NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Some may deem Saturday’s Tulane-ECU matchup a “trap game,” but Green Wave basketball head coach Ron Hunter does not see it that way.
“A trap game,” Hunter said, “is when you’re able to get away with doing [something]. We’ve had one of those before this year, so we’ve got to be ready to play regardless.”
Hunter was referring to the Green Wave’s 81-79 loss to last-place Tulsa (currently 5-18 overall and 1-11 in conference play), the only conference win for the Golden Hurricanes this season.
“We got six games to go, so for us, it’s like an NCAA tournament game. We know what we’re fighting for.”
Winning four straight American Athletic Conference (AAC) games is hard.
Winning five is harder, but with help from the home crowd, Hunter remains confident, especially after the Wave’s 101-94 win over Cincinnati in front of the loudest fans he’s ever heard at Devlin Fieldhouse.
“If that game was a neutral site game or we were playing at Cincinnati, we would’ve probably lost that game.”
Guard Jaylen Forbes said he appreciated the football team and the student section for going wild, and he always looks forward to one particular chant from the crowd.
“I love the ‘Air Ball!’ chants…they get us going,” Forbes said. “The crowd plays a big part.”
Forbes is averaging 19 points a game and was, for a while, the team’s leading scorer. But Jalen Cook recently surpassed Forbes, averaging 19.6 per game.
Against Cincy, Cook scored 27, while Forbes and forward Kevin Cross scored 24.
Tip-off is set for Saturday at 1 p.m in Devlin Fieldhouse.
