Men's Basketball faces Little Rock at FedExForum

Wednesday, December 19

Memphis, Tenn.

7 PM

University of Memphis

Little Rock

Tickets

Tigers guard Alex Lomax (2) scores on a floater in the lane against Tennessee.

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Dec 18, 2018 | Men's Basketball

Memphis Notes (vs. Little Rock)Little Rock Notes (vs. Memphis)

Tigers looking to regroup after battling nation's third-ranked team.

By: Phil Stukenborg

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – After a solid outing against the nation's third-ranked team, the University of Memphis resumes its December home schedule at 7 Wednesday night against Little Rock at FedExForum.

The Tigers (5-5) battled the No. 3 Tennessee Volunteers for 40 minutes Saturday in front of a sold-out crowd of more than 18,000 before falling 102-92. UofM coach Penny Hardaway is hoping the experience against one of the nation's top teams proves beneficial as the Tigers conclude their non-conference schedule with games against Little Rock, Tennessee State (Saturday) and Florida A&M (Dec. 29).

Memphis is in the midst of a seven-game home stand that began Dec. 4 with a victory over South Dakota State and ends Jan. 3 when the Tigers open American Athletic Conference play against Wichita State.

Against Little Rock, the Tigers will hope to build on a second half against Tennessee in which they shot 57.5 percent and outscored the Vols, 57-52. In its previous two games, the UofM shot 50.8 percent and 53.6 percent to record wins over South Dakota State and UAB.

"It stung," Tigers guard Antwann Jones said of the loss to the Vols. "But it let us know we can compete with anybody."

Hardaway said he learned a lot about his team Saturday against Tennessee.

"I learned that we didn't quit," he said. "We gave them everything we had. I was proud we kept fighting."

Little Rock (5-6) is led by first-year coach Darrell Walker, the former University of Arkansas standout and NBA head coach. Walker, who played 10 seasons in the NBA, was named Little Rock's coach a week after Hardaway was named Memphis coach in mid-March.

Redshirt junior Rayjon Tucker, a Florida Gulf Coast transfer, paces the Trojans. He is averaging 20.5 points and 6.5 rebounds.

For the Tigers, no player has been more productive the past two games than forward Kyvon Davenport. A senior from Gainesville, Ga., Davenport scored a career-high 31 points in the loss to Tennessee and 21 points in a 94-76 win over UAB.

For his efforts, Davenport earned a spot on the AAC Weekly Honor Roll for the second time this season. He earned the same recognition after opening the season with a 30-point effort in a victory over Tennessee Tech.

Davenport was unstoppable during a five-minute stretch of the second half against Tennessee when he scored 18 consecutive points. He amassed points in a variety of ways during his personal run, from dropping in shots beyond the arc to a mix of layups, dunks, putbacks and free throws. He scored 26 of his 31 points in the second half.

QUICK FACTS

With his back-to-back games of 21 and 31 points, Memphis forward Kyvon Davenport has regained the team lead in scoring with a 15.7 average.
Little Rock guard Rayjon Tucker has scored in double figures in each of the 10 games he has played.
The Tigers are Trojans are meeting for the seventh time. Memphis has won the previous six, including 70-62 last year at FedExForum.
Little Rock coach Darrell Walker guided Clark Atlanta University to a 45-18 record in two seasons and back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Division 2 tournament.