A cloudy forecast
Memphis vs. FAU isn’t the showcase the AAC envisioned
It was supposed to be a showcase for the American Athletic Conference.
It was supposed to be the league’s two best basketball teams playing for the second time in two weeks with a regular-season title hanging in the balance on national television, almost one year after they went down-to-the-wire against one another in the NCAA tournament.
It was supposed to replace the regular-season finales of the previous four seasons, when Memphis and Houston met in front of raucous crowds and played wildly entertaining games.
It was supposed to be one of those pressure-packed games that make us fall in love with the sport, a precursor to
AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT Memphis at Florida Atlantic When: Saturday
Where: Boca Raton, FL.
Time: 11 AM TV: CBS
conference championship week and Selection Sunday and all the madness of March.
Well, that last part might actually still be true when Memphis and FAU face one another for the second time in two weeks in Boca Raton, Florida, on Saturday (11 a.m., CBS).
There’s a lot of pressure hanging over this rematch, just not the kind of pressure anybody on either side envisioned a few months ago. It’s the kind of pressure that comes when there’s a possibility of a March without the NCAA tournament. It’s the kind of pressure that, frankly, doesn’t bode well for the future of the new-look AAC.
Neither Memphis nor FAU has quite lived up to expectations this season, each counteracting tremendous nonconference wins with some mind-boggling losses, and it has only exacerbated the league’s longstanding perception problems in men’s basketball.
Memphis coach Penny Hardaway again lamented these issues Thursday, and admitted he isn’t sure anymore if the AAC can change how it’s viewed around the rest of the country. It was depressing to hear him say, if only because Memphis is stuck here until at least the next round of conference realignment gets spinning.
“They love the Mountain West,” Hardaway pointed out, and the impli
the Tigers and is the only active player averaging 21 points, seven rebounds and two steals or more.
Jones’ stellar campaign has made him an attractive pro prospect. He is considered by some as a potential NBA draft pick.
Forward
Nicholas Jourdain announced last week his plans to return to the Tigers for the 2024-25 season. He was asked Thursday for his thoughts on the possibility of Jones’ return.
“We’d love to have David back, but he has to do what’s best for him,” Jourdain said. “Finish the year strong, though.”
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.