University of Memphis
Marist
Memphis Cruises Past Marist, 100-61
Dec 02, 2008 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 2, 2008
Final Stats | Quotes
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) -- Shawn Taggart had 21 points, 13 rebounds and six blocks and freshman Tyreke Evans added 24 points Tuesday night as No. 18 Memphis dominated every phase of the game in a 100-61 victory over Marist.
Antonio Anderson scored 12 points and Roburt Sallie finished with 11 for Memphis (5-1). Evans was 10-of-13 from the field.
David Devezin led the Red Foxes (2-4) with 11 points, while Lawrence Williams and Ryan Schneider had 10 each.
Memphis built the lead to double digits within the first seven minutes, continued to extend it through the first half and kept the pressure on after the break, leading by 40 with 10 minutes left.
The Tigers would finish the night shooting 53 percent, and holding the Red Foxes to 35 percent and causing 21 turnovers. Memphis blocked 14 shots, one short of the school record set against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 1998.
The game was the latest of the teacher-vs.-student matchups for John Calipari. First-year Marist coach Chuck Martin was an assistant on Calipari's staff the previous two years. Calipari will face five former assistants this season.
Memphis, which had nine days off since its first loss of the season to Xavier on Nov. 23, went with a different lineup, starting Pierre Henderson-Niles and freshman Wesley Witherspoon, who became the latest Tiger to get a chance at the point.
But the experiment was only temporary as the Tigers constantly shuffled players throughout the first half, wearing down Marist.
Memphis led 51-24 at halftime with Evans scoring 18 points and missing only one of eight shots. That helped Memphis shoot 56 percent in the first half.
Schneider was the only bright spot for the Red Foxes, scoring 10 points.
The domination began immediately. Memphis shot well from the start, rejected Marist shots in the middle and forced turnovers leading to 18 points in the first half.
At times, the Red Foxes seemed content to just launch shots in desperation as defenders hounded them.
Marist missed two shots and failed to score even with the 5-on-4 advantage.
The Memphis defense held Marist to 29 percent shooting and caused 14 turnovers in the half. The Tigers blocked seven shots, spread among six players. Memphis' domination of the middle included a 38-10 advantage in the paint.
The Tigers' 27-point halftime lead, matched their biggest at the half this season, and they coasted the rest of the way.
