When you ask the typical college-educated American what first comes to mind when Tulane University is mentioned in conversation, the majority of answers will undoubtedly include: New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina, partying, "a good school."
The last two descriptions are two that Tulane students are proud of in particular. Sports aficionados under the age of forty who weren't around for the Green Wave's "golden years" in the SEC best know Tulane for their prominent baseball program under the leadership of coach Rick Jones.
College World Series appearances in 2000 and 2005, and the emergence of alumnus Micah Owings as a two-way threat on the mound and at the plate for the Arizona Diamondbacks, has bolstered Tulane's legitimacy as a baseball powerhouse on the national scene.
Yet, Tulane basketball is definitely not regarded in the same illustrious light as its Baseball brethren. Aside from a few successful squads in the early 80's, a NCAA tournament win over St. John's in '92, and a couple of NIT appearances in the mid 90's, Tulane basketball is most associated with a point-shaving scandal that rocked the program in 1985.
The scandal involved three of the team's best players, who received cocaine and money from a group of Tulane frat brothers as a thank you for purposely managing to cover the spread. The program was suspended for a few years, until being reintroduced under Perry Clark in 1991.
Tulane basketball has failed to reach the postseason since making a quick entrance and an even quicker exit in the NIT.
The Shawn Finney years (2000-2005) were difficult ones that saw a Tulane squad fail to keep pace with its Conference USA competitors like: Memphis, Marquette, Louisville, Cincinnati, and Charlotte among others. Tulane was a small private university with higher academic standards for its athletes than the aforementioned schools. This is one reason today why Tulane loses many of its recruits to the larger schools in the area and in the SEC: their grades and test scores just aren't in accord with Tulane's stringent academic standards.
When the Big East and the A-10 decided to expand their borders, C-USA fell deeper into the Mid-Major abyss, when all of the aforementioned powers aside from Memphis decided to flee the league formerly known as the Metro Conference. The inclusion of schools like UTEP, SMU, Marshall and Tulsa improved C-USA as a football conference, but weakened its credibility in the world of college basketball.
With the shift in the composition of C-USA, also came a long anticipated coaching change at Tulane.
Out went the former Kentucky assistant, Shawn Finney, and in came Dave Dickerson, the longtime assistant under the legendary Gary Williams at Maryland, and one of the most sought after assistants in college basketball.
Tulane was able to get a rare steal (pardon the pun) at the right time. Yet, just as Coach Dickerson began to assemble his new staff at Tulane, Katrina hit. Hurricane Katrina, as most people around the nation now understand, completely altered the city of New Orleans. It destroyed many of the neighborhoods around the city, the infrastructure, and exposed the flaws that many urban centers around the nation hope to hide from popular knowledge. It also affected the way outsiders viewed the city.
Popular media outlets attempted to portray the city as a war zone, a third world sort of place. This portrayal was false and extremely unfair. It also affected Tulane's ability to recruit.
A school with one of the strictest admission standards for student-athletes in the nation, Hurricane Katrina dealt another critical blow to the new regime of Tulane Basketball. This makes what Tulane is currently doing under Dave Dickerson all the more unbelievable.
Dickerson took a mediocre program going nowhere, guided them to a record of 17-12 in his second year at Tulane, and a fourth place finish in Conference USA. He recruited two of the best players in the state of Alabama in Johnny Mayhane and Asim McQueen, who are currently sophomores and have played pivotal roles in the team's current success. Dickerson also recruited the team's star point guard Kevin Sims, a first-team Mississippi High School performer.
The sophomore currently leads the team in assists, and has improved his ability to manage a game for the Green Wave. He has also cut down his turnovers significantly from last season, yet another reason why Tulane is turning heads this season.
The 2007-2008 Tulane Green Wave is lead by Seniors David Gomez, Matt Wheaton, and Donnie Stith. Gomez is the team's leader and leading scorer, averaging over 15 points per game.
Wheaton is the team's starting small forward, and one of its most clutch late-game performers. Stith is the team's leading shot blocker and one its best defenders. These three seniors endured the coaching change and the Hurricane in a matter of months. Their ability to lead and the mental toughness they have showed has undoubtedly been shaped by these events. Coach Dickerson has leaned on these three players as the season has gone on, and as the program continues to improve under him, he will look back and regard them as three of his most important players at Tulane.
Robinson Louisme is the team's Junior big man. Standing at only 6'8" yet over 260 pounds, Louisme is undersized as a center, but makes up for it in his bulk and toughness. He and the 6'7" Gomez are very talented players who make up for their lack of height at the 4 and 5 spots with an on-court intelligence and toughness that make them a tough match-up for any team, aside from maybe Memphis, who would give the Heat a good game this season.
6'7" Junior Daniel Puckett often starts at the 2 or the 3 spot, as he is a gifted shooter and defender with a high upside. Kevin Sims is the 5'10" sophomore who is often the fastest player on the court, who is a solid 3-point shooter and passer who has improved his game-managing skills. He needs to limit his propensity to turn the ball over, and needs to utilize his speed and ability to dish the rock to make up for his lack of size.
This Tulane team may not be as talented as Houston or Memphis, and doesn't have the size that UAB does, but it plays with a ton of toughness, passion and pride. Not to sound cliche, but this team goes out every night and works its collective butt off. Their style of play mirrors their coach, and ultimately the city and campus it plays for, even if the campus doesn't recognize them as much as it should.
The Tulane basketball team currently sports a record of 14-6, with a 4-2 C-USA record, one of those losses coming at home to UAB on a 3-pointer made with 1.6 seconds remaining in the game.
This Tulane doesn't have the traditional size that the ranked teams have, but it passes the ball well, shoots a high percentage from the charity stripe, and has a number of gifted outside shooters. They've had enough talent to stay in each one of the games they've competed in this season, and have beat a number of high profile teams along the way, including: Georgia, LSU, and Auburn, as well as a five-point loss to 24th ranked Saint Mary's.
Consistently underrated in C-USA due to their history and their lack of size, Tulane has a relatively forgiving home schedule, as they face Memphis, Houston and UCF at home, with only UTEP and UAB once more on the road.
This team has the potential to surprise many people and finish in the top three in the conference. Don't be surprised if the Green Wave continues their impressive play as the season wears on.
If the team continues to win, Memphis may face a surprisingly hostile reception at diminutive Fogelman Arena come February 20th.
