Volunteer State News

The Memphis men's basketball team locked up the No. 2 seed in next week's American Athletic Conference championship with an 81-62 victory late Thursday night at SMU.

 

The Tigers have now won 11 of their last 13 games while improving to 23-7 overall and 13-4 in league play.

 

It's the most wins for Memphis under head coach Penny Hardaway and the most in a season since winning 24 in 2013-14.

 

Kendric Davis returned to Moody Coliseum and dished out his third double-double of the season with 23 points and 10 assists. Damaria Franklin dropped a season high 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting with three triples in 26 minutes off the bench.

 

DeAndre Williams finished with 13 points, seven rebounds and four dimes, while Elijah McCadden added 10 points, four boards and four assists.

 

Just as anyone would have expected, Davis got the night started with a nothing-but-net triple from the right wing on the game's first shot. After the sides traded buckets over the next few minutes, SMU held a 16-13 lead at the 14:36 mark. From that point on, it was all Tigers.

 

Franklin converted an and-one as Memphis reeled off 12-straight points and outscored the Mustangs 17-2 over the next five-plus minutes to take a 30-18 advantage.

 

Jayden Hardaway gave the Tigers their largest lead of the half at 38-24 a few minutes later when he finished a tough baseline drive at the rim.

 

Memphis went into the break up 50-37 after torching the nets at a 67.9-percent clip (19-28) and draining 6-of-10 threes.

 

SMU got the game to within six points at the 11:21 mark, but from that point on, Memphis outscored the Mustangs 19-6 the rest of the way en route to the 81-62 win.

 

 

UP NEXT 

Memphis will conclude the regular season Sunday morning at FedExForum against No. 1 Houston. It will be the first time the Tigers has ever hosted the No. 1 team in the country inside FedExForum.

 

The game against the Cougars will tip off at 11 a.m. on CBS. 

 

 

POSTGAME NOTES

• Memphis used the starting lineup of Kendric Davis, DeAndre Williams, Elijah McCadden, Chandler Lawson and Jayden Hardaway for the third-straight game.
• Memphis has used seven different starting lineups in the 30 games this season.
• Memphis has won three-straight games against the Mustangs and now leads the all-time series 18-15.
• Kendric Davis ended the contest with 23 points, 10 assists, four steals and three rebounds.
• He has now scored in double figures in 20-straight games.
• He's reached 20-plus points 16 times in that stretch, and in 11 of his last 13 games played.
• The 10 assists marks the third time he's reached double-digit dimes this season.
• Damaria Franklin added 15 points and has now reached double figures in three of the last four games.
• He was 3-for-5 from deep and 2-of-3 from the free throw line.
• DeAndre Williams contributed 13 points and has now scored double figures in 26-straight games.
• Chandler Lawson pulled down a career high 12 rebounds. 
• Memphis shot 51.9 percent overall for the game (27-52) and drained a season-best 52.9 percent from three-point range (9-17).
• It's the seventh time this season Memphis has connected on at least nine triples.
• The Tigers dished 21 assists (third-most of the season) and swiped nine steals.
• Memphis was nearly forbidden from scoring any second-chance points (1), while it allowed a season high 21 from SMU.
• The Tigers led for 35:16 of the game.

Original source can be found here