Dec. 16, 2007

Tulane Game Notes vs. Indiana State

NEW ORLEANS - After taking a week off due to finals at Tulane University, the Green Wave basketball team looks to pick up where it left off prior to final exams and extend its win streak to three straight when Tulane wraps up a three-game home stand this Monday night at 7 p.m. against Indiana State at Fogelman Arena.

TU (5-3) opened its home stand with a victory over Huston-Tillotson on Wednesday, Dec. 5 and made it back-to-back home wins with a victory over Gardner-Webb on Dec. 8. A win over Indiana State would match the Wave's longest win streak this season. Previously, Tulane opened the year with three consecutive victories.

Tulane is 4-1 at home this season with wins over Auburn (77-62), Nicholls State (73-51) Huston-Tillotson (75-43) and Gardner-Webb (84-79). TU's lone home loss this season was to New Orleans (74-67). The Green Wave is averaging 75.2 points, while limiting its opponents to 61.8 points on its home floor this season.

Tulane is averaging 69.1 points and 37.5 rebounds per game and is shooting 43.7 percent from the field, 31 percent from behind the three-point line and 74.4 percent from the free-throw line. Kevin Sims and David Gomez are each averaging double figure scoring with 11.9 and 11.4 points per game, respectively. Robinson Louisme is the top rebounder with 6.3 boards per outing, while Sims leads the squad in assists and steals with 4.6 and 3.0 per contest, respectively.

Indiana State (4-4) has been perfect at home this season with a 4-0 record, but is winless on the road with a 0-4 mark. In fact, the Sycamores are 0-12 on the road dating back to last season and haven't posted a win on an opponents' home court since Jan. 6, 2007, when ISU upended Illinois State, 54-50. This season, the Sycamores are averaging just 58.8 points on the road, while surrendering 74.8 points to its opponents on their home floor.

For the year, Indiana State is averaging 63.8 points and 33.5 rebounds per game, while shooting 42.9 percent from the field, including 28.4 percent from behind the three-point line, and 69.1 percent from the free-throw line. Marico Stinson is the lone player in the ISU line-up averaging double figure scoring with 10.8 points per game, while Adam Arnold is the team's top rebounder with 5.5 boards per contest.

Monday's game marks the fourth meeting between Tulane and Indiana State, and TU leads the series, 2-1. Tulane first-year assistant coach Dick Bender is very familiar with Indiana State. Prior to the 2007-08 campaign, Bender spent the previous 10 seasons on the Sycamore coaching staff. Bender was an assistant coach during his first five seasons in Terre Haute, Ind., and was promoted to associate head coach in 2001 and served in that capacity until the end of last season.

Monday's game may be the fourth all-time meeting between the two schools, but the contest will mark just the second appearance by Indiana State at Fogelman Arena, and the first in over 37 years. The first ever meeting between Tulane and ISU took place on December 1, 1970, and the Wave prevailed on its home court, 109-96.