University of Memphis Athletics
Memphis Basketball Notes
Dec 22, 2010 | Men's Basketball
Dec. 22, 2010
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Tigers On TV/Radio/Web
Television: ESPN2/Comcast channel 25 and digital channel 24 (Bob Wischusen, play-by-play; Stephen Bardo, color analyst)
Radio: WREC 600 AM (Dave Woloshin, play-by-play; Matt Dillon, color analyst; Forrest Goodman, studio host)
Web: ESPN3.com
MEMPHIS HOSTS GEORGETOWN THURSDAY IN BATTLE OF RANKED TEAMS
The University of Memphis squad (9-1, 0-0 C-USA), ranked No. 16 in Associated Press poll and No. 17 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll, continues its five-game homestand Thursday, Dec. 23 when it hosts No. 10/9 Georgetown (10-1, 0-0 Big East) at FedExForum. Game time is 7 p.m. (CT), and the contest is set to air on ESPN2 (Comcast channel 25/digital channel 24).
Thursday's game is the third of a five-game homestand for the Tigers. Memphis opened this stretch of home contests Dec. 16 with a thrilling overtime 70-68 win over Austin Peay and followed that with a 68-63 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 20. After Thursday, the homestand continues with games versus Lipscomb Dec. 30 and Tennessee State Jan. 2.
After suffering their first loss with an 81-68 setback to No. 4/4 Kansas in the Jimmy V Classic, the Tigers bounced back with wins over Austin Peay and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Prior to the loss, Memphis started the season 7-0, including four wins over Centenary, Northwestern State, LSU and Tennessee Martin to take the 2010 Global Sports Challenge title. The Tigers also have wins over Miami (Fla.), Arkansas State and Western Kentucky.
Memphis, picked to reclaim the Conference USA crown in most preseason publications and websites, returns two starters and six letterwinners from last year's squad that won 24 games (24-10 record) and advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) second round.
Georgetown, ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll and No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll, enters Thursday's contest with a 10-1 overall record. The Hoyas won their last outing, a 99-75 victory over Loyola on Dec. 18. Georgetown's lone loss was a narrow 68-65 setback to Temple in Philadelphia, Pa., on Dec. 9. Among the Hoyas' other wins are victories over Old Dominion, N.C. State, Missouri and Utah State.
SCOUTING THE HOYAS
Georgetown, ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll and No. 9 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll, enters Thursday's contest with a 10-1 overall record. The Hoyas won their last outing, a 99-75 victory over Loyola on Dec. 18. Georgetown's lone loss is a narrow 68-65 setback to Temple in Philadelphia, Pa., on Dec. 9. Among the Hoyas' other wins are victories over Old Dominion, N.C. State, Missouri and Utah State.
The Hoyas were picked to finish fourth in the Big East Conference in the league's preseason poll.
The trio of seniors Austin Freeman and Chris Wright and junior Jason Clark paces the Georgetown offense. Freeman leads the team with an 18.5 scoring average, and Clark (14.2 ppg) and Wright (13.2 ppg) also average double figures. Senior Julian Vaughn leads the Hoyas on the glass with a 6.7 rebounding average, while sophomore Hollis Thompson is second at 5.0 rpg. Wright is tops on the squad with 74 total assists (6.7 apg) and 22 total steals (2.0 spg).
Georgetown is lighting it up from the field and free throw line. The Hoyas are shooting 52.5 percent from the floor, 42.5 percent from the three-point arc and 74 percent from the charity stripe. Georgetown is out-rebounding its opponents by an average margin of +7.5 boards per game (35.4-27.9). The Hoyas share the ball well, recording 18.5 assists per game.
MEMPHIS VS. THE BIG EAST
The Tigers are 127-139 all-time versus current members of the Big East Conference. Memphis has played Cincinnati (31-36), Connecticut (1-0), DePaul (14-12), Georgetown (2-7), Louisville (34-51), Marquette (14-12), Pittsburgh (1-1), Providence (2-3), St. John's (1-1), Seton Hall (3-1), Syracuse (1-3), USF (18-3), Villanova (4-8) and West Virginia (1-1).
Memphis has played 14 of the 16 Big East schools, leaving Notre Dame and Rutgers as the only two league programs the Tigers have not faced. Most of the contests versus Cincinnati, DePaul, Louisville, Marquette and USF were former league games (Missouri Valley, Metro, Great Midwest, Conference USA).
Since the start of the 2005-06 campaign (when the Big East realigned), Memphis is 9-3 against teams from the Big East.
The last time the Tigers played a Big East opponent was last season. In fact, Memphis played two Big East Conference foes in 2009-10, falling to Syracuse 74-57 in a regular season encounter at the Carrier Dome (Jan. 6) and defeating St. John's 73-71 in the NIT first round at FedExForum (Mar. 17).
HAPPY 300 FOR THE TIGERS!!!
With its 68-63 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Dec. 20, Memphis became the third NCAA Division I program to win 300 games in the 21st century (since 2000-01 season). Memphis' 300 wins are third to Duke's 336 and Kansas' 325 victories in that same span of time.
TIGERS LOVE HOLIDAY HOOPS
The holidays are a time to spread good cheer. Well, the Tigers have done just that for their fans since the 1999-2000 campaign. When playing over the holidays (Dec. 22-Jan. 4), Memphis has an impressive 29-6 record (.829 winning percentage) since the 1999-2000 campaign. Since 2005-06, the Tigers are 16-2 (.889 winning percentage) in "Holiday Hoops" contests.
SIMILAR SHOES
Although the head coaches in Thursday's game are at different points currently in their careers, Josh Pastner and John Thompson III had similar starts to their NCAA Division I coaching careers. The following shows some of those similarities:
Pastner Similarities Thompson III
Arizona Alma Mater/Asst. Coach Princeton
6 Yrs. As Asst. 6
31 Age When Hired For 34
@UofM 1st Head Coach Job @Princeton
Calipari Coach He Followed Carmody
28.0/9 yrs Avg. Wins of Coach 23.0/4 yrs
He Followed
24-10 1st Season Record 16-11
13-3 1st Season Conf. Record 11-3
NIT Postseason Berth NCAA
(2nd Rd.) (1st Rd.)
DO YOU REMEMBER?
For many Tiger fans, they may want to forget. But, playing another Big East Conference team on Dec. 23 in an ESPN2-televised game conjures up memories of six years ago. The date was Dec. 23, 2004, and the Tigers were hosting Big East foe Providence at FedExForum in an ESPN2 contest -- a "seemingly" normal final game before the Christmas holiday.
However, it was far from normal when a winter storm dropped 5-to-7 inches of pure ice on the city of Memphis and the Mid-South region. With Providence and the game's officials in town, it was "game-on" despite the icy conditions. But, 2,400 fans braved the extremely icy roads to watch the game in FedExForum, which holds 18,400.
In fact, ESPN2 play-by-play announcer Bob Carpenter was unable to fly into Memphis and drove from his home in Tulsa, Okla. After driving for over 14 hours, Carpenter got to FedExForum 10 minutes into the first half (game tipped at 9 p.m. CT). Local broadcaster Greg Gaston filled in for Carpenter until he arrived.
As for this Thursday, it looks as there will be no repeat of 2004. The forecast is calling for cold temperatures, but no precipitation.
HERE WE GO AGAIN
For the fifth time in the series, Memphis and Georgetown enter their encounter with both teams ranked in the national polls. In fact, Thursday's game is the third-straight meeting in which both squads enter the game ranked in the polls. The following shows those ranked meetings:
Year Ranking Result
UofM GU
2010 #16/17 #10/9 --
2008 #17/15 #19/19 GU, 79-70 (ot)
2007^ #2/2 #5/4 UofM, 85-71
1996 #15 #14 GU, 81-60
1983* #17 #20 UofM, 66-57
^ First-ever meeting between top-5 teams in Memphis
* NCAA Tournament 2nd Round
TIGERS PRE-CHRISTMAS GIFT
The Tigers enjoy this time of the year -- the season of giving. And they enjoy it most when they can give their fans a win right before the Christmas holiday. In the last 10 years, Memphis is 8-2 in its final game before Christmas, including an 85-71 victory over Georgetown in 2007-08.
YOUTH VERSUS EXPERIENCE
Memphis will find itself in a lot of these match-ups in 2010-11, and one of those is Thursday versus No. 10/9 Georgetown. The Tigers bring a roster with only one senior and three juniors, but one junior -- Preston Laird -- has limited playing experience and another junior -- Wesley Witherspoon -- is out after undergoing surgery Dec. 10. On the other bench, the Hoyas have a combined six players that are juniors and seniors.
To take it further, the starting lineup for Memphis in its last outing included one senior, one junior (first-year player at Memphis) and three freshmen. For Georgetown, its last game starters were three seniors, one junior and one sophomore.
MORE YOUTH VERSUS EXPERIENCE
To take the Youth vs. Experience a little further, Georgetown has two players -- seniors Austin Freeman and Chris Wright -- who played in both the 2007-08 and 2008-09 meetings with Memphis. In the 2008-09 encounter, junior Jason Clark saw action against the Tigers.
On the Memphis roster, there are no players who saw game action in the 2007-08 contest and only one who played in the 2008-09 game. The Tiger that played in 2008-09 is junior Wesley Witherspoon, who is out after undergoing knee surgery Dec. 10. The following is a breakdown of what returns for Thursday's game:
Memphis Stat Georgetown
0 Players from 2007-08 2
0/0 Combined Pts/Rebs 23/2
From Game
1 Player from 2008-09 3
7/6 Combined Pts/Rebs 36/13
From Game
FINAL FOUR "FEEL" THURSDAY
Thursday's contest will have a Final Four "feel," as both Josh Pastner and John Thompson III have been a part of squads that played on the "Big Dance's" largest stage.
For Pastner, he's made two trips to the NCAA Final Four -- once as a player and once as a staff member -- while at Arizona. Pastner was a player on the 1997 Arizona squad that won the NCAA title, and was a member of Lute Olson's staff that advanced to the NCAA championship game in 2001.
In only his second season at Georgetown, Thompson guided the Hoyas on an NCAA Final Four ride in 2007.
SHARING THE WEALTH
Of course, this is the season for sharing, and the Tigers and Hoyas have been in the sharing mood in the early portion of the 2010-11 campaign. Memphis leads Conference USA and is ranked 25th in the country in assists at 16.2 apg. On the other side, Georgetown is second in the Big East Conference and sixth in the nation at 18.5 apg.
A SCORING AFFAIR
Fans had better get their running shoes on for Thursday, as both teams get up-and-down the court and put the ball in the hoop. Memphis and Georgetown both rank among the top-20 scoring offenses in the nation. In the latest NCAA statistical rankings released Dec. 19, the Tigers were 15th and the Hoyas 18th in scoring offense.
TIGER THIEVES
When it comes to taking the ball away from their opponents, the Tigers are among the nation's best. Memphis leads Conference USA and is ranked third in the country at 11.2 steals per game.
On their current pace of 11.2 swipes per game, the 2010-11 Tigers would get close to the single-season record for steals, which is 361 swipes set by the 2005-06 squad.
THERE'S MY SUPERMAN
He's back! After his Memphis Madness performance in which he donned a cape for one of his dunks, Will Coleman began the 2010-11 season in an "un-Superman" funk. Tiger Nation had become accustomed to not only Coleman's high-flying dunks, but his patroling of the lane with his shot-blocking ability.
In the first six games, the 6-foot-9 forward was averaging only 1.0 blocks per game. However, Superman has come alive in Memphis' last four games, averaging 2.8 blocks per contest. Coleman had four blocked shots in each win over Austin Peay Dec. 16 and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Dec. 20.
TIGER SUCCESS AT FEDEXFORUM
After a rough first year at their new home in 2004-05, the Tigers bounced back quite nicely and made FedExForum one of the toughest arenas for opponents to play in. The Tigers have a 118-13 overall record (.901 winning percentage) at FedExForum.
Since the 2005 Conference USA Tournament, Memphis has won 108 of its last 115 home games (.939 winning percentage).
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
Memphis has had a long history of success in non-league games, and that has continued in recent years. Since 1999-2000, the Tigers have a non-conference record (including postseason) of 155-52 for a 74.9 winning percentage.
In 2009-10, Memphis had an 11-6 record against non-conference opponents (including postseason).
DECEMBER GOOD TO TIGERS
Since the 1999-2000 season, the Tigers have a 57-24 record (.703 winning percentage) when playing in the month of December. Memphis was 5-2 last December and has won 32 of its last 39 December contests (.821 winning percentage), dating back to the 2004-05 season.
BEST 10-GAME STARTS LAST 20 YEARS
While it hasn't been pretty at times early this season, the 2010-11 Tigers have a 9-1 record in their first 10 games. The 9-1 record is tied for the second-best, 10-game start to a season in the last 20 years.
The lone better 10-game start was the perfect 10-0 record in the 2007-08 season, which ended in a trip to the NCAA championship game. The following shows the 10-game starts for each season since 1991-92:
10-Game Starts/Last 20 Years
Year Record Year Record
2010-11 9-1% 2000-01 4-6
2009-10 8-2 1999-2000 5-5
2008-09 7-3 1998-99 6-4
2007-08 10-0# 1997-98 6-4
2006-07 8-2 1996-97 5-5
2005-06 9-1% 1995-96 8-2
2004-05 6-4 1994-95 7-3
2003-04 8-2 1993-94 5-5
2002-03 8-2 1992-93 6-4
2001-02 7-3 1991-92 7-3
# Best 10-game start last 20 years
% Second-best 10-game start last 20 years
For more notes on the Memphis-Georgetown match-up, click on pdf link at the top of the page.
