Men's basketball tips off at 2 p.m. against Tulane

Thursday, March 14

Memphis, Tenn.

2 PM

University of Memphis

Tulane

Tickets

Jeremiah Martin will lead the Tigers into the American Athletic Conference Championship.

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Mar 13, 2019 | Men's Basketball

Memphis AAC Tournament Notes (vs. Tulane)Tulane AAC Tournament Notes (vs. Memphis)

Tigers looking to take advantage of home in American Athletic Championship

By: Phil Stukenborg

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Four games in four days?

For the University of Memphis men's basketball team, that is the lofty goal that they are seeking at this week's 2019 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Championship at FedExForum.

As the No. 5 seed, the Tigers (19-12) did not receive a first-round bye and will need four wins in four days to ensure a trip the NCAA Tournament for the first time since the 2013-14 season, the UofM's first in the American Athletic Conference. Memphis plays its opening game in the tournament at 2 p.m. Thursday against No. 12 seed Tulane (4-26).

Memphis finished the regular-season with a 66-63 victory last weekend over Tulsa at FedExForum, the Tigers' sixth win in eight games.

As difficult as it would be to win four games in as many days, the Tigers will be playing at their FedExForum home, where they went 15-2 this losing with losses only to highly regarded ranked opposition: Tennessee and Cincinnati.

Tulane has struggled this season, but Tigers' first-year coach Penny Hardaway is not concerned with the Green Wave's record.

"We can't overlook Tulane," Hardaway said. "Their coach is definitely preparing for us like we're preparing for them. They'll come in with a scheme and we just have to protect home court. We don't take anybody for granted."

And the Tigers have prospered in recent weeks behind the spectacular play of senior point guard Jeremiah Martin. Martin, the conference's leading scorer at 19.7 points per game, has been a record-setting run since early February and was named to the league's all-conference first team earlier this week.

Since Feb. 2, Martin has had two games of 40 or more points, including setting The American's single-game scoring record with 43 points against Tulane. He's also had three other games with 30 or more points, including 37 in an impressive road win at Wichita State.

He averaged 30.6 points in February, the most in a single month in school history. He is the only player in program history to score 40 or more points twice in a career.

"We know other teams are going to game-plan him," Hardaway said. "To beat us they have to stop him. So other guys are really focused and ready to step up because we need more than him."

Hardaway said he realizes how challenging it could be for his team if the Tigers move deep into the tournament without a day's rest. But, he said, there are ways to get through the hurdles.

"Mental side of it is, we've already played everybody," Hardaway said. "We know what every team is going to do. We know the rosters, so that helps. The physical side is, you've got to get your rest and you've got to stay hydrated and you've got to eat properly. That all goes into what happens in games."

And, if he can, he will do his best to rest his key players in stretches.

"If we're handling business the way we're supposed to, I want to get the starters off the floor as much as I can," Hardaway said. "Hopefully, the bench can come in and sustain (the lead) or (extend it). That will allow us to have some fresher legs."

NOTABLES

Tigers guard Jeremiah Martin is the only player in The American ranked in the top in scoring (first), steals (second) and assists (fourth). Martin is averaging 19.7 points per game.
Tulane is 1-14 this season in games away from Fogelman Arena. The Green Wave has lost 20 straight games.
Tulane's last victory came Dec. 17, a 77-70 decision over Texas Southern.
The Tigers have a 33-9 record in conference tournament games played in Memphis. The UofM has reached the conference tournament championship at home 11 times and won seven league titles.
Martin has scored 1,527 career points to rank 11^th in school history. With 18 more points, he will move into a tie for 10^th with Chris Douglas-Roberts, who played from 2006 to '08.
Martin's 610 points are the sixth most by a Tiger senior in school history, ranking behind Larry Finch (721), Keith Lee (688), Elliot Perry (665), Rodney Carney (636) and Win Wilfong (629).
In the UofM's 102-76 victory over Tulane Feb. 20 at FedExForum, Martin set a conference single-game scoring record with 43 points. He surpassed the previous record of 42 set by Louisville's Russ Smith.