Dain Dainja, Colby Rogers help No. 19 Memphis pull away for 68-56 win over Tulane

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Dain Dainja scored 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting and grabbed 10 rebounds, Colby Rogers scored all his 14 points in the second half and No. 19 Memphis beat Tulane 68-56 on Thursday night.

PJ Carter also scored 14 points for Memphis (17-4, 6-2 American Athletic Conference). Rogers and Carter each hit four of the Tigers’ nine 3-pointers. PJ Haggerty, who went into the game No. 2 nationally in scoring (22.1 points per game), scored a season-low eight on 3-of-11 shooting.

Rowan Brumbaugh led Tulane (11-10, 5-3) with 19 points and Kaleb Banks added 14.

Banks made a layup with 4:41 to play that cut the Green Wave’s deficit to 56-53 but Memphis scored 12 of the final 15 points, including two 3s by Rogers.

Takeaways

Memphis: The Tigers were uneven on offense against Tulane but their defensive effort carried them, holding the Green Wave to 36% shooting overall, 4 of 24 (17%) from 3-point range, on a night when Haggerty wasn’t making shots.

Tulane: The Green Wave, picked to finish 11th in the 13-team AAC, can play with the best teams in the conference, despite losing their entire starting five from last season.

Key moment

Rogers, after starting the game 0-for-7 shooting, hit a pair of 3-pointers less than 90 seconds apart to make it 51-46 with 9:02 to play and Memphis led the rest of the way.

Key stat

The Tigers snapped a three-game losing streak at Tulane’s Avron B. Fogelman Arena. Memphis beat the Green Wave in New Orleans for the first time since Dec. 16, 2020.

Up next

Both teams are back in action Sunday. Memphis is at Rice, and Tulane plays host to Tulsa.

___

Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball