Tulane University
Tulsa
Men's Basketball Tangles Against Tulsa in Conference Play Saturday
Jan 17, 2020 | Men's Basketball
| GAME 18: TULANE Green Wave (10-7, 2-3 AAC) vs. TULSA Golden Hurricane (11-6, 3-1 AAC) |
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| Â When: | Â Saturday, January 18, 2020Â |Â 1 p.m. (CT) |
|  Where: |  New Orleans | Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse |
| Â Watch: | Â WatchESPN |
| Â Commentators: | Â Dave Raymond (Play-By-Play) and Victor Howell (Color) |
|  Radio: |  1280 AM New Orleans |
| Â Radio Talent: | Â Andrew Allegretta (Play-By-Play) |
| Â Live Scoring: | Â Statbroadcast |
|  Notes: |  Tulane | Tulsa | American Athletic Conference |
| Â Tickets: | Â Purchase Online |
| Â Social Media:Â | Â @GreenWaveMBBÂ |Â #RollWave |
The game will be broadcast on the WatchESPN app, as Dave Raymond calls play-by-play action and Victor Howell delivers color analysis.
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STARTING FIVE
1. Â Â Â Â Tulane plays its second game in a row at home for the first time since mid-November in search of its third American Athletic Conference victory of the season and its first against Tulsa since March 2017.
2. Â Â Â Â Saturday's game features two of The American's best teams in terms of turnover margin, as the Green Wave rank first (+4.9), while the Golden Hurricane are fifth (+1.2). Both teams are also in the top 100 nationally in steals per game and fewest fouls committed per game.
3. Â Â Â Â Through five games of league play, Tulane ranks first in the conference in both 3-point field goal percentage (.369) and free throw percentage (.769).
4. Â Â Â Â Last time out, Tulane suffered its first home loss of the season, 74-55, against UCF on Tuesday night. Christion Thompson led the way with a game-high 19-points to log his 12th double-digit scoring effort of the season. Teammates Nic Thomas and K.J. Lawson joined Thompson in double figures, as they finished with 12 and 10 points, respectively. As a team, the Green Wave struggled from the floor, connecting on just 36.2 percent from the floor, which was below its season average of 43 percent, while the Knights made 12 3-pointers at a 46-percent rate. UCF finished the game with four players in double-figure scoring and owned a 36-31 rebounding advantage.
5. Â Â Â Â Tulane has committed fewer turnovers than its opponent in 16 of its 17 games this season. The Green Wave Wave are forcing teams into 16.6 turnovers per game and own a +4.9 turnover margin which ranks 13th nationally.
SCOUTING TULSA
• The Golden Hurricane (11-6, 3-1 AAC) enter Saturday's game coming off back-to-back league wins over Houston (Jan. 11) at home and on the road at East Carolina (Jan. 15).
• Tulsa owns a 9-1 record at home, but just a 2-5 mark away from its friendly confines, including a 2-4 ledger in true road contests.
• Tulsa ranks fourth in The American in field goal percentage (.448), and fifth in turnovers per game (13.4), and steals per game (8.0), but are 11th in 3-pointers made per game (5.9) and ninth in 3-point field goal percentage (.317).
• The Hurricane's leading scorer, Brandon Rachal, ranks seventh in the conference in scoring (14.9 ppg) and 11th in rebounding (6.6 rpg), while Darien Jackson stands second in field goal percentage (.582).
BY THE NUMBERS
• 33 – Teshaun Hightower scored 33 points against Towson on Dec. 21 in Washington, D.C., the most points scored in a single game by any player in The American this season.
• 99 – In 17 games this season, Tulane has shot 99 more free throws than its opponents (337-228) for a +5.8 margin per game. The Green Wave are also converting at a 71.8 percent clip, while opponents are making just 67.4 percent of their attempts.
• 191 – Tulane has made at least one 3-point field goal in 191 consecutive games. The last time the Green Wave failed to do so came on Jan. 16, 2014 at home against Louisiana Tech when they went 0-for-14 from outside.
MINUTES MONSTERS
•  Playing primarily with a seven-man rotation, Tulane's starters are seeing more court time than any team in The American Athletic Conference this season.
•  K.J. Lawson (36.2), Christion Thompson (34.0) and Teshaun Hightower (33.4) have started every game this season for the Green Wave and rank first, third and fifth among all players in The American in minutes played.
FEW FREEBIES
•  Tulane opponents are shooting just 14.1 free throws per game and making just 9.5 of those attempts so far this season for a 67.4 percent conversion rate.
•  On four occasions, opponents have attempted seven or fewer free throws in a game including Middle Tennessee (seven on Nov. 22), Southern Miss (four on Dec. 4), Saint Louis (seven on Dec. 8) and Alcorn State (four on Dec. 16).
•  Including those teams, eight Green Wave opponents have made eight or fewer free throws in a game along with Southeastern Louisiana (two on Nov. 6), Northwestern State (four on Nov. 16), Utah (eight on Nov. 24) and Memphis (seven on Dec. 30).
BEATING THE BEARCATS
•  Not only was Tulane's 76-71 win over Cincinnati on January 4 its first in conference play this season, but it also ended a pair of winning streaks by the Bearcats.
•  The Green Wave's last victory over the Bearcats came six meetings prior at Cincinnati in 2015 in their first year as a member of The American. Tulane's last home victory against Cincinnati occurred nine meetings ago in 1985 when both schools were members of the former Metro Conference.Â
LAWSON'S EMOTIONAL HOMETOWN RETURN
•  Graduate transfer K.J. Lawson returned to play in his hometown of Memphis on December 30 for the first time since his redshirt freshman season in 2016-17 when he competed for the Tigers. That year, Lawson 12.3 points and 8.1 rebounds per game en route to being named AAC Rookie of the Year.
•  Lawson did not disappoint in his return, scoring a game-high 22 points to go with five rebounds in a game where the Green Wave trailed the ninth-ranked Tigers by just three points inside the final four minutes.
HUNTER WINS NO. 450
•   It took just five wins and six games for first-year head coach Ron Hunter to reach a new milestone, as he earned his 450th career win on November 24 against Utah at the Myrtle Beach Invitational.
•   In his 26th season as a head coach, Hunter ranks 35th nationally among active NCAA Division I head coaches and third in the American Athletic Conference behind only Houston's Kelvin Sampson (619) and Wichita State's Gregg Marshall (508).
SEASONED COACHING STAFF
•  Head coach Ron Hunter has assembled a veteran coaching staff featuring two former NCAA Division I head coaches - Ray McCallum (Ball State - 1993-2000; Houston 2000-04; Detroit Mercy - 2008-16) and Kevin Johnson (Centenary - 1999-2005), as well as Claude Pardue.
•  The Green Wave are one of just nine schools nationally to have three of its four coaches currently or previously holding head-coaching titles, along with Pittsburgh (4), Iowa (4), Creighton (3), Michigan State (3), Minnesota (3), Oklahoma State (3), South Carolina (3) and Washington (3).
SMALL NUMBERS RETURN
•  Tulane returns just two scholarship players for the 2019-20 season in Kevin Zhang and Buay Koka. Zhang was the only Green Wave player to appear in the team's final 15 games of last season.Â
•  This season, Tulane is one of just six NCAA Division I teams returning less than 21 percent of their scoring while also bringing back less than 16 points per game. Among those teams, the Green Wave return the fewest in both categories:Â
1. Tulane (10.8 PPG, 12.2%)
2. Virginia Tech (13.3 PPG, 18.1%)
3. Washington (13.9 PPG, 19.8%)
4. UCF (14.5 PPG, 20.0%)
5. Long Beach State (15.2 PPG, 20.2%)
6. South Dakota State (15.8 PPG, 16.9%)
TULANE INKS TWO EARLY SIGNEES
•   Head coach Ron Hunter received two NLI's in the NCAA's Early Signing Period from Jadan Coleman (Madison, Ala.) and Sion James (Atlanta, Ga.) as part of his first signing class.
•    A 6'4 wing player, Coleman plays at Bob Jones High School. On the AAU trail, he averaged 9.7 points per game for the Alabama Fusion on the 2019 Nike EYBL circuit. He made 34 3-pointers in 13 games and set the EYBL record with 10 3-pointers made in a 36-point outburst against Team United.
•    A 6'5 guard from Lanier High School, James earned Region 8 Class 6A Player of the Year honors and received 2019 North Atlanta boys' all-state first team honors and all-county recognition after averaging 14.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game as a junior. He led the Longhorns to the Class 6A title and was a 2019 Gwinnett County All-Metro Second Team pick while being selected to the 2019 North Georgia All-Star Basketball Classic.
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All sections are available for purchase so you can customize your viewing experience from your favorite seating location. Discounts are also available for Tulane faculty and staff.
FOLLOW ON SOCIAL MEDIA
For behind-the-scenes coverage, follow Tulane men's basketball (@GreenWaveMBB) on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.Â
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.
