University of Memphis Athletics
University of Memphis
16-10, 8-5
UConn
14-11, 7-6
Memphis Holds Off Defending National Champions
Feb 19, 2015 | Men's Basketball
Box Score | Joe Murphy Photo Gallery 
Box Score (PDF) 
MEMPHIS, Tenn. - The University of Memphis did just enough at the free throw line down the stretch to hold off the reigning national champion University of Connecticut 75-72 at FedExForum on Thursday night.
Memphis went 7-10 from the line in the final 2:19, despite shooting 15-25 from the charity stripe for the game.
UConn had the ball with eight seconds remaining, but Daniel Hamilton's three-point attempt from the top of the arc was off and the Tigers claimed the victory.
Memphis improved to 16-10 (8-5 AAC), while UConn dropped to 14-11 (7-6 AAC). In its history, the UofM is now 8-3 against defending national champions, and 5-0 at home.
Kedran Johnson had a big night for the Tigers. The junior guard dropped in a season-high 21 points to go along with six assists and a steal while only committing a single turnover.
The return of injured forward Austin Nichols also acted as a boost for the Tigers, especially on the defensive end, where he finished with seven blocks, which puts him in seventh place for single-season swats with 84, passing Joey Dorsey (2006-07).
Nichols added 16 points and also had a team-high eight rebounds in his return to the lineup.
Shag Goodwin added four blocks with his eight points, and Calvin Godfrey tallied a rejection as well, giving the Tigers 12 points on the evening.
Markel Crawford and Avery Woodson joined Nichols and Johnson in double-digit scoring with 14 and 11 respectively.
The Huskies were led by Hamilton, who missed the final shot, who had a double-double with 25 points and 13 rebounds, while also throwing in seven assists. Amida Brimah had a double-double of his own with 19 and 12, and Rodney Purvis dropped in 11 points.
Ryan Boatright, one of the more explosive players in the conference, came into the game averaging 18 points per game. Memphis limited the guard to almost a third of that with seven points on 2-6 shooting, 1-4 from three.
UConn managed to take the lead only once, a 6-5 advantage with 17:12 remaining in the first, but the Tigers quickly took it back and held a 13-6 lead at the first media timeout. An Austin Nichols jumper pushed the lead to 11 with 13:41 to play in the half, which Memphis would eventually extend to 13.
However, UConn would fight back, and a Hamilton jumper with 0:37 remaining brought the Huskies within six at 39-34 as the teams entered the break.
The Huskies would hit a free throw to start the second period, but Crawford hit his lone three-pointer of the evening to put the Tigers up eight. A couple of scoreless possessions later, Woodson got a steal and threw it forward to Crawford for the dunk on the other end, putting Memphis back up double digits.
A Nichols dunk with 13:28 remaining put the Tigers up 55-40, which as the largest lead of the game and it seemed as if the Tigers were threatening to run pull away. However, UConn started to chip into the lead with a free throw, and then a three pointer from Omar Calhoun. Then a layup from Brimah and another three pointer from Hamilton had the lead down to 55-49 with 9:38 remaining.
A layup from Trahson Burell with 8:24 remaining ended a 9-1 UConn run and a 5:04 scoring drought from the field.
Goodwin had a tip-in with 3:55 remaining to put the Tigers up 64-58, which was the lead they would hold as they exited the final media timeout. From there the Tigers free throw shooting helped carry them home.
The Tigers finished the game shooting 47.3 percent (26-55), while Connecticut shot a slightly cooler 40.6 percent (26-64) from the field. The Huskies struggled from deep, hitting only 5-20 attempts, while Memphis drained 8-19 from three-point land.
UConn held the advantage in the paint 38-28, but Memphis won the points off of turnovers battle 17-11. The Huskies' 41-27 rebound advantage and 19 offensive boards helped them grab 22 second-chance points, to Memphis' 9.
The Tigers are headed back to Sunshine State for the second time in as many weeks as they play UCF in Orlando, Fla. on Sunday. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.
