Tigers haven’t won in Tulsa since March 3, 2012
Golden Hurricane come into the game riding 5-game losing streak
As Memphis basketball’s chances of rallying against SMU dwindled on Thursday, so, too, did the announced crowd of 13,000-plus inside Fedexforum.
Penny Hardaway, the Tigers’ fourthyear coach, noticed.
“It’s embarrassing to me to see the fans leave early,” he said after his team’s third consecutive loss and the eighth in its last 12 games. “I’ve never seen that in my life (at Memphis) and it doesn’t sit well with me at all.”
Hardaway won’t have to worry about that the next time the Tigers play.
Memphis (9-8, 3-4 AAC) is scheduled to face last-place Tulsa (6-10, 0-5) at the Donald W. Reynolds Center on Sunday (2 p.m., ESPN). The Tigers haven’t won in Tulsa since March 3, 2012, nearly a decade.
Here is what else you need to know about the matchup.
Alex Lomax is back?
Senior point guard Alex Lomax was the lone reinforcement the Tigers got back against SMU.
Lomax, who missed five games due to a left ankle issue that cropped up after
Memphis’ loss at Tulane on Dec. 29, has drawn ire from fans this season largely due to his tendency to commit critical turnovers. But his return was a welcome one as the Tigers continue to deal with a rash of injuries to starters and key contributors.
In 26 minutes, Lomax scored five points and had five rebounds, five assists and four steals. He committed just one turnover.
But, following the game, Lomax indicated he got banged up during a play late.
“Right now, I’m not feeling what I want. But I’m good as in, like, for future aspects,” he said during a radio interview. “It was just an unfortunate play where I got tripped up at the end of the game. I really won’t be able to tell (how severe it is) until (Friday).”
As far as whether Williams and Nolley (or, Jayden Hardaway and Chandler
Lawson, who also missed Thursday’s game) will be available Sunday, Hardaway didn’t hazard a guess.
“It’s just day-to-day,” he said.
Tulsa scouting report
The Golden Hurricane has lost five straight and are 5-5 at home this season.
Most recently, Frank Haith’s team got blown out by Cincinnati on Thursday. But Tulsa has been competitive despite its ugly record, losing its last four games by a combined 15 points. That includes a 3-point loss at Memphis on Jan. 4.
In that game against the Tigers, Sam Griffin scored 25 points and Jeriah Horne put up 20. But Memphis got double-digit contributions from Earl Timberlake, Malcolm Dandridge and Lester Quinones to outlast Tulsa. Freshman Josh Minott also helped out with 11 rebounds to give the Tigers a 38-31 edge on the boards.
In Tulsa’s loss to Cincinnati, it gave up 16 3-pointers. The Golden Hurricane’s 3point defense has been a problem this season, as they rank 332nd in the country there.
Score prediction
Memphis 65, Tulsa 64: The Tigers’ roster is depleted. They also have a lot of work to do. But nothing will keep them from beating the worst team in the AAC.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.