Tulane Women Fall in OT to Temple, 86-77
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Down by 14 points at halftime, the 10th-seeded Tulane women’s basketball team fought all the way back to force overtime Tuesday afternoon thanks in part to Kanija Daniel’s clutch three at the end of regulation. However, the Green Wave fell just short in the end, losing 86-77 to the No. 7 seed Temple at Legacy Arena at the BJCC in the first round of the 2026 American Basketball Championship. Tulane’s season comes to a close at 11-20 while the Owls improve to 15-16 and advance to the second round.
Tulane shot better on the day with a 40.4 percent mark compared to the 32.4 percent clip of Temple. However, the Owls tripled the three-point output with 12 to Tulane’s four. Fouls were paramount as both teams shot 84 percent at the stripe with Tulane making 27 foul shots and Temple putting in 28. The Owls won the glass 47-38 with a 23-11 offensive rebounding advantage. Tulane committed five more giveaways in the game, 22-17, but the Green Wave dominated inside with 20 more paint points, 38-18.
Marshall Has Another Banger of a Performance
The American Freshman of the Year Mecailin Marshall proved why she claimed the honor with 25 points today, topping the squad as one of four double-digit scorers. She went a perfect 11-of-11 at the charity stripe while collecting four rebounds, four assists, and one steal en route to her sixth 20-point affair. Senior Amira Mabry scored 13 points to finish her career with 1,083, good for 23rd in Tulane history. Kanija Daniel also netted 13 points with Dyllan Hanna posting 11. Jayda Brown led the team on the glass with seven rebounds, and Shiloh Kimpson’s three steals topped the team. A pair of freshmen led the way in assists with Marshall and Kimpson each dishing four.
1st Half Started Well
Amira Mabry kicked the game off with back-to-back layups to put Tulane ahead first. However, the following seven points belonged to Temple with the run capped by a three. Shiloh Kimpson brought Tulane within a point by hitting a pair at the stripe, but the Owls again responded with a three. Mecailin Marshall capped the quarter with a pair at the free throw line, pulling the Wave within 10-8 after the opening 10 minutes.
The Owls opened the second quarter with back-to-back threes, and after a CC Mays layup Temple hit again beyond the arc. Three foul shots later pushed Temple ahead 22-12, but Mabry put home a trey for Tulane to shave the margin to 22-15. However, Temple went on a 10-point run to pull in front 32-15 with 2:13 on the clock. The 17-poiunt advantage was the largest of the game for the Owls. Mabry ended the spell with a layup, but Temple hit a three before a Dyllan Hanna bucket closed the quarter to bring the Wave within 14 points, 35-21, at the break.
A Different Half for the Wave
The second half began with a Mabry layup, and Hanna scored inside to bring the score within 10 at 35-25. Temple scored back-to-back buckets before the teams traded off free throws. Brown hit a three, but Temple followed with two-straight scores. Marshall scored to kick off a seven-point Tulane run in which she owned six of the points. However, the Owls closed out the quarter with four consecutive free throws to head into the fourth ahead 51-39.
Wave Send It to OT
Temple started off the fourth quarter with a 5-1 run, but Hanna notched a put-back followed by a Marshall layup. Tulane kept chipping away and pulled within seven points, 60-53, thanks to a three-point play by Marshall. The teams traded foul shots, and a layup by Brown trimmed the deficit to five, 62-57, with 2:30 to go. A scoreless minute ensued before two Owl free throws, but Marshall hit twice at the stripe with 1:02 to go to bring Tulane back within five. After two Owl foul shots, Kanija Daniel buried a three. Two more Temple free throws preceded one for Tulane, and the Owls led 68-63 with 28 seconds left. Needing to rally, Brown collected a steal that led to a bucket to bring Tulane within three with 18 seconds to. Temple threw away the ensuing inbounds pass, and a foul allowed Daniel to notch two shots to trim the margin to 68-67. Temple hit both of its free throws on the following foul, and Tulane needed a three to force overtime. Daniel had ice in her veins, depositing a clutch trey as the seconds ticked away to tie the contest at 70 and keep the Wave’s season alive. The 31-point fourth quarter for the Wave was Tulane’s highest-scoring frame of the season.
Overtime: A Tail of Two Parts of Five Minutes
Tulane started the extra period hot, carrying the momentum to the first four points. However, Temple hit three-straight threes to pull back in front. This overall was an 11-point Owl run, but Tulane pushed back to pull within 81-77 with just over a minute to go. Temple once again hit from distance, and Tulane was unable to mount another rally as Temple held on to win 86-77 in overtime.
Tulane’s season ends in the American Basketball Championship as the Wave made its 21st-straight appearance in a conference tournament. Tulane will return to the court in November for the 2026-27 campaign.
Portions Courtesy Tulane Athletics
Doug has covered a gamut of sporting events in his fifty-plus years in the field. He started doing sideline reporting for Louisiana Tech football games for the student radio station. Doug was Sports Director for KNOE-AM/FM in Monroe in the mid-80s, winning numerous awards from the Louisiana Sports Writers Association for Best Sportscast and Best Play-by-Play. High school play-by-play for teams in Monroe, Natchitoches, New Orleans, and Thibodaux, LA dot his resume. He did college play-by-play for Northwestern State University in Natchitoches for nine years. Then, moving to the Crescent City, Doug did television PBP of Tulane games and even filled in for legendary Tulane broadcaster, Ken Berthelot in the only game Kenny ever missed while doing the Green Wave games. His father was an alumnus of Tulane in the 1940s, so Doug has attended Tulane football games in old Tulane Stadium, the Superdome, and Yulman. He was one of the 86,000 plus on December 1, 1973, sitting in the North End Zone to seeTulane shutout the LSU Tigers, 14-0. He was there when the Posse ruled Fogelman and in Turchin when the Wave made it to the World Series. He currently is the public address voice of the Tulane baseball team.