Tulane University
Cincinnati
Men's Basketball Hosts Cincinnati in 2020 Opener
Jan 3, 2020 | Men's Basketball
| GAME 14: TULANE Green Wave (8-5, 0-1 AAC) vs. CINCINNATI Bearcats (8-5, 1-0 AAC) |
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| Â When: | Â Saturday, January 4, 2020Â |Â 3 p.m. (CT) |
|  Where: |  New Orleans | Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse |
| Â Watch: | Â CBS Sports Network |
| Â Commentators: | Â Jason Horowitz (Play-By-Play) and Avery Johnson (Color) |
|  Radio: |  1280 AM New Orleans |
| Â Radio Talent: | Â Gus Kattengell (Play-By-Play) |
| Â Live Scoring: | Â Statbroadcast |
|  Notes: |  Tulane | Cincinnati | American Athletic Conference |
| Â Tickets: | Â Purchase Online |
| Â Social Media:Â | Â @GreenWaveMBBÂ |Â #RollWave |
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The game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network as Jason Horowitz calls play-by-play action and Avery Johnson delivers color analysis.
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STARTING FIVE
1. Â Â Â Tulane begins 2020 with its first American Athletic Conference home game of the season against the two-time reigning league champion. It will be the lone regular-season matchup between the squads and Cincinnati's first trip to New Orleans since March 1, 2018.
2.     In 13 games this season, Tulane has had four different players record at least one 20-point scoring performance, which is tied for the second most (Memphis 5, ECU 4) among American Athletic Conference teams. Teshaun Hightower has accomplished the feat four times and K.J. Lawson twice, as Christion Thompson and Jordan Walker have done it once, respectively.
3. The Green Wave own a 4-1 record this season when their three leading scorers, Teshaun Hightower, K.J. Lawson and Christion Thompson, all reach double-figures in the same game.
4.     Last time out, Tulane trailed by just three in the final minutes but came up short late in an 84-73 road setback at No. 9 Memphis to open American Athletic Conference play Monday evening. In his hometown return, K.J. Lawson scored a game-high 22 points to go with five rebounds, while Christion Thompson added 17 points, five boards and four assists. Jordan Walker led Tulane's late rally by scoring all 13 of his points in the final 10 minutes of the second half. The Green Wave shot 48 percent in the second half to finish the night 25-for-62 (.403) from the field, including 8-for-25 (.320) beyond the arc and 15-for-18 (.833) at the foul line. The Tigers shot 34-for-63 (.540) on the night and 9-for-26 (.346) from outside.
5. Â Â Â Â Tulane has won the turnover battle in 12 of its 13 games this season. The Green Wave Wave are forcing opponents into 17.0 turnovers per game and own a +5.0 turnover margin which ranks 18th nationally.
SCOUTING CINCINNATI
• The Bearcats (8-5, 1-0 AAC) enter Saturday's game having lost three of their last five games, but came away with a 67-51 home win over UConn on Wednesday evening.
• Picked to finish third in the American Athletic Conference's preseason poll, Cincinnati currently ranks in the top five in the league in just two major statistical categories, standing fourth in field goal percentage (.447) and fifth in blocks per game (4.1).
• Preseason conference player of the year Jarron Cumberland leads the Bearcats in scoring (13.5 PPG) and assists (3.1 APG), while graduate Chris Vogt leads The American in field goal percentage (.686) while averaging 13.1 points per game.
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.
• 104 – In 13 games this season, Tulane has shot 104 more free throws than its opponents (277-173) for a +8.0 margin per game. The Green Wave are also converting at a 71.1 percent clip, while opponents are making just 63.0 percent of their attempts.
• 187 – Tulane has made at least one 3-point field goal in 187 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.
FEW FREEBIES
•  Tulane opponents are shooting just 13.3 free throws per game and making just 8.4 of those attempts so far this season.
•  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).
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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).
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HISTORICAL WIN OVER PAC-12 FOE
•   In its 110th season sponsoring men's basketball, Tulane's November 24 game against Utah in Conway, S.C., was just its 20th against a Pac-12 Conference program.
•   The Green Wave's 65-61 victory over the Utes was their first over a Pac-12 team since defeating Stanford, 56-53, at home on Dec. 19, 1957.
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).
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.
2020 PAC-12 CHINA GAME
• In an announcement on November 8, the Tulane University and University of Washington men's basketball programs will meet in Shanghai for the sixth edition of the Pac-12 China Game, tentatively scheduled for Saturday, November 14, 2020.
• Tulane possesses one of just five Chinese-born players in NCAA Division I for the 2019-20 campaign in Shenyang native Kevin Zhang. He is also the son of 1992 Olympic silver medalist and former China Women's National Team coach Wang Fang.
NEWCOMER RUNDOWN
Following a roster overhaul, Tulane enters the 2019-20 campaign tied for the sixth most newcomers nationally:
1. TCU 13
T2. Nebraska 12
T2. ECU 12
T2. Utah 12
T5. Tulane 11
T5. Austin Peay 11
T5. Cleveland State 11
T5. Long Beach State 11
T5. Navy 11
T5. Southern Miss 11
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%)
SEASON TICKETS
Fans can get their hands on season tickets starting at just $75 – a $50 reduction from last year. That means fans can lock up a seat for every home contest for as little as $5 each. Visit TulaneTix.com or call the ticket office at 504-861-9283 to reserve your seats.
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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.
