Men's Basketball Opens February at Tulane

Game Info: Sunday, February 4, 2024 - 4:00 p.m. EST
Location: Devlin Fieldhouse - New Orleans, La.
TV: ESPNU | Listen: 1210 WPHT | Live Stats: Owlsports.com

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Opening Tip
The Temple University men's basketball team plays its second consecutive road game, taking on the Tulane Green Wave on Sunday, February 4. Tipoff from Devlin Fieldhouse in New Orleans is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. EST with the game to be aired on ESPNU.

Last Time Out - Owls Battle ECU To Overtime
Three players scored in double figures for the Temple, but a late surge at the end of regulation by East Carolina saw the Pirates slip by the Owls 70-64 in overtime on January 28.

BY THE NUMBERS

Jordan Riley led Temple with 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds. It was the third 20+ point effort of the season for the Brentwood, N.Y. native.
Shane Dezonie scored 12 and pulled in a career-best with nine boards.
Hysier Miller scored 16.
Quante Berry helped off the bench with a couple of big first half threes.
The Owls held the Pirates to 31.7 percent from the field for the game, a season-best defensive mark.

Chairman Of The Board(s)
After four games this season with five rebounds, Shane Dezonie finally broke through his ceiling on Sunday with nine boards against the Pirates, shattering the previous career-high of six that he had against Mississippi Valley State on November 29, 2021. This season, Dezonie is averaging 3.6 rebounds a contest, more than doubling his career average coming into the year of 1.5. He has four or more caroms in eight of the 16 games he has appeared in.

Turning Up The Defense
Despite the setback against East Carolina, there were some encouraging signs for the Owls, particularly on the defensive end. Temple held the Pirates to a season-best defensive effort of 31.7 percent shooting and 14.3 percent from three-point range. ECU also made just 20 field goals in the game, tied for the fewest against a Division I opponent this year. Going deeper inside the numbers, after the Pirates started 4-for-8 from the floor, Temple held them to 16-for-55 (29.1 percent) for the rest of the contest.

Running The Show
Sunday features the two players in the AAC who have played the most minutes in the conference this season. Sion James of Tulane averages 37.2 minutes a contest with Hysier Miller playing 36.1 an outing. Both players are in the top-20 nationally in MPG. While James tops the AAC in minutes per game, Miller has player more minutes overall with 760 compared to 745.

Scouting Report
Tulane is 12-9 on the season with a 3-6 mark in the AAC following an 80-76 loss at SMU on Thursday. The Green Wave has played games closely this season in conference competition with five of its nine games being decided by four points or less. Tulane was picked third in the AAC preseason poll.

Leading a potent offense for the Green Wave, which ranks 15th in NCAA Division I in scoring, is Kevin Cross at 18.0 points per game. Tulane features all five of its starters in double figures with Jaylen Forbes is at 14.6 a night, Sion James at 14.1, Kolby King at 12.5 and Collin Holloway at 12.3. A triple threat, Cross tops the team with 7.7 rebounds an outing and also with 90 assists. He is second with 17 blocks and fourth with 30 steals.

Shooting the ball from all areas is a major strength of the Green Wave, ranking is 24th nationally in field goal percentage at 48.6. It also hovers around the top-100 connecting on 35.9 percent from beyond the arc and 73.3 percent at the line. In particular, the charity stripe has been a major element for Tulane who is second in NCAA Division I with 19.6 free throws made a night.

As mentioned, the starting lineup does the majority of the damage for the Green Wave, however, it is just 318th in bench scoring at 14.0 points a game. With its high octane offense, Tulane needs to outscore its opponents as it surrenders more than 79 points a night. It is also on the lower end of the spectrum in rebounding, ranking 307th overall at 33.1. It is also in the bottom-10 nationally in offensive rebounds per game (6.4) and rebounding margin (-7.6).

Veteran mentor Ron Hunter is in his fifth season at the helm of the Green Wave with a record of 68-66 in New Orleans. In 30 seasons as a collegiate head coach, he has amassed 513 victories and guided his teams to 20 or more wins 10 times at the Division I level. He also has led teams to four NCAA Tournament appearances, including the first ever D1 bid for IUPUI in 2003 and an upset win as a 14-seed against Baylor while with Georgia State in 2015.

All-Time Series
Sunday is the 24th meeting between Temple and Tulane with the Owls holding a 14-9 to advantage. The Green Wave has made strides lately, winning three in a row.

Last Time Against Tulane
Temple placed five players in double figures, but a pair of free throws with 14 seconds left allowed Tulane to escape with an 83-82 victory on March 5, 2023. Jahlil White netted 14, connecting on 10-of-12 free throws. Hysier Miller led the Owls with five assists.

Up Next
Temple comes back from its two-game road swing with a date against the Memphis Tigers on Thursday, February 8. Tipoff from the Liacouras Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

Men's Basketball Opens February at Tulane

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Quante Berry

Shane Dezonie

Hysier Miller

Jordan Riley

Jahlil White

Temple University Athletics

Men's Basketball Opens February at Tulane

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Quante Berry

Shane Dezonie

Hysier Miller

Jordan Riley

Jahlil White

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