Tulane Green Wave Men's Basketball Defense Steals Spotlight in AAC Contests
Coming into the 2024-25 men’s basketball season, Tulane Green Wave head coach Ron Hunter knew that there would be some bumps in the road.
This was the most inexperienced team he had ever coached, as there wasn’t a single senior on the roster. Most of the players hadn’t even had much collegiate experience, as a large portion of his rotation hadn’t had regular rotation spots yet at this level.
There were certainly some challenges along the way, with a few really disappointing outcomes. A few late-game collapses turned what looked like victories into losses and few key players were banged up along the way.
Despite those shortcomings, Hunter never lost faith in his players. He knew that they would have to figure things out on their own but was confident that they would get the job done.
That patience was rewarded in the early days of the American Athletic Conference, as the team was getting the job done on the defensive side of the ball.
Hunter’s system on that end is complicated. A mixture of man and zone principles that takes time to learn the basics of and requires attention to detail to master, his team looks to be figuring things out.
Tulane (8-7, 2-0) is off to an undefeated start in conference play, as it dominated the UTSA Roadrunners 92-63 on Saturday. In their AAC opener, on the road against the Charlotte 49ers, the Green Wave won, 83-68.
That has continued an impressive trend on the defensive end, where an argument could be made that the Green Wave is the best team in the conference.
They are currently No. 3 out of 13 teams allowing 66.9 points per game. Opponents are shooting only 37.9% against them, which is No. 1 in the AAC, and 29.6% from 3-point range, which is second.
Tulane is doing an excellent job of protecting the rim, averaging 5.4 blocks per game, which is also first.
Leading scorer Kaleb Banks, who has been a standout offensively with 18.4 points per game, leads the team with 1.4 blocks. Backup center Percy Daniels has been a force, averaging a block per game despite playing only 10.4 minutes.
Freshman Kam Williams, who has been among the best newcomers to college basketball this season, also averages one block per game as a do-it-all blossoming two-way star. He also averages 1.8 steals per game.
Charlotte and UTSA are two of the bottom three teams in the AAC based on NET Ranking, only the Tulsa Golden Hurricanes are worse, so tougher days will be ahead for the Green Wave.
But, if they can consistently play defense at this level, they will be able to hang with any opponent in the conference. They have finally found an identity and are leaning into it to the best of their ability.
Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.