The shot fell and the referee’s whistle blew. Dainja reclined on the floor, stuck his tongue out and flexed his muscles toward the rafters. He knocked down the subsequent free throw as Daniels (who fouled out on the play) found his seat on the Green Wave bench.

PJ Haggerty made eight free throws and forced a huge turnover in the final 40 seconds as 16th-ranked Memphis beat Tulane 78-77 on Saturday to advance to the American Athletic Conference Tournament championship game.

Dain Dainja scored 23 points with 11 rebounds and No. 16 Memphis escaped with a 78-77 win over Tulane in the semifinals of the American Athletic Conference tournament on Saturday afternoon in Fort Worth,