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Posted: Thursday October 31, 2002 4:32 PM Updated: Thursday October 31, 2002 5:26 PM Tulane Green Wave
The following preview is provided by Blue Ribbon. For the most thorough preview available of the upcoming season, order the 2002-03 Blue Ribbon College Basketball Yearbook, on sale now at 1-800-775-2518. Team Preview | Blue Ribbon Analysis
Will Tulane basketball continue its recent upswing under Shawn Finney? With five starters returning, the third-year coach likes his chances. The Green Wave won nine games in Finney’s rookie season, then 14 a year ago. That included only the school’s second Conference USA Tournament victory. "It’s going to be our first experienced team since I’ve been here," said Finney, the former assistant to Tubby Smith at Tulsa, Georgia and Kentucky. "It’s exciting to have a lot of experience back. If we can develop good chemistry, we’re expecting good things this season." Finney won’t trot out the tallest starting lineup in the country, but he has at least one bonafide big man in 6-foot-8, 230-pound senior Brandon Brown (14.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg), a second-team All-C-USA pick a year ago. Brown elevated his game last season, leading the Green Wave in scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage (55). He was sixth in the league and 32nd in the country in the latter statistic. Brown shot 66 percent from two-point range, but also launched 44 3-pointers, making 12 (27 percent). That total wasn’t terribly bad considering he’d made all of one 3-pointer in his first two seasons. His emphasis on expanding his offensive game paid dividends -- Brown scored 20 or more points seven times. His best was a career-high 29-point night–on 10-of-13 shooting–against Memphis. Brown also torched Georgia Tech for 27 points as he connected on 3-of-3 shots from behind the arc. Brown hit Memphis again for 25 points, and also scored 23 against South Florida.
Brown was as durable as he was efficient, leading C-USA in minutes played (34.9 per game). "Brandon Brown had a breakout year last year," Finney said. "He shoots the ball well from the perimeter and he powers inside. He’s excellent on the offensive glass. He’s your typical workhorse player who has become so much more than I could have imagined by playing hard. He was a force last season in the league. If we could have won a few more games, he’d have gotten more honors." Like last season, Brown will be joined in the frontcourt by 6-6 senior Nick Sinville (9.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and 6-5 junior Wayne Tinsley (6.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg). Sinville, who transferred from Minnesota and sat out the 2000-2001 season, was a welcome addition. The Louisiana native was fourth on the team in scoring and third in rebounding and turned in several big games. Sinville had a career-high 20 points and 12 rebounds against Centenary, scored 19 points and grabbed 11 boards against New Orleans and scored 18 twice, against Vanderbilt and Houston. An injured foot forced Sinville to miss three games late in the season, including both C-USA Tournament games. Tinsley is versatile and excels at the game’s blue-collar chores. He’s the key cog in the Green Wave’s press, and thus gets his hands in the passing lanes a lot. Last season, Tinsley was 13th in C-USA in steals per game (1.45), coming up with 42, second on the team. Tinsley increased his freshman assist total (77) and also cut his turnovers by 25. Tinsley’s value is not measured by points. He scored just three in a homecourt loss to Memphis, but contributed nine rebounds, three assists and two steals. He also slowed down the Tigers’ high-scoring freshman Dejuan Wagner, limiting him to 6-of-16 shooting and 17 points. "Wayne Tinsley is extremely athletic and one of the best defensive players in the league," Finney said. "He’s excellent in our pressing style of basketball. And he can also score in the open court." The backcourt is experienced and features a pair of senior starters in 6-1 Brandon Spann (13.4 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 3.1 apg, 1.5 spg) and 6-3 Waitari Marsh (11.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.5 apg, 1.8 spg). Spann is Tulane’s designated 3-point marksman. A year ago, he launched 142 threes, by far the most on the team, and made 46, also most among the Green Wave. His 32 percent success ratio from behind the arc could stand a little improvement. Spann needs no work at the free-throw line; last season he shot 86 percent there, tops on the team and fourth in C-USA. Spann topped the 20-point mark four times last season, but his best game came against Vanderbilt, when he narrowly missed a triple-double with 16 points, nine rebounds and nine assists. "Brandon Spann has got excellent range and is a good shooter," Finney said. "He’s a guy who wants the ball in late-game situations. Brandon is one of those players who goes to the gym; he’s a gym rat and wants to be a great player. He’s going to be one of our leaders." Marsh redshirted in 2000-2001 but came back strong last season. He ranked 25th in Conference USA in scoring (11.8), 15th in free-throw percentage (.755), seventh in steals and 13th in assists while becoming only the sixth player in Tulane history to post two 100-assist seasons. Marsh scored in double figures 20 times and led the team in assists 10 times. When Marsh went down with an ankle injury after playing just six minutes in a second-round C-USA Tournament game against Charlotte, Tulane’s chances of winning went with him. Marsh had played well down the stretch, ending the regular season with 33 points in his final two games. Like his backcourt partner Spann, Marsh had his best game of the year in a home court victory over Vanderbilt, piling up a career-best 23 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two steals. "He’s great with the ball in his hands and does an excellent job getting to the rim," Finney said. "He’s a very physical, athletic point guard. I think he’s going to be one of the better guards in the league." Finney would like Marsh to cut down on his turnovers (104, compared to 103 assists, a year ago). "Sometimes he’ll over-penetrate or try to make the spectacular play," Finney said. "By being a senior I expect him to make the right plays and not try to force the issue as much." Three sophomores, 6-5 Karl Hollingsworth (2.0 ppg, 1.5 rpg), 5-11 Marcus Kinzer (2.9 ppg 1.1 rpg, 1.4 apg) and 6-4 Ben Benfield (2.2 ppg, 0.9 rpg), will compete for minutes in the backcourt. "Coming off the bench our three sophomores will definitely show a lot of improvement," Finney said. A year ago, Kinzer led Tulane freshmen in points, minutes, assists and steals. His average of 5.27 assists per 40 minutes was tops on the team. Kinzer gave glimpses of what he can provide in the future in the C-USA tournament, when he played 21 minutes against Charlotte after the injury to Marsh and came up with eight points, three rebounds and three assists. "Kinzer needs strength, but he’s very heady," Finney said. "And one thing people in our league don’t know, he can really score the basketball. You’ll see him make a lot of contributions this season." Hollingsworth missed most of preseason practice because of a stress fracture in his foot, and as a result his progress was hampered. But Finney was encouraged by a five-game stretch to finish the regular season when Hollingsworth averaged 16 minutes, scored 23 points and grabbed 14 boards. He earned his first career start against UAB and scored a career-high 10 points in 21 minutes. Hollingsworth followed that with a career-high 24 minutes, six points and eight rebounds against Houston. "Karl’s come back from the injury and is really in great shape," Finney said. "I think he’s going be a guy who can come in and give us a lift." As a rookie, Benfield, who shot a solid 36 percent (11-of-30) from 3-point range, became one of the Wave’s top bench scorers. His only bucket in an early February game against Memphis was a put-back with 2:02 to go that gave Tulane a 70-69 lead. Benfield scored a career-high 10 points (all in the first half) against TCU and eight points against Southern Miss that included a 40-foot 3-pointer at the half-time buzzer. Byron Parker (1.5 ppg, 0.5 rpg), a 6-2 senior, played in 24 games a year ago, averaging 6.1 minutes. A pair of 6-10 juniors, George Brown (1.7 ppg, 0.9 rpg) and Ivan Pjevcevic (2.1 ppg, 1.2 rpg), will provide reserve minutes in the frontcourt, unless Tulane’s two newcomers move ahead of them. After losing just one senior, the Wave didn’t have many scholarships to fill, but Finney addressed a need by recruiting some size. Quincy Davis, a 6-9 freshman from McGill-Toolen High School in Mobile, Ala., was the runner-up for Class 6A Player of the Year in Alabama and earned first team All-State honors in 2001-2002. Davis averaged 18 points, 11 rebounds and 5.5 as a senior. "Quincy is a versatile, quick and athletic big man, and he is very, very long," Finney said. "He gives us added depth at the post. I see him contributing right away and having a positive impact on our program." Tulane also signed Vytautas Tatarunas, a 6-7, 242-pound power forward. The native of Kaunas, Lithuania, played for Tidewater Academy in Wakefield, Va. As a senior, Tatarunas averaged 22.1 points and 10.4 rebounds and three blocked shots. "Vy is an athletic forward that can play the three and the four," Finney said. "He is athletic around the rim and he can shoot the three; he will be a very versatile forward for us at Tulane. We're excited to add another big body who gives us depth both inside and outside." Finney has Tulane basketball on the move. With an experienced team that lost just one player from a year ago and returns all five starters, can he take the Green Wave another step farther and into a postseason tournament? "We’re headed in the right direction," Finney said. "We’re getting players in here who fit in my style." Tulane has a potential star and a go-to player in Brown, two talented, experienced guards and a solid bench. If the incoming freshman can give the frontcourt a lift, the Wave will have a chance to return to postseason play. Another two or three victories tacked onto to the 14 Tulane won a year ago would likely seal a spot in the NIT. For Finney, that would be another sign of progress.
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