Tulane University
8-2,0-0AAC
Alcorn State
3-6,0-0SWAC
Men's Basketball Outlasts Alcorn State at Home, 68-57
Dec 16, 2019 | Men's Basketball
NEW ORLEANS– The Tulane men's basketball team improved to 5-0 inside the friendly confines of Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse thanks to a 68-57 victory over Alcorn State Monday night.Â
Tulane's (8-2) win over Alcorn State (3-6) also marked the Green Wave's sixth straight win over a non-conference opponent on their home court.Â
"The first thing I said when I got here was that in order to change a culture, you have to win at home," head coach Ron Hunter said. "Give Alcorn (State) credit, they were ready to play. These are always the hardest games to play, but we grinded it out and got the win. The sign of a good team is when you play bad and can still get the win."
Junior guard Teshaun Hightower led the Green Wave with 15 points and was one of four Tulane players to finish in double-figures.Â
Joining Hightower was graduate Nic Thomas, redshirt sophomore Jordan Walker and graduate transfer Christion Thompson, as they finished with 13, 11 and 10 points, respectively. Tulane also moved to 6-0 when four-or-more players finish with double-digit points.
Freshman forward Nobal Days' effort on the glass aided his career-high eight rebounds.Â
Tulane's defensive prowess held Alcorn State in check all night, as the Braves failed to surpass 60 points for just the fourth time all year. The Green Wave also held ASU leading scorer Troymain Crosby to a season-low six points.Â
As a team, Tulane was outshot by Alcorn State 44.2-35.5 percent, but held a 37-34 rebounding advantage. The Green Wave also continued to take care of the basketball, as they had just nine turnovers, while forcing ASU into 19.
"If you don't turn the ball over you are going to give yourself a chance to win," Hunter said.
Alcorn State jumped out to an early 7-2 advantage in the first four minutes of the game, but the Green Wave stormed back with a 25-7 push over the next eight minutes to take a 27-14 lead. Over the course of Tulane's impressive eight-minute run, the Green Wave held the Braves without a field goal for over four minutes.Â
Thomas paced the Green Wave, as he connected on three 3-pointers during the push.Â
Alcorn State would not go quietly, as it fought back with a run of its own over the final seven and a half minutes of the half to cut the Green Wave's lead to three points at the intermission, 31-28. The Braves finished the first half on a 14-7 scoring run.
Tulane began to pull away with under six minutes to go in the game, as it went on a 7-0 run over a two-minute stretch to take 61-51 advantage with 4:07 remaining. Hightower led the charge for the Green Wave, as he scored four of the seven points.
The Green Wave would go on to hold Alcorn State to just two points over the final two minutes to secure the win.Â
Tulane returns to action on Dec. 20, as it heads to the DC Holiday Hoops Tournament in Washington, D.C., for a matchup against Akron (8-2) at 1:30 p.m.
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