Tulane faces Memphis in AAC semifinals

FORT WORTH, Texas – No. 3 seeded Tulane will face No. 2 Memphis in the American Athletic Conference Tournament Semifinals on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m. inside Dickies Arena.

The game will be broadcast live on ESPN 2. Fans can also listen to the game live on the radio by tuning into 104.1 The Spot or by CLICKING HERE. Tulane’s “Voice of the Green Wave” Corey Gloor will call the action live.

STARTING FIVE

1. Tulane University men’s basketball advanced to the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference Tournament for the second straight year and earned their first AAC postseason victory over the Shockers with a 82-76 victory.

2. Third Team All-AAC Selection Kevin Cross led the way for the Wave with his fifth double-double of the season. The junior scored 24 points and 13 rebounds. Both of those figures are the most for a Tulane player in the AAC Tournament.

3. The last time these two faced on the tournament was 2016 when Memphis defeated Tulane 74-54 in the semifinal round. Tulane is 0-7 in conference tournaments when facing Memphis, two of those losses are in the AAC while five come from C-USA.

4.Tulane swept Memphis in the regular season for the first time since joining the American. The Wave won 96-89 at home and 90-89 in overtime in Memphis. Sion James led the way with 30 points in the first meeting, while Jalen Cook and Kevin Cross combined for 47 points in the last meeting.

5. With 82 points, 43 rebounds and 13 blocks, the Wave set Tulane AAC single-game tournament records. Cross’s 24 points and 13 rebounds are the most from a Tulane player in an AAC tournament game. James broke the Tulane record for blocks in an AAC tournament game with six, besting his five from last year’s quarterfinal round.

TULANE BY THE NUMBERS

500 – With a 20-10 record this is the first time Ron Hunter will finish over .500 as the Tulane head coach. Tulane hasn’t finished .500 or better since 2013-14 (17-17).

284 – Tulane has made at least one 3-point field goal in 284 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.

90 – Tulane has scored 90+ eight times this season which is more than the last six seasons combined.

78.1 – Tulane is shooting 78.1 percent from the line which is on track to be the best team average ever for a Tulane team.

40 – Sion James, Jaylen Forbes and Jalen Cook have all played entire games without subbing out this season. Forbes and Cook each have two. Cook played a full 45 when Tulane went into OT at Wichita. James played his third full 40 in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament.

20 – The last time Tulane had 20 or more wins in a single season was 2012-13 when the team went 20-15.

12 – 12 conference wins is the most for the Wave since joining the AAC.

4 – This is the first time four Tulane players have earned AAC postseason honors.

SUCCESS FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE

• Tulane is currently 500-640 from the free throw line (.781) which is trending towards the program’s highest single-season percentage since 1967-68 when the team shot 528-of-692 (.763) at the charity stripe.

• Four Green Wave players are currently shooting over .800 from the line – Jalen Cook (.861), Jaylen Forbes (.861), Kevin Cross (.831) and Jadan Coleman (.800).

THE OPPONENT – MEMPHIS

• Memphis has won 12 of its last 15 games to give the program its most victories in a season since also winning 24 in 2013-14.

• DeAndre Williams and Kendric Davis were the headliners for the teams win over UCF in the AAC quarterfinals, as the duo combined to score 84 percent of the Tigers’ points against the Knights.

• The Tigers are now 10-8 all-time in the AAC Tournament.

• Williams and Davis became the first teammates to score at least 30 points in an American Athletic Conference tournament game.

• Memphis holds a 7-0 conference tournament record over Tulane.

A WIN VERSUS MEMPHIS

• Tulane would get its first post season win over Memphis.

• Tulane will advance to the AAC tournament finals for the first time in school history.

• Tulane would improve to 21-10, getting 21 wins or more for the first time since the 1995-1996 season when the team went 22-10.