Tigers Basketball Resilient In 76-74 Win Saturday

Saturday, November 25

Memphis, Tenn.

5 PM

University of Memphis

3-1

Northern Kentucky

4-2

Northern Kentucky

Memphis

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Nov 25, 2017 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Memphis-Northern Kentucky Boxscore Quotes vs NKU Memphis Season Statistics

Rivers leads Memphis to victory with 17 points, seven rebounds.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Senior Jimario Rivers led four Tigers in double figures with 17 points, and the University of Memphis overcame a 16-point, first-half deficit to post a 76-74 non-conference victory over Northern Kentucky at FedExForum Saturday evening.

The win came on the heels of the Memphis football squad's regular-season home finale victory over ECU earlier in the day. The Tigers defeated the Pirates 70-13 to wrap up a 10-1 regular season and now play in next Saturday's American Athletic Conference title game at UCF.

Memphis' other players in double figures were Kyvon Davenport with 16 points, Jeremiah Martin with 15 and Jamal Johnson with 12. Rivers also led the Tigers on the glass with seven boards, and Martin handed out a team-high six assists and added a team-best four steals. Freshman David Nickelberry had his best outing of his young career with six points, six boards, three assists and two blocked shots.

The Tigers fell behind by as many as 16 in the first half when Northern Kentucky's Dantez Walton buried a trey for a 29-13 lead with 8:13 left before halftime. Memphis was able to slice the Norse lead to nine at 40-31 at the break.

Memphis made its first run at Northern Kentucky in the second half's first four minutes, cutting the Norse advantage to three at 44-41. The Norse regained their footing and rebuilt their lead to nine at 50-41 two minutes later.

Northern Kentucky maintained its nine-point lead at 56-47 after a Mason Faulkner trey, and that's when the Tigers made a huge run. The first portion of the spurt was a 12-2 run that gave Memphis its first lead of the game at 59-58 with 8:58 left. Nickelberry's three-pointer from the left corner pushed the Tigers into the lead.

The Norse quickly answered with a Lavone Holland trey to re-take the lead at 61-59 at 8:05. Memphis tied the game at 61-all on a Martin layup at 6:55, and then Johnson stepped up big to give the Tigers a lead they did not lose. Johnson hit consecutive three-pointers at the 6:00 and 4:25 marks for a 67-63 Memphis lead.

After a Davenport layup made it 69-65, Rivers and Martin each knocked down clutch free throws for a 73-65 advantage with 2:02 left.

The Norse, though, did not go quietly. Drew McDonald, the Horizon League preseason Player of the Year, hit a trey to cut the lead to 73-68. Two minutes later, a Jordan Garnett trey pulled Northern Kentucky to within one at 75-74 with :25 on the clock.

Johnson hit one free throw to extend the Memphis 76-74 with :06 left. A Holland three-point attempt with :01 missed its mark, and the Tigers came away with the win.

In the first half, the Norse jumped out to an 11-2 lead and never trailed in the game's first 20 minutes. Memphis pulled to within eight points three times, but got no closer the rest of the half. Northern Kentucky led 40-31 at the break.

Holland led all scorers with 19 points. Garnett added 15 points and McDonald 10. Holland dished out eight assists, and McDonald grabbed eight boards.

After shooting 37.5 percent in the first half, Memphis hit 62.5 percent after intermission and finished 48.2 percent from the floor. Northern Kentucky hit 44.3 percent from the floor and 36.7 percent from the arc. The Norse shot 45.5 percent from the arc in the first half and dropped to 31.6 percent in the second half. Memphis won the battle on the glass 39-30.

Memphis returns to action Thursday, Nov. 30 with its first road game of 2017-18. The Tigers travel to Birmingham, Ala., for a 7 p.m. (CT) encounter with longtime rival UAB.