After recording a 27-point win Thursday over FAU, Memphis dropped its first home game in conference play with a two-point loss to Tulane. The Tigers have now lost three of their last four games, while the Green Wave snapped its five-game losing streak.
Prior to Sunday’s game, five Tigers were listed on the American Conference availability report, including both players who missed Thursday’s game against FAU. Both Hasan Abdul Hakim, who missed the game with an illness, and Curtis Givens III, who missed the game with a knee injury, appeared on the availability report and missed the game against the Green Wave.
Zach Davis, Aaron Bradshaw and Sincere Parker were all listed as questionable, but all three were able to play.
Penny Hardaway went with the same starting lineup he used in the last game against FAU, but they struggled to get things going early. Tulane opened the game on a 12-4 run to take an early lead, and Memphis opened the game going 1-for-7 from the field.
After cutting the lead to five with 11:15 left in the first half, the Tigers went nearly nine minutes without a made field goal. While they struggled to knock down shots, Hardaway’s team attempted 19 free throws and converted on 14 shots from the charity stripe.
The Green Wave led by as many as 15 points in the first half, but the Tigers went on a 15-8 run to close the first half and cut the lead to eight points.
Memphis only shot 27.6 percent from the field and 11.1 percent from deep in the first half, and they grabbed 23 rebounds, including 10 offensive rebounds. On the other side, the Green Wave shot 52.2 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from three-point range, and the officials called 25 fouls in the first half.
The Tigers started the second half with a 7-0 run to make it a one-point game, but every time it looked like Memphis would take the lead, the Green Wave would answer with a three-point shot. Ultimately, the Tigers took their first lead of the game with 13:13 left in the game, but Ron Hunter’s team quickly regained the lead less than a minute later.
Tulane kept the lead for most of the first half, but Memphis used a 10-3 run led by Parker and Bradshaw to tie the game again with 4:55 remaining. A minute later, Dug McDaniel knocked down a massive three to tie the game for a third time, and Quante Berry followed it up to give the Tigers a two-point lead with 2:36 left in the game.
The Green Wave responded with a 5-0 run to take a three-point lead with 36 seconds left, but Memphis was able to respond with a Julius Thedford free-throw and a McDaniel jumper to tie the game with 14 seconds.
With the game tied and looking like it was going into overtime, Tulane’s Rowan Brumbaugh sprinted up the court and got to the basket with ease to give his team a lead. The Tigers got the ball up the court quickly, but they weren’t able to get up a shot before the clock hit zero.
As a team, Memphis shot 35.7 percent from the field, 20 percent from deep and made 32 free throws. Four players finished in double figures, and Thedford led the team with 14 points.
Bradshaw finished another game with 10 or more points, and he recorded 10 points and nine rebounds before fouling out late in the game. It’s the fourth straight game Bradshaw has finished with 10 or more points.
Fouls became the biggest story of the game, and the two teams combined for 49 fouls called during the 40-minute game. Three players for the Green Wave fouled out, while Bradshaw was the only Tiger to foul out.
After struggling to rebound in conference play, Memphis dominated the boards and won the rebounding battle 40-to-25. The Tigers grabbed 16 offensive rebounds and scored 14 second-chance points.
Hardaway’s team also forced 13 turnovers and scored 16 points off turnovers.
On the other side, Tulane shot 50 percent from the field and made 10 three-pointers, shooting 41.7 percent, and three players finished in double-figures. Brumbaugh, who was named the conference preseason player of the year, led the team with 27 points, while Asher Woods added 19 points, six rebounds and five assists.
With the loss, Memphis drops to 10-11 on the season and 5-4 in conference play, and it has lost three of its last four games. The Tigers will hit the road again on Thursday and travel to Birmingham to play UAB.
The Blazers enter the game 14-8 on the season, and they’ve won back-to-back games over UTSA and North Texas.