NEW ORLEANS – The 2017-18 Tulane women’s basketball season was filled with ups and downs, tournament titles and big wins, close defeats and individual milestones.
The Green Wave’s year ended on March 4 with a defeat against No. 1 UConn in the quarterfinals of the American Athletic Conference Championship, as did the careers of seniors Caylah Cruickshank and Kolby Morgan.
Morgan had another stellar year to finish off her career. For the third consecutive season, she broke 600 points in a year. She also eclipsed 2,000 career points, moved up to second all-time in Tulane history in scoring (2,240 points) and broke the school record for field goals made, field goals attempted and games started.
At the end of the season, Morgan was named Second Team All-AAC for the third straight year.
Classmate Caylah Cruickshank ended her Green Wave career as well, finishing with 176 points and 98 rebounds while bringing her characteristic energy to the court, bench, locker room and road trips.
The 2017-18 season began in early November with a chilly trip northeast. Tulane played in the Maine Tip-Off Tournament in Orono, Maine, defeating the host Black Bears to begin the year.
Tulane stayed closer to home the next week, facing Southern Miss and defeating Southeastern Conference foe Vanderbilt to open the home schedule on Education Day. Fogelman in Devlin was loud.
From there it was off to the Bahamas for two games in the Junkanoo Jam. The Green Wave had a blast in the sun in the days leading up to their games and were very thankful to spend their Thanksgiving in paradise.
The team played two basketball games in the Bahamas, too, nearly defeating Iowa State before setting a new team 3-point record with 15 made 3s in a win over San Diego State.
Back in the USA, Tulane picked up wins over McNeese State, UNO, Middle Tennessee State, Troy and UTEP to close out the non-conference schedule. Those last two wins were part of the 22nd Annual Tulane Classic and gave Tulane a championship in its own tournament for the 10th straight year.
American Athletic Conference play got into full swing in January, and Tulane won its first road game of the league season at Tulsa. Back in New Orleans, the Green Wave dropped a thrilling overtime game against Houston by a 98-92 score. That capped a 60-point week for Morgan.
After Morgan received a framed photo of her 2,000th career point, Tulane proceeded to go on a two-game winning streak with victories over Tulsa and East Carolina on January 21 and 24.
In early February, the Green Wave suited up in pink for its annual Play4Kay game to promote breast cancer awareness and charities. Tulane earned a big win over Temple in that game.
At the end of February, Senior Night signalled the final home contests for Morgan and Cruickshank. The two were honored before the game with framed jerseys, photographs and flowers.
With the regular season complete, the Green Wave headed to Connecticut for its shot at an AAC Championship. With the No. 9 seed, Tulane faced No. 8 Memphis in the first round.
When the dust settled, Tulane earned a 76-64 victory over the Tigers and a spot in the quarterfinals against top-ranked UConn. The Huskies, playing just under 30 miles from its home arena, ended the Green Wave's season with an 82-56 win.
Tulane finished the 2017-18 season with a 14-17 overall record and a 5-11 mark in the American Athletic Conference. The 2018-19 season will begin in November with a group of five seniors, two juniors, three sophomores and four new freshmen. Together that group will look to return the Green Wave to the postseason.
Credits:
Photos courtesy Parker Waters, Dave Browning, Evan Drexler, Gus Kattengell.