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Memphis dominates Tulane for 21st straight win

Mar 10, 2007 - 3:50 AM MEMPHIS, Tennessee (Ticker) -- Memphis advanced to the Conference USA tournament final in impressive fashion.

Chris Douglas-Roberts scored 17 points as the fifth-ranked Tigers ran their nation-leading winning streak to 21 games with a 71-49 victory over Tulane in the league semifinals.

Memphis (29-3) used a 16-0 run over eight minutes in the first half to open up a 36-18 lead. Douglas-Roberts, the Tigers' leading scorer, capped the run with a dunk at the 2:03 mark.

The Tigers stretched the lead to 63-34 on a 3-pointer by Andre Allen with 8:06 left in the game. The Green Wave would not get closer than 19 points the rest of the way as Memphis coasted to victory.

"That was a great effort," Tigers coach John Calipari said. "Great defense. ... We were pretty good today."

The Tigers improved to 18-0 against conference opponents this season and will face Houston in Saturday's final in search of a second straight C-USA tournament crown.

Robert Dozier pulled down nine rebounds and Jeremy Hunt added 10 points for Memphis.

Donnie Stith scored 14 points for Tulane (17-13), which shot just 29 percent (17-of-58) from the floor and 3-of-11 from the arc. This was the only game this season in which they failed to shoot better than 30 percent.

"You go and play them active, and we were able to do that," Calipari said. "I thought we pressed them and did some good stuff. ... We guarded them better in the second half."

Memphis forced 22 turnovers, which they turned into 29 points.

Senior guard Chris Moore, one of the few players remaining from before the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina sent the Green Wave athletic program into limbo, scored nine points and shed tears as he walked off the floor with 1:35 left in the game.

"I hope no one remembers this team on this last game," Tulane coach Dave Dickerson said. "Just remember what we've done. ... We had the same matchup problems that 21 other teams had against Memphis. They've won 21 games in a row. They played well today when they needed to."