Memphis Women's Basketball cruised down I-55 to New Orleans for a battle with Tulane in their only meeting this season, picking up a crucial 68-65 victory. Although the final score was only by three points, the Tigers led by as much as 18 in the third quarter before Tulane roared back in the final period and came up just short.
The game was really won in the first half with a complete effort on both sides of the ball. The Tigers made 10 threes in the first half, led DeeDee Hagemann who finished with 20 points and 7 assists in a much welcome return to form offensively. She, along with Elauna Eaton and Tilly Boler, gave Memphis a great scoring boost which it carried all the way through the end of the contest.
On defense, the Tigers started phenomenally as well; Coach Simmons employed a physical press defense to force 12 first half turnovers and generate 13 points off of them. They had a lot of momentum and a 14 point lead going into the halftime break. After that, things would start to swing the other way.
Despite having a ton of early success from downtown, Memphis would not hit a single shot from that area in six attempts. They found most of their buckets in the third quarter in the paint and at the line, making free throws at a 5-7 clip and scoring 10 points down low, which gave the Tigers a 16 point advantage going into the fourth quarter.
Here, the Tigers narrowly avoided a monumental collapse. Their defense, which started to play more conservative with a lead, fell apart in a flash. The Green Wave outscored Memphis 15-2 and ended on a 7-0 run. Tulane turned the ball over on a pass to start the final play with mere seconds left in the game to seal the game.
While it's certainly not the way you'd like to end a game where you were up so much, getting the first road win on the year could be the spark that Memphis needs to finish the year strong. Momentum becomes even more valuable if some players are able to find their way back on the court from the injury report.
The Tigers will be back in action on Jan. 25 as they play Tulsa on the road.
