University of Memphis Athletics
University of Memphis
Utah
Memphis Marches On Past Utah, 72-61
Mar 13, 2001 | Men's Basketball
March 13, 2001
SALT LAKE CITY (AP) - Center Earl Barron and the Memphis frontcourt have a motto when the team is in need - "step up."
So when the Tigers' scoring leader Kelly Wise fouled out with 6:16 to play and their lead had shrunk to four points, Barron knew it was his time to show his stuff.
"The coach told me to step up, and I did what any of our big guys would do when they are called on," said Barron, who scored 18 points as Memphis defeated Utah 71-62 Tuesday in the first round of the National Invitational Tournament.
Wise scored 13 and Shamel Jones added 10 for the Tigers (18-14), who never trailed and won their first-ever road game in NIT play.
"When I fouled out, I wasn't worried. I knew Earl and Shamel knew what they had to do to win," Wise said.
Britton Johnsen led Utah (19-12) with 15 points and Chris Burgess had 10 as the Mountain West Conference regular-season co-champs struggled to score against the Tigers' defense.
"I wish we could look in the mirror and truthfully say, 'We lost but we gave it our all,' but we can't," Burgess said.
A lot of the Utes' sluggishness had to do with the Tigers' aggressiveness, according to Barron.
"We attacked them from the beginning and used our quickness," the sophomore center said. "We were a step ahead of them all night."
Nick Jacobson hit a pair of 3-pointers that powered a 12-2 run to bring Utah within 56-52 with 5:25 remaining.
Wise had just fouled out but Barron took over inside and scored four points in a 7-0 run that made it 66-55 with 1:15 to play.
"We haven't been able to finish games like this all year. But now we're finally putting it all together and we finished strong tonight," Memphis coach John Calipari said.
Early in the second half, back-to-back baskets by Nate Althoff brought Utah within 47-37 but the Utes' frustration mounted as they blew two opportunities to further trim the lead.
Officials whistled Utah coach Dick Hunsaker for a technical foul after a controversial out-of-bounds call and then stopped play for a few moments as the court was showered with debris.
"It was disappointing to see the kids end their season with a poor effort like this. I just didn't see great effort or heart out there tonight," Hunsaker said.
After six straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament, the game marked Utah's first entry in the NIT since it went to the NIT final four in 1992.
The Tigers, who finished second in the Nation Division of Conference USA behind Southern Mississippi, earned revenge for Utah's 61-58 come-from-behind victory in the Puerto Rico Shootout earlier this season.
The Tigers raced to an 18-6 lead after Wise's jumper with 12:48 to play in the first half. Memphis continued to show a strong inside game and exploited Utah's 12 turnovers in the period to take a 40-28 halftime advantage.
The Tigers now face the winner of the McNeese State-UTEP game in the second round.
"We're doing what we love to do - play basketball -and we're not about to let it end," Barron said.
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