Dec. 19, 2004

NEW ORLEANS, La. - Led by senior Lakethia Hampton's 18 points and nine rebounds, Tulane placed three players in double figures as the Green Wave edged Nicholls State, 73-68, Sunday afternoon at Fogelman Arena. Freshman Courtney Simmons tossed in a career high 14 points off the bench, and D'Aundra Henry added 10 points and five assists for the Wave, who returned to the court for the first time in 12 days.

"Lakethia is so difficult to guard." Tulane head coach Lisa Stockton said. "We rely on her rebounding and her scoring, but her defense is a real asset because she's so strong in the paint."

After going back and forth with Nicholls State early in the first half, a give and go from Henry to Hampton sparked a 7-0 run for Tulane (5-4) as the Wave built a 24-17 lead. The lead was short lived as Nicholls State answered with a 7-0 run of its own to knot the game at 24. The Green Wave entered the second half with a 39-35 edge over the Colonels.

In the second half, the two teams fought a seesaw battle with Tulane taking the lead for good on a Henry three at 11:41. The Green Wave extended the lead to double digits at the 7:51 mark when Jennifer Sands drilled a three-pointer. The lead got as high as 11, but the Lady Colonels refused to go away, staying within eight for the last minute of the game.

"I thought we ran the ball more, our transition offense put them back on their heels. Our defense, when we turn up the intensity, is key to our game," Stockton said. "Offensively we had a lot of good shots, but they just didn't fall. I'd like to see us have a killer instinct for 40 minutes, we let them back in the game."

The Tulane defense forced 26 Nicholls State turnovers, resulting in 27 points for the Wave.

Jamie Octave led Nicholls State (3-6) with a double-double, tossing in 20 points and grabbing 12 rebounds while Clemisha Mingo added 15 and Nkechi Nwachukwu contributed 10.

"I think the layoff helped us more than it hurt," Stockton added. "We did a lot of things better today chemistry-wise. We had a few lulls because you can't simulate the 40 minutes of intensity in practice."

The Green Wave returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 21, when Tulane plays Portland at 6 p.m. as part of a double-header with the men's team hosting North Carolina A&T at 8:30 in Fogelman Arena. For ticket information, contact the Tulane Athletics Ticket Office at (504) 861-WAVE. For fans not able to attend the contest, the game will be broadcast live on the radio on the flagship station of Tulane women's basketball, WRBH 88.3 fm, and live stats will be provided via GameTracker at www.tulanegreenwave.com.