NIT: Memphis vs. Dayton renews a longtime bond
When Memphis and Dayton meet Saturday in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament, it will be a reunion and a rematch of sorts for Penny Hardaway and Jalen Crutcher.
The Tigers’ coach said recently he and the Flyers’ star first crossed paths when Crutcher was a “scrawny” but “flashy” — Hardaway’s words — sixthgrader from the city brimming with potential. That’s not entirely accurate, though, according to Crutcher’s mother, Sheila. She said Hardaway began training her son when he was a member of the 9-and-under Memphis War Eagles AAU program.
But the history between Hardaway and Crutcher actually began as early as it possibly could have. The same day Hardaway turned 28 years old, Crutcher was born at Baptist Memorial Hospital. That was the day Hardaway left Baptist Memorial Hospital with his son, Jayden, who was born two days earlier.
“When Jalen was born, Penny was leaving the hospital,” said Greg Crutcher, Crutcher’s father and a lifelong Tigers fan. “Yeah, the nurses were telling us, ‘There goes Penny Hardaway with his son.’ We saw him leaving as we came in. It was crazy.”
“When I first met Jayden, I said, ‘You wouldn’t believe it, but you were just leaving when Jalen was born,’” Shelia said.
Fast-forward to 11 a.m. Saturday, when Memphis and Dayton tip off at UNT Coliseum in Denton, Texas (TV: ESPN). It will be the first time since the 2017 Class AAA Region 8 tournament semifinals that Crutcher has gone up against a Hardaway-coached team.
The last time they met, Crutcher was a senior at Ridgeway and Hardaway was the head coach at Memphis East.
The Mustangs, behind 21 points from Chandler Lawson and 18 from Alex Lomax (a junior guard for the Tigers who could miss Saturday’s game with a sprained left ankle), overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to win 74-64, despite Crutcher’s 21 points in the final game of his high school career.
When the matchup was announced Sunday, Crutcher said Wednesday he had multiple flashbacks to his time growing up in Memphis, but especially his final game against East.
“That was one of the big games of my high school career,” he said. “It was a great game. We had a lot of people nervous because they thought we were going to beat East. Me shooting some half-court shots, that’s really what I remember.”
“He’s always been crafty. Always smooth,” said Hardaway, who added he and Crutcher exchange messages on their shared birthday. “As he got older, he got stronger and started shooting it deeper. He’s been a problem for (the Atlantic 10 Conference) ever since he’s gotten to the University of Dayton. I’ve been proud of his growth. He’s one of the top point guards in the country.”
Crutcher, who initially signed with Ut-chattanooga prior to coach Matt Mccall’s departure, said he wasn’t necessarily hoping for a Memphis scholarship offer out of high school. But, according to his father, had Crutcher been offered a scholarship sooner, things might have played out differently.
“We were in the air, on the way to an official visit with Dayton, when (former Tigers assistant Pooh Richardson) texted us with an offer,” Greg Crutcher said.
“But we felt like it was just a little too late. When he decided (Dayton) was where he wanted to be, that was it.”
The Tigers and Flyers might have met sooner, but Dayton withdrew from the Crossover Classic tournament in November 2020 due to COVID-19 concerns. Sheila, raised a Memphis basketball fan by her father, Clarence, is already telling herself Saturday’s game won’t be Dayton versus Memphis.
“I’m taking it as if it’s like we’re still in high school playing against East. Ridgeway and East,” said Sheila, who grew up in the same neighborhood as Tiger great Andre Turner.
“But, I’m still kind of nervous and getting antsy.”
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.