Ninth-ranked Memphis shook off a sluggish start to beat Tulane in the American Athletic Conference opener 84-73 Monday at FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn.

The Tigers (12-1, 1-0 AAC) fell behind 15-4 just over five minutes into Monday's contest, but Lester Quinones came alive in his second game back from a hand injury.

Quinones scored a team-high 16 points, shot 4 of 8 from behind the 3-point line, and contributed to two critical runs in the first half. The first was a 14-2 spurt that erased the initial deficit, the second a 17-2 outpouring over the final 5:34 before intermission.

Memphis' 17-2 run gave it a 10-point halftime cushion that buoyed the Tigers through the second half.

Quinones and Damion Baugh both scored 11 points before halftime. Baugh finished with 15 points and dished out six assists. Alex Lomax and D.J. Jeffries each passed for a game-high eight assists. Twenty-four of the Tigers' 34 made field goals were assisted.

That unselfish play resulted in four Tigers scoring in double figures. Precious Achiuwa notched a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds, while Jeffries added 14 points and seven rebounds.

Along with its ball movement, Memphis significantly cut back on turnovers after committing 27 in Saturday's blowout win over New Orleans. The Tigers finished with 12 on Monday.

Tulane (8-5, 0-1) stayed competitive in the second half despite trailing for the duration. One-time Memphis Tiger K.J. Lawson, who had a stop in Kansas before joining the Green Wave, led all scorers with 22 points.

The Memphis native grabbed five rebounds and shot 8 of 10 at the foul line. He made a free throw with less than six minutes remaining that pulled the Green Wave to within five points at 69-64.

Tulane and Memphis traded baskets for the next few minutes, and a Jordan Walker jump shot closed the gap to three points with 3:35 left. That was the closest the Green Wave came, however.

As it had in the first half, Memphis closed the second on a run -- a game-ending 10-2 spurt after the Walker 3.

Christion Thompson scored 17 points and handed out a team-high four assists, while Walker added 13 points for Tulane.

--Field Level Media