Tulane Claims Holiday Tournament Title

Wednesday, December 21

NEW ORLEANS

12:30 P.M.

Tulane University

9-3,0-0AAC

Tennessee Tech University

6-4,0-0OVC

Tennessee Tech

Tulane

Photo by: Parker Waters

Dec 21, 2022 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

NEW ORLEANS –Tulane University Women's Basketball won the Tulane Holiday Tournament title for 22^nd time and the first since 2017 by defeating Tennessee Tech 71-49 in Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse on Wednesday. The Green Wave shot 54 percent from the floor and drained eight shots from beyond the arc while limiting the Golden Eagles to just 30 percent shooting.

With the victory, Tulane moves to 9-3 on the season and 6-2 at home. The win also marked the Green Wave's fourth consecutive victory.

Graduate guard Rachel Hakes earned the tournament MVP after averaging 15 points, four rebounds and three assists in two wins for Tulane. Marta Galic and Kyren Whittington each earned all-tournament team selection for the Green Wave. They were joined by Anna Walker and Reghan Grimes of Tennessee Tech and Layla Laws from Saint Francis.

Hakes and Whittington led the offensive attach for the Green Wave against the Golden Eagles. Hakes tallied 22 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor including three made three-pointers. She also added five assists and five rebounds to go with a pair of blocks. Whittington posted 17 points shooting a perfect 3-of-3 from downtown.

Tulane controlled the painted area again by outrebounding Tennessee Tech 40-26 and winning the scoring battle around the rim 36-20. The Wave also swatted a season-best seven shots led by Anijah Grant with four blocks.

Hakes led the Green Wave to a strong start in the first quarter scoring 12 points on 3-of-5 shooting from the floor and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line. Tulane finished the opening frame with a 9-0 scoring run to hold a 22-11 advantage at the end of the first quarter.

Tennessee Tech pulled within two in the second quarter as the Tulane offense slowed down. The Wave made a surge after the Golden Eagles made it 22-20 with 5:19 to play by outscoring Tennessee Tech 8-5 in the final minutes to maintain its lead at 30-25 at the half.

Whittington sparked a 10-0 run by the Green Wave to begin the second half. The redshirt sophomore guard scored the first five point of the frame as Tulane managed to push its lead out to 15. The Wave shot an incredible 72.7 percent from the field and 83.3 percent from beyond the arc in the frame building its lead to 51-34 heading into the fourth quarter.

Tulane never let the Golden Eagles climb back into the game by posting another strong shooting performance in the fourth quarter hitting at a 75 percent clip from the floor. Whittington contributed seven to the Wave's third 20-point quarter of the day as Tulane went on to close out the victory 71-49.

Up next, the Green Wave will host Tougaloo College in Uptown on Wednesday, December 28. Tipoff between Tulane and the Bulldogs is set for 6 p.m.

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