University of Memphis Athletics
Memphis Basketball/NCAA Tournament First Round Notes
Mar 18, 2008 | Men's Basketball
March 18, 2008
• NCAA Tournament Central
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• Game Notes 
NO. 1 SEED TIGERS TO FACE TEXAS-ARLINGTON IN NCAA TOURNEY OPENING ROUND ON FRIDAY
The University of Memphis squad (33-1, 16-0 C-USA), ranked No. 2 in the Associated Press poll and No. 3 in ESPN/USA Today poll, begins its quest for the 2008 NCAA title Friday, Mar. 21 when it meets No. 16 seed Texas-Arlington (21-11, 7-9 SLC) in a first-round contest in Little Rock's Alltel Arena. The game, to be televised by CBS, is slated to start approximately 8:55 p.m. (CT) or 30 minutes after the conclusion of the night session's first game between No. 8 seed Mississippi State and No. 9 seed Oregon.
Memphis swept the Conference USA regular season and tournament crowns for a third-straight year in 2007-08. The Tigers posted a perfect 16-0 league mark in regular season play for a second-consecutive year.
The Tigers enter NCAA Tournament play on a seven-game win streak after a Feb. 23 setback to then-No. 2 Tennessee. Memphis defeated Tulsa, Southern Miss, SMU and UAB to close the regular season and then posted victories over Tulane, Southern Miss and Tulsa in the C-USA Tournament.
The Mavericks are playing in their first-ever NCAA Tournament after winning the Southland Conference Tournament title. Texas-Arlington defeated Northwestern State 82-79 in the tourney title game. The Mavericks finished the regular season tied for third place in the Southland Conference West Division.
SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS
Texas-Arlington brings a 21-11 overall record into Friday's NCAA Tournament first-round match-up versus the Tigers. The Mavericks finished the regular season tied for third place (7-9 mark) in the Southland Conference West Division.
The Mavericks are playing in their first-ever NCAA Tournament after winning the Southland Conference Tournament title. Texas-Arlington defeated Northwestern State 82-79 in the tourney title game.
The trio of Anthony Vereen (13.6 ppg), Rog'er Guignard (13.0 ppg) and Jermaine Griffin (12.1 ppg) paces the Maverick offense. Griffin leads Texas-Arlington on the glass with a 7.1 rebounding average, while Larry Posey is second on the squad at 6.1 boards per game. Cardell Hunter leads the team with 92 assists (2.9 apg), while Guignard is the Mavericks' top three-point threat at 38.8 percent from the arc (97 treys).
Texas-Arlington is shooting 47.8 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from the arc and 65.8 percent from the free throw line. The Mavericks are out-rebounding their opponents by an average margin of +3.4 boards per contest (38.1-34.7). Texas-Arlington is averaging 17.2 turnovers per game.
AND THE WINNER GETS...
Friday's Memphis/Texas-Arlington NCAA Tournament first-round winner will meet the Mississippi State-Oregon winner in the second round on Sunday, Mar. 23. The Bulldogs, the South Region No. 8 seed, bring a 22-10 mark into the NCAA Tournament, while the Ducks, the No. 9 seed, have an 18-13 record.
MEMPHIS IN NCAA TOURNEY
The Tigers are playing in their 21st NCAA Tournament in 2008. Memphis has an overall NCAA Tournament record of 25-20 (.556 winning percentage).
Memphis last played in the 2007 NCAA Tournament and advanced to the Elite Eight/South Regional final. The Tigers defeated North Texas 73-58, Nevada 78-62 and Texas A&M 65-64 en route to the regional final. Memphis dropped a 92-76 decision to Ohio State in that Elite Eight contest.
The Tiger program made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 1955. Memphis advanced to the 1973 NCAA Tournament championship game, where it lost to UCLA. The Tigers advanced to their second Final Four in 1985, falling to Villanova in the national semifinals. Memphis earned five-straight NCAA Tournament bids from 1982-86.
SEEDING IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
For the second time in school history and the second time in the last three years, Memphis earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Tigers also earned a No. 1 seed in the 2006 NCAA Tournaments.
In the 2006 NCAA Tournament, Memphis earned a No. 1 seed, marking the first time in school history the Tigers were a top seed.
Overall, this year's No. 1 seed is the seventh time the Tigers are a top four seed. In addition to its No. 1 seed in 2006 and 2008 and three No. 2 seeds in 1982, 1985 and 2007, Memphis was a No. 3 seed in 1986 and a No. 4 seed in 1983.
The NCAA Tournament began seeding teams in 1979.
TIGERS KEEP ADDING TO A FIRST
With their No. 1 seeds in 2006 and 2008 and No. 2 seed in 2007, the Tigers have their highest back-to-back-to-back seeds in program's history. Prior to the last three years (including 2008), the school had never had three-straight years of No. 1 or No. 2 seed.
A GOOD OMEN
The more good signs, the better. Here's one for the Tigers.
Memphis has been a top four seed six previous times in its NCAA Tournament history. As a top four seed, the Tigers have never lost their first NCAA Tournament game.
MEMPHIS VS. NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELD
The Tigers played nine teams in the NCAA Tournament field. Memphis had an 8-1 record against teams in the 2008 NCAA Tournament. The Tigers defeated Austin Peay, Connecticut, Arizona, Georgetown, Gonzaga, Southern Cal, Siena and Oklahoma. Memphis' lone setback was to Tennessee.
CALIPARI IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
John Calipari is taking his 10th team to the NCAA Tournament in 2008. He has a 18-9 record (.667 winning percentage) in his previous nine NCAA Tournament trips.
Calipari guided the UMass Minutemen to five-straight NCAA Tournaments, including a trip to the 1996 NCAA Final Four. The 2007-08 Tiger squad is Calipari's fifth NCAA Tournament team at Memphis. The 2002-03, 2003-04, 2005-06 and 2007-08 teams also made the "Big Dance." Memphis' 2005-06 and 2006-07 teams reached the Elite Eight.
THERE'S A FIRST TIME FOR EVERYTHING
For the first time in the program's history, Memphis will play an NCAA Tournament game in the state of Arkansas. The Tigers most "traveled-to" state for NCAA Tournament play is Texas, where they have played 13 times. The state where Memphis has played the second-most NCAA Tournament games is Missouri.
A MAVERICK ADVANTAGE?
When Texas-Arlington plays in Little Rock Friday versus the Tigers, it may have a small advantage. The Mavericks played a regular season game at Arkansas-Little Rock in mid-November and posted a 68-58 win over the Trojans. The game was played at the Trojans' on-campus arena, Jack Stephens Center.
THE ONLY ONE
For a third-straight year, Memphis enters the NCAA Tournament with 30 or more victories. The Tigers are the only team in the nation to have 30 or more wins entering NCAA Tournament play each of the last three years.
The 2005-06 and 2006-07 teams both carried 30-3 marks into the NCAA Tournament. The 2007-08 squad has a 33-1 record heading into the NCAA Tournament.
ONE OF ONLY FOUR
Memphis is one of only four teams in the nation to enter the 2008 NCAA Tournament play with 30 or more victories. The Tigers are 33-1 entering the NCAA Tournament. The other three 30-win teams in the NCAA Tourmmant are North Carolina (32-2), UCLA (31-3) and Kansas (31-3).
MORE ON 30-WIN TEAMS ENTERING NCAA TOURNAMENT
In NCAA Tournament history, Memphis, North Carolina, Kansas and UCLA are the 28th, 29th, 30th and 31st teams, respectively, to enter the "Big Dance" with 30 or more victories. The following are the teams that have done so:
Year Team Record 1948 Kentucky 31-2 1950 Bradley 30-4 1985 Georgetown 30-2 1986 Bradley 31-2 Duke 32-2 Kansas 31-3 UNLV 31-4 St. John's 30-4 1987 UNLV 33-1 Temple 31-3 1988 Arizona 31-2 Oklahoma 30-3 1991 Arkansas 31-3 UNLV 30-0 1996 Connecticut 30-2 UMass 31-1 1997 Kansas 32-1 Kentucky 30-4 1998 Kansas 34-3 North Carolina 30-3 1999 Duke 32-1 2002 Cincinnati 30-3 2005 Illinois 32-1 2006 Memphis 30-3 2007 Kansas 30-4 Memphis 30-3 Ohio State 30-3 2008 Memphis 33-1 North Carolina 32-2 Kansas 31-3 UCLA 31-3* Calipari-coached teams in bold italics
CALIPARI ONE OF THREE
With Memphis, North Carolina and Kansas securing No. 1 seeds again in this year's NCAA Tournament, John Calipari, Roy Williams and Bill Self are the only coaches in NCAA Division I history to guide two different programs to top seeds. The following shows that:
Coach Team Yr./No. 1 seed
John Calipari UMass 1996
Memphis 2006, 08
Roy Williams Kansas 1992, 95, 97,
98, 2002
North Carolina 2005, 07, 08
Bill Self Illinois 2001
Kansas 2007, 08
MEMPHIS VS. THE SOUTHLAND
The Tigers have an all-time record of 14-1 (.933 winning percentage) versus schools in the Southland Conference. Memphis has played eight -- Lamar, McNeese State, Nicholls State, Northwestern State, Sam Houston State, Southeastern Louisiana, Texas-Arlington and Texas-San Antonio -- of the Southland's 12 institutions. Stephen F. Austin, Texas State, Central Arkansas and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi are the four Southland programs the Tigers have not played.
The lone Memphis setback to a Southland school was the loss to Lamar in 1968-69. The last time the Tigers played a Southland Conference school was the 2006-07 season when Memphis defeated Lamar 87-62 on Dec. 28, 2006.
CALIPARI VS. THE SOUTHLAND
Head coach John Calipari is a perfect 4-0 against Southland Conference members. Calipari has coached against Lamar (2-0), Northwestern State (1-0) and Southeastern Louisiana (1-0).
HIDE YOUR EYES
Fans at Friday's NCAA Tournament first-round contest between Memphis and Texas-Arlington may want to look away when both teams head to the free throw line. Memphis is 12th in Conference USA in free throw shooting at 59.6 percent, while the Mavericks are ninth in the Southland Conference at 65.8 percent.
TIGERS PICKING IT UP AT THE LINE
Don't like to jinx things, but the Tigers have improved their percentage from the charity stripe in the postseason -- just as CBS hoops analyst Billy Packer said they would do.
In the three Conference USA Tournament games, Memphis hit 71.7 percent from the foul line (38-of-53).
Packer was the color analyst for the Tigers' Feb. 27 game versus Tulsa at FedExForum. During that game, Packer mentioned that the Tigers would shoot a better percentage from the free throw line in the postseason. To date, Memphis has proven Packer a prophet.
PERFECTION ON THE ROAD
With its win at SMU Mar. 5, Memphis posted its first perfect road mark for a season since the 1960-61 campaign. That 1960-61 Tiger team went 7-0 in its road games. Memphis finished 2007-08 with a 10-0 road record. The Tiger have won 19-straight road games since a Dec. 20, 2006, setback at Arizona.
ONE OF ONLY TWO ROAD WARRIORS
Memphis finished the 2007-08 season with a perfect 10-0 record in road games, and is one of two teams in the nation to have an undefeated mark on the road. North Carolina is the other team that went unbeaten in road games this season with a 13-0 record.
Memphis and North Carolina both had perfect record in neutral site games this year. The Tigers were 3-0 in neutral site contests, while the Tar Heels went 5-0 in neutral games.
TIGERS ARE ONE OF TWO
Memphis had a perfect Conference USA regular season, and the Tigers added a C-USA Tournament title. With the league's postseason tournament crown, Memphis is one of only two teams in the nation to record a perfect conference regular season and also win the league tournament.
The Tigers joined Davidson as the two schools to accomplish the feat. The Wildcats went 20-0 in the Southern Conference and then won the SoCon postseason tournament crown.
Furthermore, Memphis is the only team in the nation to record a perfect league regular season and also win the conference tournament the last two years. In 2006-07, the Tigers and Winthrop were the only two programs in the country to accomplish the feat.
CALIPARI HAS PERSONAL THREE-30-PEAT
When the Tigers won their 30th game of the 2007-08 campaign on Mar. 8 with a 94-56 victory over UAB, it was an historic moment not only for head coach John Calipari but also in NCAA Division I hoops. With the Tigers' 30th win (now 33-1 record), it is the third-straight season of 30-plus victories for Memphis under Calipari.
Calipari is the second head coach in NCAA Division I history to have three-consecutive 30-win seasons. Kentucky's Adolph Rupp was the first, directing the Wildcats to three-straight 30-win seasons in 1946-47 (34-3), 1947-48 (36-3) and 1948-49 (32-2). UCLA's Ben Howland joined the club last weekend when the Bruins posted their 30th win.
MORE 30-WIN HISTORY
When the Tigers secured their 30th win Mar. 8, head coach John Calipari wasn't the only one that made NCAA Division I basketball history. The Memphis program also put its name in the NCAA record books.
The Tiger hoops program is the second in NCAA Division I history to record three-consecutive 30-win seasons. Kentucky was the first school to accomplish the feat, and the Wildcats did it on two occasions. Kentucky had three-straight 30-win campaigns from 1947-49 and 1996-98. UCLA joined the group last weekend when it recorded its 30th win.
MARCH IS WHAT'S IT'S ALL ABOUT
John Calipari's teams always improve as the season progresses toward March, which is the month all college teams play for. And, Calipari's teams are ready to play in March and that can be seen in his career record in the month.
Calipari has an 81-27 record (.750 winning percentage) in games played in March. In his 16 years as a collegiate head coach, Calipari has guided his teams to 15 postseasons (10 NCAA, five NIT). He led UMass to the 1996 NCAA Final Four and Memphis to the 2002 NIT championship and 2006 and 2007 NCAA Tournament Elite Eights.
2007-08 TIGERS GOING FOR RECORD
As if Memphis needed to set more marks. However, if the 2007-08 Tigers win Friday, they will set a school record for wins in a season. The 33 victories Memphis has now are tied with the 2005-06 and 2006-07 squads for the single-season mark. The following shows the top-five winningest teams in Tigers hoops history:
Year No. of Wins 2007-08 33 2006-07 33 2005-06 33 1984-85 31 1985-86 28
2007-08 TIGERS GOING FOR C-USA RECORD
A win Friday not only sets the single-season victory mark for Memphis history, but also for Conference USA history. The 33 victories Memphis has now are tied with the 2005-06 and 2006-07 Tiger squads (33-4 record) and the 2004-05 Louisville team (33-5) for the single-season mark. The following shows the top-five winningest teams in Conference USA hoops history:
Team/Year No. of Wins Memphis/2007-08 33 Memphis/2006-07 33 Memphis/2005-06 33 Louisville/2004-05 33 Cincinnati/2001-02 31
WINS IN THREE-YEAR PERIOD
With its win over Tulsa Mar. 15 in the Conference USA Tournament title game, Memphis has won an incredible 99 games the last three seasons. The 99 victories since 2005-06 places Memphis in the No. 5 spot on the all-time NCAA Division I list for most wins in three years. Kentucky tops the list with 104 wins from 1996-98. The following shows the top six teams on that list and where Memphis stands:
1. Kentucky 1994-96 104 2. Kentucky 1947-49 102 t. Montana St. 1927-29 102 4. Duke 1999-2001 101 5. Memphis 2006-pres. 99 6. 7 teams tied 98
For more notes on the Tigers' NCAA Tournament first round match-up with Texas-Arlington, click on pdf link at top of the page.
