Tigers’ prayer answered in thrilling win
After Memphis freshman Tyler Harris prayed to God to force the first overtime, and after he told teammate Kyvon Davenport to pray to God to force double overtime, Penny Hardaway decided to remove his jacket for the first time this season in hopes of avoiding a third overtime.
He flipped it behind the bench to a team manager and shrugged his shoulders in disbelief, unsure how else to react to the wild swings of emotion that served as the backdrop to the first thriller of his college coaching career.
One of his players died about 48 hours before tip-off. One of his freshman (Harris) hit three drama-filled foul shots at the end of regulation. Two of his seniors (Davenport and guard Jeremiah Martin) missed free throws with a chance to win at the end of overtime.
And one Yale senior (guard Alex Copeland) almost single-handedly delivered Memphis its first home loss of the year.
So off went the sport coat and in came the snarl.
When freshman Alex Lomax careened through the lane for a lay-in, and the Tigers finally subdued Yale long enough to escape FedExForum with a 109-102 win, Hardaway whirled around, flexed his fists and let loose a celebratory growl while the crowd roared.
His team trailed by five with 1:43 to go in regulation and came back. His team trailed by five with 49 seconds to go in overtime and came back. His team missed 19 free throws and still came back.
“We just outlasted them,” Hardaway said. But the Tigers did more than that. Four days after hanging with No. 22 LSU on the road, and two days into mourning the tragic loss of forward Karim Sameh Azab to leukemia, they convinced their new coach that they’re more resilient than he thought.
That they might be able to overcome some of their inevitable growing pains and shortcomings with sheer grit and will.
“You win games like this ... you’ve got a tough team,” Hardaway said. “Now it’s just a matter of getting everything complete as far as growing together. Right now, we’re a little off. I would say we’re a lot off. But we’re making up for it with effort and heart and passion and winning big games.”
It’s a reminder for us all that Hardaway’s vision for this program and what it actually looks like right now aren’t the same yet. This first year isn’t going to be a smooth ride all the time.
It’s going to be visceral and unpredictable, in sudden bursts when these players resemble a swarm of bees, and Hardaway their beekeeper.
When the pace is frantic, the fullcourt press is relentless, and the team scores 47 points before halftime despite only having three assists. When you begin to wonder what this group can accomplish right away, even before Hardaway’s next batch of recruits arrive.
But it’s also going to feel staggered. When just as suddenly the process of melding a brand-new coaching staff with a roster full of players for the first time is out of sync, and the Tigers can’t seem to pull away from an experienced team picked to finish third in the Ivy League this year.
Saturday night, therefore, was a lesson in surviving the drama when these two dynamics converge in one game.
It was nearly three hours, 17 lead changes and 11 ties.
It was Memphis giving Yale fits with its pressure defense and Yale giving Memphis fits with its half-court execution.
It was Memphis hitting just 6 of its 23 3-pointers, but attempting the thirdmost free throws (56) in program history.
It was Martin scoring three points before halftime, six points in the second half and 11 points in the two overtimes.
It was Harris missing one free throw with 35 seconds left in regulation, missing one potential game-tying shot with six seconds left, and sinking three foul shots in a row to tie the score at 83 with 2.9 seconds left.
Before each one, Harris said he prayed to God. After each one went in, he pointed to the sky. The entire time, Memphis fans had flashbacks to Darius Washington and the 2005 Conference USA finals.
Harris called it “one of the hardest moments of my life.” But this week may end up being the moment he went from high school legend to big man on campus.
It only made sense then that when Davenport missed the first of two free throws with 3.8 seconds left in overtime, Yale called a timeout to add to the tension. Memphis trailed by one and Harris kept telling Davenport the same thing over and over again in the huddle. “Bro, just pray to God.” Davenport did as told, but also “thought about Karim.”
Every member of the team wore a “KA” patch in his honor Saturday, and they all said this win and this season are dedicated to Azab.
And so, once all the ties and all the lead changes were over, once Hardaway removed his jacket and snarled, once Memphis’ prayers were answered, the scoreboard at FedExForum showed one fan holding a poster up.
“This one is for Karim,” the sign read.