Memphis will wrap up the regular season on Sunday in New Orleans against Tulane. The final game is big for the Tigers, and with a win, they will secure a spot in the American Conference tournament.
This will be the second meeting between these two teams, and the Green Wave won the first game by two points in Memphis on a late-game shot from Rowan Brumbaugh. Tulane lost its next game at home against Wichita State, and it’s 4-4 since beating the Tigers, including a three-game losing streak going into Sunday.
Ron Hunter’s team has already secured a spot in Birmingham, but it’s going to be an uphill battle for either of these teams to win the conference tournament. It appears likely that both teams will be in the bottom three, and they would both be tasked with winning five games in five days.
Tulane averages 71.8 points per game, and it shoots 42.6 percent from the field, 32 percent from deep and 75.8 percent from the free-throw line. Three players average more than 10 points per game, and Brumbaugh leads the team with 18 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.
Asher Woods and Curtis Williams Jr. also average more than 10 points per game, averaging 12.7 and 12.6, respectively.
The Green Wave have struggled shooting all season, and they rank No. 259 in effective field-goal percentage, No. 282 in three-point percentage and No. 214 in two-point percentage, according to KenPom. In the first game against the Tigers, they shot 50 percent from the field and 42 percent from three-point range, making 10 three-pointers.
Defensively, Tulane allows 75.1 points per game, and opposing teams shoot 44 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from deep. The Green Wave forces 11.9 turnovers per game, and they score 14.3 points off those turnovers.
Tulane lacks size in the frontcourt, and its biggest guy that plays regular minutes is 6-foot-10. In the first matchup, Hunter started a pair of 6-foot-8 forwards down low, and it’s likely Memphis will have a significant size advantage on Sunday.
With the lack of big men, the Green Wave struggle on the boards, and they only average 30.9 rebounds per game with a rebounding margin of minus-7.8. Tulane ranks No. 354 in offensive rebounding percentage, and the Tigers won the rebounding battle 40-to-25 in the first meeting.