Tulane is gearing up for another tough task on the hardwood against the Temple Owls, and the team's star player is closing in on a milestone achievement for the program.
After a lopsided loss to the Wichita State Shockers, the Tulane Green Wave will look to bounce back on the hardwood as it takes on the Temple Owls on Wednesday night.
Things haven't been pretty in Uptown for the last month or so, with the team struggling heavily in American Conference play. Tulane has lost six of its last seven league games, with three of those losses being by double digits. From major scoring droughts on offense to a lack of toughness on defense, there have been plenty of problems all across the court for the once-proud program.
The biggest bright spot by far for the Green Wave has been standout guard Rowan Brumbaugh. The redshirt junior is averaging 19.3 points per game this season while shooting 43.9-percent from the field and 36.6-percent from three. Additionally, he's a top contributor on the boards with an average of 4.9 rebounds per game and has already notched 76 assists and 44 steals on the year.
Brumbaugh is just 27 points away from becoming the 40th player to record 1,000 points in his Tulane career. While the Georgetown Hoyas transfer did reach 1,000 points for his entire college career back in November, it'll be extra special to see him achieve that feat specifically for the Sky Blue and Olive Green. At the rate he's been playing, Brumbaugh will be looking to break that record in the next game or two.
Unfortunately for Tulane, Brumbaugh's success hasn't been enough to pull the team to victory. Teammates Asher Woods and Curtis Williams Jr. are both averaging a little more than 12 points per game and Tyler Ringgold contributes roughly 9.5 points per game, but there's been a sharp drop-off in production from there. It's been incredibly hard for the Green Wave to keep up with teams that have a balanced offensive attack and see solid contributions from bench players -- which, in all honesty, is nearly every other team in the American.
Once again, this question lingers: can Tulane find a way to win its upcoming matchup and get back on track? Temple is yet another tough test for the Green Wave, as the team sits in second place with a 7-3 league record and has a 15-8 overall record. The Owls are also a talented road team, with a solid 5-2 record when playing away from their home court. Safe to say, this team has every single advantage heading into the matchup.
There's no better place for Tulane to right the ship than at Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse. The team will once again try to bounce-back and find a way to finish the last few weeks of the season strong, even as time is running out.
Tip-off for the Green Wave's matchup with Temple is set for 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday.