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Banks-led Tulane Green Wave roll past UTSA, 92-63

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Six-foot-eight forward Kaleb Banks scored from inside and also from the perimeter, producing 24 points and pacing the Tulane Green Wave to an easy 92-63 victory over the UTSA Roadrunners Saturday in New Orleans.

In the game played at Devlin Fieldhouse, the Green Wave shot 63.5 percent from the field, including 72.7 percent in the second half, and scored 46 points in the paint against the visitors from San Antonio.

For first-year UTSA coach Austin Claunch, a former coach at Nicholls State, La., who lived in South Louisiana for seven years, it was a tough day.

By halftime, his team was down 24 in its American Athletic Conference opener. Tulane went on to lead by as many as 35 after intermission.

Raekwon Horton led the Roadrunners with 17 points and nine rebounds. Baton Rouge-native Tai’Reon Joseph added 14. Primo Spears, who entered the game as the nation’s fifth leading scorer, averaging 22, was held to six on three for 14 shooting from the field.

Forward Jaquan Scott, playing his first game since Dec. 16 at Arkansas, finished with eight points and four rebounds.

When UTSA is playing well, it’s a team that thrives on forcing turnovers and scoring points in bunches. That type of game didn’t materialize for the Roadrunners against the Green Wave.

In the first half, the Green Wave ran an efficient offense and held the Roadrunners to 29 percent shooting on the other end. The Roadrunners shot 34 percent for the game.

First half

Banks scored 13 points and guard Rowen Brumbaugh added 12 as the Tulane Green Wave imposed their will, opening a 47-23 lead at intermission.

Attacking the paint, the Green Wave shot 56.7 percent from the field. Not only did they hit four 3-point baskets, but they also outscored the Roadrunners 20-10 on points in the paint.

Leading by seven midway through the half, Tulane stepped on the gas for a 26-9 run over the last 12 minutes.

The Roadrunners couldn’t get anything going, shooting 29 percent from the field. Primo Spears, the fifth-leading scorer in the nation, was held scoreless on zero for five shooting.

Jaquan Scott played for the first time since Dec. 16 after sitting out the last four games for unspecified reasons. The 6-7 forward produced five points and four rebounds.

Records

UTSA 6-7, 0-1
Tulane 8-7, 2-0

Coming up

Tulsa at UTSA, Tuesday, 7 p.m.
Wichita State at UTSA, Saturday, Jan. 11, 3 p.m.

Notable

Six-foot-11 UTSA center Mo Njie, slowed by an ankle injury, sat out his second straight game. Tulane entered ranked 187th in the NCAA’s Evaluation Tool, or, the NET. UTSA came in ranked 237th. Tulsa, ranked 310th, will come into San Antonio on Tuesday with a 6-9 record, including 0-2 in conference. Tulsa was blown out on the road Saturday, falling 83-51 in Birmingham by the UAB Blazers.

Quotable

UTSA coach Austin Claunch was asked on his postgame radio show what went wrong against the Green Wave. He replied, “Better question would be, ‘What went right?’ ”

Continued Claunch, “I’ll be honest, I didn’t see that coming … They jumped us. We got hit in the mouth early. We got to go back and watch (the film). When it comes to games like these where it really got away from us early, I got to go back and watch before I got a definite answer.

“I just thought our turnovers and our shot selection, you know, they run a really tricky zone. It’s the first time I’ve seen it in person and … it just got us stagnant. We didn’t move the ball and then we weren’t able to make shots, even when we did get open.”

Hopefully, the coach said, it was “just one of those nights.” Regardless, he added: “We got to be much, much better and committed to what it’s going to take to win games in this league. Tonight, we did not show that at all.”

In the wake of a tragedy, UTSA’s Austin Claunch extends his sympathies to New Orleans

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

For UTSA men’s basketball coach Austin Claunch, who once worked at Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, any chance to get back to the bayous and byways of South Louisiana is special because of his ties to the area.

But to coach his first AAC game for the Roadrunners at Tulane University in New Orleans on Saturday afternoon, well, it’s a moment he’s been looking forward to since the schedule was posted.

Given the tragic events in the French Quarter on New Years day, it’s also an opportunity for the 35-year-old Claunch to speak fondly of his former home and to extend his sympathies to people in the region.

“As we travel to New Orleans,” the coach said Thursday morning, “I do want to say my thoughts and prayers are with the city. (As) many of you know, I lived in South Louisiana for seven years. I lived in New Orleans for two years, certainly a place really dear to my heart.”

At least 15 people were killed when a truck plowed through a crowd in the French Quarter in the early morning hours on Wednesday. Dozens more were injured. Federal investigators are calling it an act of terror.

On the coach’s zoom call, he made sure to mention that he was thinking about everyone.

“(I have) a lot of close friends down there,” Claunch continued. “Looking forward to catching up with some friends. And, more importantly, just thinking about everyone that’s been affected by what happened over New Years.”

Claunch has had his ups and downs in his first season with the Roadrunners. They started out 1-3, but they found some traction eventually and started to play well. They had a three-game winning streak going into a game at Army last week, but after a furious second-half rally fell short, they lost 78-75 to the Black Knights.

Against Tulane (7-7, 1-0), UTSA (6-6) will enter conference play knowing that more improvement is mandatory in the long term. In the short term, it would be helpful if the Roadrunners could get a couple of their big men back on the floor.

The coach said that 6-foot-11 center Mo Njie, who sat out the Army game with an ankle injury, is day to day though it looks like he will play against the Green Wave.

Asked about the status of 6-7 forward Jaquan Scott, who has not played in four straight games for unspecified reasons, Claunch left the door open slightly that he could return. If he does, it would be a boost, considering the Mississippi State transfer has averaged 7.2 points and 4.8 rebounds.

Scott hasn’t played since Dec. 7 in a road loss to the Arkansas Razorbacks. The coach said he planned “sit down with him” to have some conversations, but he didn’t want to say much more about it. “I will have more of an update on that in the coming days,” Claunch said.

Coming up

UTSA at Tulane, Saturday, 5 p.m.

Records

UTSA (6-6, 0-0)
Tulane (7-7, 0-1)

Notable

Tulane is in its 11th season in the AAC and in its sixth under Coach Ron Hunter. After three losing seasons, Hunter’s Green Wave broke out in 2022-23 with a 20-11 record, including 10-6 in the AAC. Last year, they finished 14-17, with a 5-13 record in the conference.

Earlier this season, Tulane lost five straight, but the squad has since won two in a row. On New Years Eve, they won on the road, walloping the Charlotte 49ers, 83-68, in their AAC opener. Kalen Banks, Rowan Brumbaugh, Kam Williams and Gregg Glenn III lead the Green Wave. Banks, a 6-8 forward, averages 18.2 points and 8.2 rebounds.

Tulane wins American Baseball Championship title to claim an NCAA automatic bid

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The Tulane Green Wave will play in the NCAA baseball tournament once again.

Jackson Linn hit his second home run of the game with two out in the bottom of the ninth on Sunday, boosting the Green Wave to an 11-10 victory over the Wichita State Shockers for the American Baseball Championship title.

Powered by five home runs in the title game, the Green Wave clinched the postseason crown and an NCAA tournament automatic bid out of the American Athletic Conference for a second straight season.

In a game that went back and forth, third-seeded Tulane built a 3-2 lead after three innings. Undeterred, fourth-seeded Wichita State answered with five runs in the fifth to take charge, 7-3. In the end, though, the Green Wave had more pop in their bats.

They scored three runs in the fifth and fourth more in the sixth, building a 10-7 advantage. The Shockers had one more burst in them, crossing three runs in the seventh to tie the game.

In the top of the eighth, Tulane lefthander Luc Fladda relieved with one out and retired the next two Wichita State batters in order. Fladda would finish the ninth, as well, working around a two-out hit by pitch to shut down the Shockers again.

Wichita State lefty Hunter Holmes, throwing well in the bottom half, struck out Colin Tuft and retired Marcus Cline on a ground ball as the possibility of an extra-innings showdown loomed.

Linn had other ideas. He stepped to the plate, and on a 2-2 count, drilled a pitch that landed beyond the left field fence for the game winner. Flada (4-3) became the winning pitcher, while Holmes (1-4) took the loss.

Records

Wichita State 32-29
Tulane 35-24

Notable

The American is expected to send two of its teams into the NCAA tournament. Tulane will get the automatic bid, and East Carolina at 43-15 overall is expected to receive an at large. The 64-team bracket will be announced Monday.

The American’s tournament had a six-day run at the BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater, Fla. UTSA, the tournament’s No. 2 seed, lost its first two games and bowed out last Wednesday.

The Roadrunners won seven of their nine AAC weekend series, including one in New Orleans in which they swept all three games from the Green Wave.

UTSA finished 32-24 overall and 17-10 in conference.

Wichita State, Tulane set to play for the AAC’s postseason title

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The Wichita State Shockers will play the Tulane Green Wave today in the title game of the American Baseball Championship.

They’ll throw the first pitch momentarily in a game that will be staged in Clearwater, Fla., at the BayCare Ballpark.

Let’s take a look at the teams vying for the American Athletic Conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament:

Wichita State

Overall record: 32-28

In the American championship tournament: 3-1 … Beat UAB 8-2 on May 21 … beat East Carolina 14-4 on May 23 … lost to East Carolina 4-5 on on May 25 … beat East Carolina 12-2 in eight innings (run rule) on May 25.

Last 10 games: 8-2

Record in the AAC regular season: 15-12

In nine games covering the last three AAC weekend series: 7-2

Record versus Tulane: 1-2 (at Wichita, Kan.)

Versus UTSA: 2-1 (at San Antonio)

Top hitters: Camden Johnson, .328, 2 HR, 28 RBI; Derek Williams, 14 HR, 44 RBI.

Today’s starting pitcher: Tommy LaPour, 6-3, 4.12 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, .226 batting average against.

Tulane

Record overall: 34-24

In the American championship tournament: 3-0 … Beat FAU 14-2 in 7 innings (run rule) on May 21 … beat Charlotte 7-5 on May 23 … beat FAU 13-1 in 7 innings (run rule) on May 25.

Last 10 games: 8-2

Record in the AAC regular season: 15-12

In nine games covering the last three AAC weekend series: 6-3

Record versus Wichita State: 2-1 (at Wichita, Kan.)

Versus UTSA: 0-3 (at New Orleans)

Top hitters: Brady Marget, .335, 9 HR, 53 RBI; Connor Rasmussen, .324, 7 HR, 48 RBI

Today’s starting pitcher: Chandler Welch, 7-3, 4.41 ERA, 1.46 WHIP, .296 batting average against.

American conference expected to send two teams to the NCAA baseball tournament

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The American Athletic Conference is expected to send two teams to the NCAA Division I baseball tournament.

The Tulane Green Wave and the Wichita State Shockers will play one game for the title in the American Baseball Championship on Sunday in Clearwater, Fla. The winner will claim the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA’s 64-team field.

The East Carolina Pirates are expected to be an NCAA at-large selection based on their strong showing in the regular season.

Tulane and Wichita State emerged from the semifinals to claim spots in the American title game.

The Green Wave advanced in only one game in the semifinal round, dispatching the Florida Atlantic University Owls, 13-1, in seven innings on the run rule. It took two games for the Shockers to eliminate the Pirates.

East Carolina claimed a 5-4 victory in a wild one, when Dixon Williams stole home with two out in the bottom of the ninth inning to cap a three-run rally. The win forced a second game between the teams, in which the Shockers rebounded to win 12-2 in eight innings on the run rule.

American Baseball Championship semifinals are underway in Clearwater

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The field in the American Baseball Championship has been trimmed to four, with the tournament semifinals set to commence today in Clearwater, Fla.

The Wichita State Shockers will play the top-seeded and regular-season champion East Carolina Pirates at 9 a.m. Central, followed by the Tulane Green Wave and the Florida Atlantic Owls 47 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.

As many as four games could be contested today because the Pirates and the Owls will need to win twice to knock out their opponents.

East Carolina coach Cliff Godwin will be serving the second of a two-game suspension. If the Pirates win, he will be able to come back in the re-match.

The title game in the six-game conference tournament is set for Sunday at 11 a.m. at the BayCare Ballpark in Clearwater.

Today’s matchups

East Carolina (42-14) vs. Wichita State (31-27) – The Shockers enter the semifinals with tournament victories over the UAB Blazers (8-2) and the Pirates (14-4). Wichita State caught fire with a regular-season series win at UTSA has now won nine of its last 10 overall. The Shockers will need to win Saturday and again Sunday in the American title game to secure an NCAA tournament bid. The Pirates, based on their strong regular season, are likely a lock to make the national field. East Carolina coach Cliff Godwin will be serving the second game of a conference-mandated suspension.

Florida Atlantic (28-28) vs. Tulane (33-24) – The Tulane Green Wave look to be in good shape coming into the semis with four straight victories and a day’s rest. On top of that, the Tulane pitching hasn’t had to work quite as hard as some others this week after beating FAU 14-2 in seven innings on the run rule Tuesday. The Green Wave downed Charlotte 7-5 on Thursday. Both the Owls and the Green Wave will need to win the tournament in Clearwater to secure an NCAA automatic bid.

Notable

Both once-beaten East Carolina and Florida Atlantic stayed alive with victories on Friday.

Playing without All-American Trey Yesavage (injury) and Dixon Williams (one-game suspension), and also without coach Cliff Godwin (suspension), the Pirates beat Rice 8-7 Friday to stay alive. They opened the tournament by beating Rice, 12-4, on Tuesday and then losing to Wichita State, 14-4, on Thursday. Godwin was suspended for his actions in the 14-4 loss.

Florida Atlantic’s season has also been on the brink all week.

Sixth-seeded FAU took a 14-2 loss to Wichita State on opening day on Tuesday before bouncing back the next day to down the UTSA Roadrunners, 12-5. With new life, the Owls surged into a seven-run lead on the Charlotte 49ers Friday and then held on as Danny Trehey pitched shutout innings in the eighth and ninth to secure a 10-8 victory.

Undefeated Wichita State, Tulane reach semis in American Baseball Championship

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The Wichita State Shockers and the Tulane Green Wave have played their way into commanding position to reach the title game in the American Baseball Championship.

In the tournament being staged at Clearwater, Fla., both lead their double-elimination brackets with 2-0 records and are already slotted into the semifinals, which will be held on Saturday.

Matchups in the semifinals will be determined Friday by the outcome in two elimination games.

In one bracket, the Rice Owls play the East Carolina Pirates at noon Central time. In the other, which will start 47 minutes after the conclusion of the first game, the Charlotte 49ers will play the Florida Atlantic Owls.

The losers will be eliminated and the winners will move on to play Saturday. The Rice-East Carolina winner will play Wichita State. The Charlotte-FAU winner will take on Tulane.

A possibility exists that four games could be played in the bracket semifinals. Teams coming out of the losers’ bracket will be eliminated with one loss. But both Wichita State and Tulane would need to be beaten twice.

The championship game has been set for Sunday at 11 a.m. Central.

Thursday’s results

Wichita State beat East Carolina, 14-4
Tulane beat Charlotte, 7-5

Notable

The conference announced Friday morning that it has suspended East Carolina coach Cliff Godwin for two games and East Carolina player Dixon Williams for one following a play against Wichita State Thursday.

Godwin was ejected from Thursday’s game and assessed an additional two-game suspension for violating NCAA Rule 2-26-h, which states that “no team personnel may continue to argue or to continue to excessively express themselves with prolonged action or offensive language after an ejection,” according to a news release.

Williams was ejected from Thursday’s game and hit with a one-game suspension for violating NCAA Rule 8-7, which prohibits “unnecessary and violent collisions with the catcher at home plate, and with infielders at all bases.”

Friday’s schedule

Rice vs. East Carolina, noon
Charlotte vs. Florida Atlantic, 47 minutes afterward

Eliminated

Both the UAB Blazers and UTSA Roadrunners have lost twice and have been eliminated.

UTSA wins 12-6 to sweep three games from Tulane on the road

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Red-hot Mason Lytle homered in his fourth straight three-hit performance Sunday afternoon as the UTSA Roadrunners recorded an American Athletic Conference series sweep on the road with a 12-6 victory over the Tulane Green Wave.

Playing their inaugural season as members of the American, the Roadrunners took three games in three days against the Green Wave and moved into a tie for first with the Wichita State Shockers.

Records

UTSA 16-12, 5-1
Tulane 15-13, 2-4

Coming up

UTSA at Incarnate Word, Tuesday, 2 p.m.

Notable

For UTSA, the road sweep was the program’s first in conference play since March of 2015 at Marshall. In addition, the victory was UTSA’s fifth straight, a season high.

Lytle continued his hot hitting with a three-for-five day. The junior from Pearland High School, a transfer from Oregon, hit safely in his 14th straight game. In that span, Lytle has 32 hits in 67 at bats for a .477 average.

In a streak within a streak, he also has recorded multiple hits in 11 straight games, including four straight with three hits. For the season, Lytle’s batting average is listed at .405. He entered the day leading the American in that category.

In the series finale, Hector Rodriguez and Caleb Hill also produced big numbers at the plate. Rodriguez had three hits and three RBIs. Hill had two hits and two RBIs.

Lytle’s homer came in the fourth inning, a three-run shot that he pulled to left field. The blast lifted the Roadrunners into a 6-2 lead.

Starting pitcher Ulises Quiroga (2-0) set a career-high by working seven innings. The righthander from Baytown allowed two runs on four hits. Quiroga walked three and struck out five.

UTSA clinches its first AAC road series with an 11-7 victory over Tulane

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners scored four runs in the top of the first inning Friday night and cruised to their fourth straight win, an 11-7 road victory over the Tulane Green Wave.

With the win, the Roadrunners also clinched their first road series in the American Athletic Conference. UTSA has won two straight games in the past two nights at Tulane, in New Orleans, going into Saturday’s series finale.

UTSA, breaking out with 17 hits, won the game with offense. But the defense played well, committing only one error, and the pitching with Zach Royse and Daniel Garza seemed to get tough when it counted.

Garza (2-1) earned the victory by pitching 5 and 1/3 innings. He allowed three runs on six hits and struck out seven. Garza shut out Tulane in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.

On offense, Tye Odom produced four hits and three RBIs. Mayson Lytle had three hits in extending his streak with at least one hit to 13 games, during which he has produced a .468 batting average. He has had multiple hits in his last 10 games.

Records

UTSA 15-12, 4-1
Tulane 15-12, 2-3

Coming up

UTSA at Tulane, Saturday, noon.

Notable

UTSA strung together five straight hits and scored four runs in the first inning off Tulane righthander Chandler Welch. With one out, Mason Lytle singled to left, extending his hitting streak to 13 games.

Alex Olivo followed with a long fly ball, a single, that was dropped at the wall. Since Lytle couldn’t risk running full speed, he stopped at second. At that point, UTSA started to play aggressively, executing a hit and run with Matt King, who laced an RBI single to center.

On the next play, with runners at first and second, Tulane caught a break when James Taussig’s hot shot to the right side hit King on the foot. As a baserunner, King was out automatically and Taussig was on first with a single.

From there, the Roadrunners exploded, with Tye Odom smashing a long fly ball that got over the center fielder’s head for a two-run triple. On the play, a relay throw was wild and skipped into the Tulane dugout. Odom was awarded an extra base, and he scored to make it 4-0.

Baseball: UTSA rolls past Tulane 6-3 in series opener at New Orleans

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The UTSA Roadrunners on Thursday kept playing winning baseball in the early days of the American Athletic Conference race, cruising to a 6-3 road victory over the Tulane Green Wave.

In the first game of a three-game series at New Orleans, UTSA took charge behind the pitching of Rob Orloski and Ruger Riojas and the hitting of Mason Lytle, Matt King and Tye Odom.

Orloski allowed only one run on five hits in the first 4 and 1/3 innings, followed by the final 4 and 2/3 from Riojas.

Riojas gave up two runs on three hits, including a two-run homer in the ninth by Colin Tuft, to end the game. He struck out seven and walked none and picked up the win, improving his record to 5-0.

Tulane lefthander Luc Fladda (0-1) took the loss despite pitching fairly well. He yielded only three runs on six hits. Fladda had the Roadrunners swinging and missing, striking out eight.

Lytle, UTSA’s leadoff man, extended his hitting streak to 12 games. He went three for five for his ninth straight multi-hit game.

King, batting second, had four hits in five at bats, including two doubles and an RBI. Odom delivered with a solo homer in the fourth inning.

The Roadrunners entered the series on an upswing, having won two of three at home last week against the nationally-ranked East Carolina Pirates. The Roadrunners also won a non-conference road game Tuesday night, beating the Baylor Bears, 9-7, in Waco.

Records

UTSA 14-12, 3-1
Tulane 15-11, 2-2

Coming up

UTSA at Tulane, Friday, 6:30 p.m.; UTSA at Tulane, Saturday, noon.