1) Hoops Hell
No one is paying much attention to the disaster that is the basketball team at this point, but Tulane moved thisclose to an 0-19 season in the AAC by blowing an early 19-3 lead at Tulsa on Thursday before halftime and trailing almost the entire second half. If the Wave loses at NCAA tourney hopeful Temple this afternoon, its only remaining chances for victory will be home games against USF and Wichita State (Tulane is an inconceivably awful 5-38 in AAC home games) and an almost certain first-round AAC tourney game against Memphis on the Tigers' home court.
Not that it probably matters, but that's the worst possible tournament matchup. Memphis is hot and has been dominant at home. It's also a tourney scenario with which close followers of the basketball team should be familiar. The Conference USA tourney was held in Memphis from 2005 through 2009, and Tulane was in the Memphis bracket every year from 2006 to 2009, playing the Tigers in its second game and losing by 19, 22, 19 and 10 and never scoring more than 56 points. That sounds about right for what will happen this year in the first round against a Memphis team that is good enough to make a run at the tourney title in front of its fans.
Tulane, Vanderbilt, Chicago State and Portland are the only teams winless in conference play now. Previously winless California beat Pac-12 champion Washington and Washington State this week, and San Jose State beat New Mexico for its first victory in the Mountain West
2) Weak schedule
The non-conference schedule for the Tulane baseball team is shaping up to be weak, so the Wave needs to keep winning. On paper, and it's very early, the only good team remaining is UCSB, which comes to town next weekend (I will be away and miss the first two games). UC Riverside and Houston Baptist, the last two weekend opponents, are no good. Texas Southern, the next midweek opponent, may be one of the worst teams to set foot at Turchin Stadium. Texas Southern lost its opening series to New Mexico State by the scores of 20-2, 24-8, 38-6 and 16-3. Ouch. It managed to win one of four at Kansas but lost its opening series in the SWAC to Grambling this weekend. Nicholls and UNO are nothing special, although the Privateers started 7-1 and beat ranked USM on the road before coming back to earth this weekend by losing a series to Yale. ULL is off to a bad start. Southeastern is 3-8. LSU is not on the schedule.
You get the picture. Tulane appears good enough to take the bubble out of the equation this year and maybe even win the AAC, but if the Wave is on the borderline, it will get no help from its weak schedule. Beating a decent Army team today is important. Tulane is raking right now. It scored 12 runs yesterday against Saint Joseph's and left 16 on base, including the bases loaded three times. All nine starters got hits, and Luke Glancy had three hits including the go-ahead home run in the eighth.
3) Must see
Spring practices starts in nine days, and I can't wait to watch Jalen McCleskey. He said on signing day that he expects to play outside more often than he did at Oklahoma State, where he was primarily a slot receiver, but he should be terrific wherever he lines up. The combo of him and Darnell Mooney should be Tulane's best in quite some time. Terren Encalade is talented, but he was far too inconsistent last year. Mooney had a case of the drops in the second half of the season, too, but that was uncharacteristic. He should benefit from McCleskey's presence, giving Justin McMillan a 1-2 combo he should love. I will have some type of preview up on the Monday before spring drills.
I also still have some quotes from Kanyon Walker and De'Andre Williams when they attended signing day that I never have transcribed (I forgot about them), but I will get those soon.
No one is paying much attention to the disaster that is the basketball team at this point, but Tulane moved thisclose to an 0-19 season in the AAC by blowing an early 19-3 lead at Tulsa on Thursday before halftime and trailing almost the entire second half. If the Wave loses at NCAA tourney hopeful Temple this afternoon, its only remaining chances for victory will be home games against USF and Wichita State (Tulane is an inconceivably awful 5-38 in AAC home games) and an almost certain first-round AAC tourney game against Memphis on the Tigers' home court.
Not that it probably matters, but that's the worst possible tournament matchup. Memphis is hot and has been dominant at home. It's also a tourney scenario with which close followers of the basketball team should be familiar. The Conference USA tourney was held in Memphis from 2005 through 2009, and Tulane was in the Memphis bracket every year from 2006 to 2009, playing the Tigers in its second game and losing by 19, 22, 19 and 10 and never scoring more than 56 points. That sounds about right for what will happen this year in the first round against a Memphis team that is good enough to make a run at the tourney title in front of its fans.
Tulane, Vanderbilt, Chicago State and Portland are the only teams winless in conference play now. Previously winless California beat Pac-12 champion Washington and Washington State this week, and San Jose State beat New Mexico for its first victory in the Mountain West
2) Weak schedule
The non-conference schedule for the Tulane baseball team is shaping up to be weak, so the Wave needs to keep winning. On paper, and it's very early, the only good team remaining is UCSB, which comes to town next weekend (I will be away and miss the first two games). UC Riverside and Houston Baptist, the last two weekend opponents, are no good. Texas Southern, the next midweek opponent, may be one of the worst teams to set foot at Turchin Stadium. Texas Southern lost its opening series to New Mexico State by the scores of 20-2, 24-8, 38-6 and 16-3. Ouch. It managed to win one of four at Kansas but lost its opening series in the SWAC to Grambling this weekend. Nicholls and UNO are nothing special, although the Privateers started 7-1 and beat ranked USM on the road before coming back to earth this weekend by losing a series to Yale. ULL is off to a bad start. Southeastern is 3-8. LSU is not on the schedule.
You get the picture. Tulane appears good enough to take the bubble out of the equation this year and maybe even win the AAC, but if the Wave is on the borderline, it will get no help from its weak schedule. Beating a decent Army team today is important. Tulane is raking right now. It scored 12 runs yesterday against Saint Joseph's and left 16 on base, including the bases loaded three times. All nine starters got hits, and Luke Glancy had three hits including the go-ahead home run in the eighth.
3) Must see
Spring practices starts in nine days, and I can't wait to watch Jalen McCleskey. He said on signing day that he expects to play outside more often than he did at Oklahoma State, where he was primarily a slot receiver, but he should be terrific wherever he lines up. The combo of him and Darnell Mooney should be Tulane's best in quite some time. Terren Encalade is talented, but he was far too inconsistent last year. Mooney had a case of the drops in the second half of the season, too, but that was uncharacteristic. He should benefit from McCleskey's presence, giving Justin McMillan a 1-2 combo he should love. I will have some type of preview up on the Monday before spring drills.
I also still have some quotes from Kanyon Walker and De'Andre Williams when they attended signing day that I never have transcribed (I forgot about them), but I will get those soon.
