Team effort pushes Tigers past Wichita State
WICHITA, Kan. − Wichita State brought the fight. The Memphis basketball team brought Kendric Davis.
And Deandre Williams. And Damaria Franklin. And Johnathan Lawson, whose 3-pointer with 1:16 to play gave the Tigers some much needed breathing room in a game that featured 12 ties and 16 lead changes.
The Tigers’ stars powered their team to a critical Quad 2 road win over Wichita State, 83-78, Thursday inside a spirited Charles Koch Arena. Memphis (21-7, 11-4 AAC) clinched a first-round bye at next month’s AAC Tournament with the win over the Shockers (14-13, 7-8).
Davis, who missed a game-and-ahalf last week after suffering a right ankle injury, scored 19 points to help the Tigers escape a Shockers scare. Williams dropped in 18.
Role players
While Davis and Williams put up big numbers, Memphis’ role players came to play as well.
Six Tigers not named Davis or Williams scored 5 points or more, led by senior guard Franklin, who turned in his best game under coach Penny Hardaway.
Alex Lomax and Malcolm Dandridge, in their second games back after missing extended time with injuries, scored 7 points each.
Lawson finished with 9 points.
James Rojas: Tiger killer?
Wichita State’s 6-6 power forward, Rojas has been productive in his first season with the Shockers. The Alabama transfer (who never averaged more than 5.4 points per game in a season for the Crimson Tide) came into Thursday’s game with a scoring average of 9.4.
But the Tigers could not stop Rojas.
He scored 19 points in the first half, tying his career-high, which he’s done twice, including versus Memphis on Jan. 19.
Picking up the 3-point slack
One of Kennedy’s best attributes is his 3-point shooting. Coming off a so-so showing in nonconference play, the UTEP transfer found his footing against AAC competition. Before getting hurt, Kennedy was tied for the league lead with a 43.1% 3-point field goal percentage (25-of-58) versus AAC opponents.
The Tigers showed early they have the manpower capable of stepping up with Kennedy out. Memphis made each of its first three attempts from deep and five of its first six. The team finished the first half 6 for 10 beyond the arc. It was a balanced effort, as Davis made two, while Williams, Lomax, Chandler Lawson and Damaria Franklin hit one each.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.