Tulane Women's Basketball Set for Paradise Jam in U.S. Virgin Islands
Tulane women’s basketball will enjoy Thanksgiving in paradise with a pair of contests in the Paradise Jam, beginning with a match-up against the Elon Phoenix tomorrow, November 27, at 11:30 a.m. CT (1:30 p.m. AST). The Green Wave will then face either North Dakota or Boise State the following day with both contests streaming on ESPN+. Paul Boron will be on the call for the radio broadcast both days on WRBH 88.3 FM.
Virgin Island Tournament
There are 12 teams participating in the Paradise Jam this year with the event broken up into three four-team divisions. Tulane is slotted into the Harbor Division with Elon, North Dakota, and Boise State. The other two divisions are the Island Division (BYU, Virginia Tech, Oregon State, Vanderbilt) and the Reef Division (Miami [OH], Washington State, Marist, LSU). All games take place at the Eldridge Wilburn Blake Sports and Fitness Center on the campus of the University of the Virgin Islands.
After playing the Phoenix Thursday afternoon, the Wave will take on either North Dakota or Boise State the following afternoon. With a win, Tulane will play at 2:00 p.m. CT (4:00 p.m. AST), and with a loss, Tulane hits the court at 11:30 a.m. CT (1:30 p.m. AST).
Green Wave Look to Get Above .500
Tulane is 2-3 on the season after falling 83-72 at North Dakota State last Friday. This was Tulane’s first road contest of the campaign. The Wave averages 72.6 points per game and has not scored below 69 in a contest all season. Tulane shoots 41.7 percent from the field and 28.9 percent from three. On the boards, the Wave secures 41.2 rebounds per game and dishes 15.0 assists per contest. Kanija Daniel leads Tulane with 13.6 points per game as one of two averaging in double figures (Amira Mabry, 11.6). She boasts the best three-point shooting mark on the squad at 33.3 percent. Dyllan Hanna cleans the glass with 6.8 boards per game, and Tamiah Robinson is dishing 4.0 assists per game.
Elon is also 2-3 on the season and lost last time out at Georgetown, 93-57, on Monday. The Phoenix score 59.6 points per game and shoot 37.1 percent overall and 21.6 percent beyond the arc. Elon secures 38.8 rebounds per game with 13.4 assists per contest. LaNae’ Corbett leads the team with 10.8 points per game. Quinzia Fulmore is the leading rebounder at 6.0 boards per game, and she tops the shooting efficiency chart with a 48.5 percent rate. Maraja Pass handles the point, fittingly dishing 2.8 helpers per game.
The programs have never met before. Elon is the third first-time foe Tulane will have faced this season. Should the Wave play North Dakota in game two, it will become the fourth first-time foe of the season. The Wave has won both of its first-time meetings thus far (Campbell and North Florida).
Not the First Time in the U.S. Virgin Islands for the Wave
This is Tulane’s second-ever appearance in the Paradise Jam and the first since 2015. In that edition, the Wave played three games and went 1-2, including a triumph over Virginia. This is the program’s first time playing outside the mainland United States since the Cayman Islands Classic in 2023. Tulane is 9-9 all-time when playing outside the contiguous 48 states.
The week began with special news for freshman Mecailin Marshall, who was named the American Freshman of the Week after her stellar breakout performances against No. 5 LSU and at NDSU. Her week was highlighted by 20 points to lead the Wave against the Tigers. On the season she is averaging 7.0 points per game and shooting at a 32.5 percent clip with five threes made.
After two games in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Tulane returns to New Orleans to host Missouri State on Thursday, December 4. Tip-off inside Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse is set for 6:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
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.