Auburn 73, Tulane 58 - Box Score
AUBURN, Ala. – The 2022-23 campaign for Tulane University Women's Basketball (18-14) came to an end Friday night as the Green Wave fell 58-73 in the first round of the WNIT at Auburn (16-14). Twenty-two turnovers by the Wave that turned into 22 Tigers points proved to be too much to overcome to advance to the second round of the WNIT.
Three players finished with double figures in scoring for Tulane including Dynah Jones and Kyren Whittington who led the team with 13 points each. Marta Galic followed with 10 points while also pulling down a team-high nine rebounds. Rachel Hakes finished just shy of double-digits with eight points and added four assists.
Auburn finished with four players in double figures led by Honesty Scott-Grayson with a game-high 18 points. Kharyssa Richardson and Sydney Shaw followed with 16 and 15 points, respectively, while Aicha Coulibaly rounded out the leaders for the Tigers with 11 points.
After exchanging buckets the first few minutes Auburn made its first run of the contest to take a seven-point advantage with under four minutes to play in the first. Hakes answered with a triple from the left wing, but the Tigers closed the frame shooting 50 percent from the field as Tulane trailed 11-21 at the end of the opening quarter.
The deficit extended to up to 21 points for the Wave, but a spark from Kierra Middleton off the bench helped Tulane go on an 12-2 run to close the gap late in the second quarter. The Green Wave found some rhythm offensively shooting 52.9 percent to score 18 points and hit the locker room trailing 29-44.
In the third quarter Tulane held Auburn to just 27.8 percent shooting from the field and forced four turnovers as it chipped away at the deficit. The Green Wave attacked the rim to get to the free throw line in the frame as it knocked down 7-of-8 from the charity stripe and pull within 10 at 45-55 entering the final quarter.
Tulane's deficit grew to 18 early in the fourth quarter, but the fight was not over for the Green Wave trimming it back down to 13. However, Tulane was unable to climb any closer down the stretch falling 58-73.
The Green Wave finished the season with an 18-14 overall record and made its third consecutive appearance in the WNIT. Tulane has now made the postseason 21 times under Head Coach Lisa Stockton and 22 times in program history.