The Green Wave will look to start conference play on the right foot against the Pirates, with sights set on a bigger goal.
A highly-anticipated season for the Tulane Green Wave men's basketball program is heating up, just in time for these cold winter months.
The Green Wave begins conference play on Wednesday as it will hit the East Coast to take on the East Carolina Pirates. Tulane sits at an impressive 9-4 on the season with plenty to prove as it heads into the thick of its schedule. It will be looking for its first road victory over the Pirates since January 2018.
The team has picked up some solid wins over the past few weeks of non-conference play, including notable performances against the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns, Boston College Eagles and Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. The Green Wave hasn't played since its gutsy late game victory against the Portland State Vikings on December 20th, and the program is riding a two-game win streak into Wednesday's contest.
As expected, Rowan Brumbaugh has been leading the charge for Tulane this season. The American Conference Preseason Player of the Year is averaging a team-high 18.5 points per game, to go along with his 43 assists and 27 steals through 13 games played. He's expected to continue to be an integral part of the rotation moving forward.
Georgetown transfer Curtis Williams, Jr. has quickly made his mark on the program as well, with 13.4 points and a team-high 5.2 rebounds per game. Preseason American Conference Second-Team selection Asher Woods completes this talented backcourt trio with his 11.7 points per game and 24 total assists.
Tyler Ringgold and Scotty Middleton provide the biggest boost down low -- the former has averaged 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per contest, while the latter is recording roughly 6.8 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. They've combined for 24 blocks on the year -- though reserve center Percy Daniels has 24 blocks on his own.
Meanwhile, East Carolina has started the year with a 5-8 record, but all five of those wins have come at home. Jordan Riley leads both the Pirates and the entire conference with an average of 20.8 points per game, while Giovanni Emejuru has been his right-hand man with 14.2 points and 9.5 rebound per game. However, the program has struggled to find consistency from the majority of its other players.
The Green Wave and the Pirates will get an early start to the day, with tip-off set for 11am CT on ESPN. Tulane's will play its conference home-opener against the Florida Atlantic Owls on Sunday.