University of Memphis Athletics
Memphis Basketball Notes
Mar 06, 2009 | Men's Basketball
March 6, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
NOTE: On Saturday, Tiger Senior Day ceremonies are scheduled to start at approximately 11:55 a.m. (CT). The 1956-57 Memphis squad will be honored during halftime. The presentation will happen around the 7-minute mark of the intermission.
TIGERS TO HOST TULANE IN REGULAR SEASON HOME FINALE SATURDAY
The University of Memphis squad (27-3, 15-0 C-USA), ranked No. 5 in the Associated Press poll and No. 3 in ESPN/USA Today poll, hosts its final regular season home game Saturday, Mar. 7 when Tulane (13-15, 7-8 C-USA) visits FedExForum. The Conference USA contest, to be televised by Comcast Sports Southeast, is scheduled for a 12 p.m. (CT) start.
With a victory Saturday, the Tigers would post a third-consecutive perfect Conference USA season with a 16-0 league mark. Memphis went 16-0 in C-USA play in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
Memphis enters Saturday's encounter on a 21-game win streak, which is currently the longest in the nation. The win streak began on Dec. 22 with an 87-49 victory over Drexel. The streak also includes wins over Cincinnati 60-45, Northeastern 80-48, Lamar 108-75, Marshall 80-57, UCF 73-66, Tulsa (away) 55-54, UAB (home) 81-68, Rice 80-52, Tennessee 54-52, East Carolina 85-64, Houston (home) 83-68, SMU (away) 79-66, No. 18/18 Gonzaga 68-50, Tulsa (home) 63-37, Southern Miss (away) 72-47, SMU (home) 90-47, UTEP 70-63, UAB (away) 71-60, Southern Miss (home) 58-42 and Houston (away) 69-60.
Tulane brings a three-game win streak into Saturday's encounter with victories over Marshall, Southern Miss and UTEP. The Green Wave have also won four of their last six, with the two setbacks coming to Houston and UAB. Tulane last played a week ago (Feb. 28) and defeated UTEP 86-77 in New Orleans.
SCOUTING THE GREEN WAVE
Tulane enters Saturday's regular season finale with a 13-15 overall record and a 7-8 Conference USA mark. The Green Wave are on a three-game win streak with victories over Marshall, Southern Miss and UTEP. Tulane has also won four of their last six, with the two setbacks coming to Houston and UAB. Tulane last played a week ago (Feb. 28) and defeated UTEP 86-77 in New Orleans.
The trio of Kevin Sims, Kris Richard and Robinson Louisme paces the Green Wave offense. Sims leads the team with a 13.0 scoring average, while Richard (11.2 ppg) and Louisme (10.6 ppg) also average double figures in the scoring column. Louisme leads Tulane on the glass with a 7.1 rebounding average, and Sims is tops on the team with 112 assists (4.0 apg). Sims (38.9 percent) and Eric Vianney (36 percent) are the Green Wave's top three-point threats.
Tulane is shooting 42.9 percent from the floor, 32.7 percent from the arc and 67.4 percent from the free throw line. Opponents are out-rebounding the Green Wave by a narrow margin of +0.6 boards per contest (33.8-34.4).
TIGERS TO CELEBRATE SENIOR DAY SATURDAY
Prior to Saturday's game versus Tulane, Memphis will honor three seniors. The three Tiger seniors are Antonio Anderson, Robert Dozier and Chance McGrady. As has been the custom under head coach John Calipari, all three seniors will start the regular season home finale.
All three seniors are scheduled to graduate in May 2009. The graduation ceremonies will take place at FedExForum.
TIGER SUCCESS ON SENIOR DAY UNDER CALIPARI
In his previous eight seasons, head coach John Calipari has had success on Senior Days. Memphis has a 7-1 mark (.875 winning percentage) in Senior Day games, with the lone setback coming in the 2004-05 regular season home finale. Last year, the Tigers defeated UAB 94-56 on Senior Day.
MEMPHIS 1956-57 TEAM TO BE HONORED AT HALFTIME SATURDAY
During halftime, the 1956-57 Memphis team is scheduled to be honored. The Tigers, under the direction of head coach Bob Vanatta, posted a 24-6 overall record and advanced to the finals of the National Invitation Tournament, where it fell to Bradley. The following are some additional highlights from that season:
• The Tigers posted wins over such teams as Mississippi State, Marquette, Arizona, DePaul, Louisville and Houston on their way to the 24-win season.
• The 24 victories marked the second-highest, single-season win total in school history at that time.
• The Tigers were led by Win Wilfong, who averaged 21 points and 12.4 rebounds a game. He was named an All-America first teamer by Converse and Citizens Saving Foundation.
• Guard Jack Butcher averaged 11.0 points per game in directing the Tigers' offense, while guard Orby Arnold tossed in 13.0 points per outing.
• The team was nicknamed "The Dixie Darlings" by the New York media for its outstanding style of play in the NIT.
• Following the NIT, Wilfong was invited to stay in New York and play in the East-West All-Star game.
• Entering the NIT, Sports Illustrated ranked the Tigers in the nation's top 20.
• The Tigers entered the NIT ranked 16th in the nation by the Associated Press and ended the season with a No. 12 ranking.
• Memphis was ranked fifth in the nation in team offense (86.0 ppg), third in free throw percentage (74.0) and 10th in field goal percentage entering the NIT.
DEFENSIVE SIMILARITIES...
Saturday's game may get a little defensive as both Memphis and Tulane are near the top of Conference USA in a couple of defensive categories, and the following shows that (C-USA rank follows stat):
Memphis Stat Tulane
58.6/1st Scoring Defense 66.8/5th
6.13/1st Blocks 3.36/6th
9.07/1st Steals 7.54/3rd
16.1/1st TO Forced 15.5/3rd
...AND DEFENSIVE DIFFERENCES
While the teams have their similarities, there are a couple of statistical categories in which Memphis and Tulane are different. The following shows those differences (C-USA rank follows stat):
Memphis Stat Tulane
37.0/1st FG Pct. Defense 44.2/9th
30.4/2nd 3-pt. FG Pct. Defense 35.0/9th
+5.3/2nd Rebound Margin -0.6/9th
TIGERS TRYING FOR NCAA FIRST
With a win Saturday over Tulane, Memphis would become the first NCAA Division I school to record three-straight undefeated league seasons with 15 or more victories. The Tigers posted perfect 16-0 records in 2006-07 and 2007-08 and enters Saturday's contest with a 15-0 C-USA mark.
Kentucky had four-straight undefeated seasons in the SEC from 1946-49, but its best mark was 13-0 in 1949. West Virginia has three-consecutive perfect seasons in the Southern Conference, but its best record was 12-0 in 1956-57 and 1957-58. UCLA (1971-73) and Penn (1993-95) had three-straight 14-0 conference seasons.
2008-09 TIGER SENIORS SET SCHOOL'S WINS RECORD FEB. 18
The Tigers set the NCAA record for wins in a three-year period (2005-06 through 2007-08) with 104 victories, and as a result of that success, it put the 2008-09 Memphis seniors in a position to set the school's all-time wins record. Now, the Tiger senior trio of Antonio Anderson, Robert Dozier and Chance McGrady has set the school record for most wins by a four-year class with Memphis' victory over SMU Feb. 18.
With its 27 victories in 2008-09, the senior class has 131 career wins, which broke the previous school record of 126 wins set by the 2007-08 class (Joey Dorsey).
The following shows the top-five winningest four-year classes in Tiger history:
Class Wins
2005-06 to present 131
2004-05 to 2007-08 126
1983-84 to 1986-87 111
2002-03; 2004-05 to 2006-07 111
1982-83 to 1985-86 108
2008-09 TIGER SENIORS ALSO CLIMBING NCAA WINS LIST
While the 2008-09 Tiger senior class (Antonio Anderson, Robert Dozier, Chance McGrady) already has the school's wins record, it is continuing to make its mark on the NCAA Division I chart for most victories in a four-year span. The record is 133 wins by Duke from 1998-2001.
The 2008-09 Tiger senior class is in the fifth spot on that NCAA Division I wins list with 131 victories. The 2007-08 Memphis senior class is tied for 11th on that list with 126 wins. The following is the top-10 list of the most wins in a four-year span in NCAA Division I history:
Most Wins In a Four-Year Period
NCAA Division I
Team Year Wins
1. Duke 1998-2001 133
2. Duke 1999-2002 132
t. Kentucky 1995-98 132
t. Kentucky 1996-99 132
5. Memphis 2006-present 131
6. Kentucky 1946-49 130
7. UNLV 1987-90 129
8. Kentucky 1947-50 127
t. UNLV 1984-87 127
t. UNLV 1986-89 127
LET'S NOT FORGET THE TIGER JUNIORS
While most the focus has been on the Memphis seniors pursuing the NCAA Division I four-year wins mark, let's not forget the Tiger juniors are also climbing the NCAA Division I three-year wins chart. The Memphis junior class of Pierre Henderson-Niles, Willie Kemp, Doneal Mack and Shawn Taggart enters Saturday's game with 98 victories, which are tied for the sixth-most in a three-year span.
The three-year wins record is 104 victories by Memphis (2006-08) and Kentucky (1996-98). The following shows the top five on that list and where Memphis' junior class stands:
Most Wins In a Three-Year Period
NCAA Division I
1. Memphis 2006-08 104
t. Kentucky 1994-96 104
3. Kentucky 1947-49 102
t. Montana St. 1927-29 102
5. Duke 1999-2001 101
6. Memphis 2007-present 98
t. 7 other teams 98
WE'RE TALKING DEFENSE
The Tigers have been tough on the defensive end of the floor since Dec. 22 which has fueled their 21-game win streak. But, Memphis turned up its defensive intensity a notch in the last eight games, and the following details that:
Opp FG Pct. 3P Pct. Reb Blk Stl
Houston 34.9 26.7 +4 2 6
USM 29.4 00.0 +15 4 7
UAB 36.1 28.0 +9 5 6
UTEP 40.7 33.3 +5 6 7
SMU 30.9 37.5 +1 10 11
USM 37.5 16.7 +9 4 4
Tulsa 35.9 22.2 -3 6 16
Gonzaga 36.7 26.7 +14 5 7
Pct./Avg. 35.3 26.7 +6.8 5.3 8.0
** opponent scoring avg. 50.8
STREAKING TIGERS
Don't look now, but Memphis has quietly put together a 21-game win streak. The streak is the longest in the nation, and the following shows the top-five current win streaks in NCAA Division I:
Top-Five NCAA Division I Win Streaks
(Through Mar. 5)
Team Streak Next Game
1. Memphis 21 Tulane/Mar. 7
2. Weber State 12 Big Sky Tour./Mar. 10
3. American 11 Army/Mar. 8
4. Creighton 10 MVC Tour./Mar. 6
5. Two teams tied 8
MARCH IS WHAT 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 86-27 record (.761 winning percentage) in games played in March. Last year, Memphis posted a perfect 10-0 record in the month of March.
In his previous 16 years as a collegiate head coach, Calipari guided his teams to 15 postseasons (10 NCAA, five NIT). He led UMass to the 1996 NCAA Final Four and Memphis to the 2008 NCAA title game and 2002 NIT championship.
COUNTDOWN TO A SECOND 500; NEEDS THREE ASSISTS TO REACH MARK
Everyone knows Antonio Anderson's game is an all-around one, and the stats prove it. Earlier this season, the senior became the 45th member of the Tiger 1,000-point club in a win over Northeastern (Dec. 31, 2008).
Against UAB on Jan. 17, the 6-foot-6 guard grabbed his 500th rebound and now has 568 career boards. Up next for Anderson is to reach the 500-assists mark.
The Lynn, Mass., native has 497 career assists (sixth on career assists list), and on his pace of 4.2 dishes per game this year, he would reach the mark. If he is successful in reaching 500 assists, Anderson would become the only player in Memphis history to have 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists in a career.
Even more proof of his all-around game is that he has 205 career steals (fifth on career steals list).
"TAG" TEARING UP THE GLASS
Whatever has inspired Shawn Taggart of late, Tiger Nation hopes it continues the remainder of the regular season and into postseason play. In the eight recent Memphis victories over No. 18/18 Gonzaga, Tulsa, Southern Miss (twice), SMU, UTEP, UAB and Houston, the 6-foot-10 forward averaged 8.0 boards per game.
Taggart also shot the ball well from the charity stripe in those eight games. The Richmond, Va., native was 35-of-39 from the foul line (89.7 percent). The following is a rundown of what Taggart has done in the last eight games:
Opponent FG-A FT-A Reb Pts Blk
Houston 4-8 4-4 10 12 0
Southern Miss 4-5 0-0 5 8 0
UAB 3-6 7-9 11 13 2
UTEP 2-7 4-4 8 8 2
SMU 5-7 9-10 4 19 2
Southern Miss 2-2 4-4 11 8 0
Tulsa* 3-9 3-4 8 9 0
Gonzaga 2-6 4-4 7 8 3
Total 25-50 35-39 64 85 9
Pct./Avg. 50.0 89.7 8.0 10.6 1.1
* held Jerome Jordan to eight points and forced him into six turnovers
For more notes on Saturday's Memphis-Tulane game, click on pdf link at the top of the page.
