Tulane @ Tulsa preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 18, 2020 ) Tulsa 67, Tulane 54

After a 22-point victory against Southern Methodist and a Houston loss at Memphis, Tulsa sits just a half-game out of first place in the American Athletic Conference standings with less than three weeks remaining before the league tournament. The Golden Hurricane will look to keep pace when it hosts Tulane on Tuesday night, a team they have beaten in six straight meetings.

Following the embarrassing 33-point loss to Houston, Tulsa’s odds of taking home the AAC regular-season title appeared in doubt, but the Golden Hurricane turned around and dominated SMU after holding the best scoring offense in the conference to just 57 points. “We’ve just got to take care of business. We are in a position where we control our destiny. Just keep winning. That’s all you can do,” Tulsa head coach Frank Haith said following the game. After losing nine straight conference games, Tulane has won two in a row, including its own impressive win against SMU. The Green Wave had failed to crack 70 points during its slide but has averaged 77.5 in their short winning streak.

TIME: 9 p.m. ET. TV: ESPNU

ABOUT TULANE (12-15, 4-11 AAC): Teshaun Hightower, third in the conference in scoring with 15.7 points per game, has averaged 22 points in the last two thanks to shooting 57 percent from the floor. Senior Christion Thompson, who has led the team in scoring in conference play, has scored at least 15 points and grabbed six or more rebounds in each of the last five games. Fellow veteran K.J. Lawson averages the most minutes in the conference (35.9) and has contributed to Tulane’s league-leading 3-point shooting percentage by connecting on 40 percent of his attempts while Nic Thomas is second in the conference, making 41.4 percent of his 3-point attempts.

ABOUT TULSA (18-9, 10-4): Senior forward Martins Igbanu has emerged as a clear candidate for AAC Sixth Man of the Year, reaching double figures in 10 of 14 games since being removed from the starting lineup and averaging 16.7 points in that span. Senior guard Lawson Korita is also heating up, reaching double figures in four of the last five games while shooting 45 percent from beyond the arc in that time. Brandon Rachal, previously the team’s leading scorer, has been ice cold the last six games while scoring in single digits five times, including two scoreless performances, though he still averages over 12 points and is one of the best free-throw shooters in the AAC (.811).

BUZZER-BEATERS

1 Tulsa has had eight different leading scorers this season.

2. Tulane leads the AAC in steals per game (8.3) and turnover margin (plus-4.07).

3. In six of Tulsa’s last seven losses, opponents have made at least 10 3-pointers.

PREDICTION: Tulsa 74, Tulane 64