have a perfect day shooting with a minimum of five shot attempts since Malik Morgan went 6-for-6 against Georgia Tech on Dec. 15, 2015.
BARRETT'S BIG DAY
• Redshirt freshman guard Shakwon Barrett is known for his passing and defensive prowess, but had a breakout offensive showing with a career-high 26 points on 10-for-11 shooting in the 87-74 home win against UT-Martin on Dec. 5.
• Barrett became the fourth Green Wave player in a matter of eight games to have a 20-point scoring performance, joining Caleb Daniels, Kevin Zhang and Jordan Cornish.
• The Toronto native started a perfect 7-for-7 from the floor, while his 10 field goals were the most in a game by a Tulane player since Melvin Frazier made 10 in a 22-point barrage at Wichita State on Feb. 21, 2018.
DOUBLE-DIGIT DIMES
• Redshirt freshman point guard Shakwon Barrett handed out 10 assists with just two turnovers in the Green Wave's 81-76 home win over Coastal Carolina on Nov. 13. The last player to have at least 10 in a game was Malik Morgan, who recorded 12 at ECU on Feb. 4, 2017.
HALF-DOZEN CORNISH TREYS
• Redshirt senior guard Jordan Cornish had one of his best outside shooting performances of his career, sinking six 3-pointers in a 19-point performance against Coastal Carolina on Nov. 13. The six treys were tied for the sixth most in a single-game and marked the 26th time a player has made at least that many in program history.
STRENGTH WITHIN THE SCHEDULE
• Tulane will play a minimum of 11 regular-season games against nine teams that earned postseason bids in 2018, including seven opponents that played in the NCAA Tournament (Cincinnati, Florida State, Georgia State, Houston, South Dakota State, Texas Southern and Wichita State). Temple and Southeastern Louisiana made NIT appearances.
• The Green Wave will host 15 home games and will head out to compete in five neutral-site contests. The Wave will play just one true road tilt in the non-conference slate at South Alabama on Dec. 8.
DUNLEAVYS LONE FATHER-SON HEAD-COACHING DUO
 • In his third season as head coach, Mike Dunleavy Sr., is the only head coach with a son who is also a head coach at the NCAA Division I level.
 • His son, Baker Dunleavy, is in his second season at the helm of Quinnipiac's program.
ZHANG'S ARRIVAL MARKS RARE FOREIGN IMPORT
NCAA Division I men's basketball players hailing from China are rare, as freshman swingman Kevin Zhang is one of just five players nationally who can stake that claim along with CS Fullerton sophomore Johnny Wang, CS Northridge freshman Michael Ou, Cal-Berkley freshman James Zhao and UPenn frosh Michael Wang.
#NBAWAVE
• Melvin Frazier Jr. and Cameron Reynolds have begun their professional careers in 2018-19, as Frazier is currently on the Orlando Magic's G-League team in Lakeland, Florida, and Reynolds begins the season with the Sacramento Kings' G-League affiliate in Stockton.
• Frazier became the 20th player in Tulane history to be chosen in the NBA Draft and the first in 21 years when he was chosen in the second round, 35th overall, by the Magic in June.
• Reynolds received a guaranteed contract from the Kings, including a spot on the club's Summer League team, a training camp invitation and a guaranteed a roster spot with Stockton for the 2018-19 campaign.
FOLLOW ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For behind-the-scenes coverage, follow Tulane men's basketball (@GreenWaveMBB) on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.Â
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WE ARE NOLA BUILT
Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, All-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
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