Tigers open AAC tournament play vs. ECU

Thursday, March 12

Fort Worth, Texas

9 PM

University of Memphis

ECU

Boogie Ellis, 2020 Memphis men's basketball

Tigers are back in Texas to open play in the AAC Men's Championship.

Photo by: Erik Williams

Mar 11, 2020 | Men's Basketball

Memphis AAC Tournament Notes ECU AAC Tournament Notes

UofM, Pirates tip off at 9 p.m. at Fort Worth's Dickies Arena

By: Phil Stukenborg

EDITOR'S NOTE: American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco announced March 12 the 2020 Air Force Reserve Men's Basketball Championship -- scheduled March 12-15 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas -- would not be played. The decision was made in consultation with the Conference's leadership in light of recent developments regarding the spread of the COVID-19 virus.

FORT WORTH, Texas – Armed with some impressive postseason rewards hardware, the University of Memphis opens play Thursday in the 2020 Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Men's Championship.

The sixth-seeded Tigers (21-10) will meet No. 11 seed East Carolina (11-20) at 9 p.m. at newly opened Dickies Arena, the winner moving into Friday's quarterfinals against No. 3 seed Tulsa, which earned a first-round bye.

UofM freshman forward Precious Achiuwa will enter the opening-round game with an ego/confidence boost. Achiuwa, from Queens, N.Y., was named Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year Wednesday, a day after being selected to the AAC First Team and to the league's All-Freshman Team. Teammate Lester Quinones, a former high school teammate of his in New York, also earned a spot on the All-Freshman Team.

Achiuwa, considered an NBA lottery pick, is averaging a double-double (15.8 points, 10.8 rebounds) and is the only freshman in the country averaging a double-double. He'll lead the Tigers against ECU, which dropped a 77-73 to the UofM Feb. 19 in Memphis.

The Tigers have won four of six entering the tournament, one of the losses coming at No. 21 Houston last weekend.

To guarantee a berth in the NCAA tournament – which would be the program's first since 2014 – the Tigers need to win the AAC Men's Championship requiring four wins in as many days. No Memphis team has accomplished such a feat.

"There's a first time for everything," said Tigers coach Penny Hardaway. "What you have to do is take one day at a time. You got to have some luck. You've got to hope you have no injuries and go on to the next day. You have to stay out of foul trouble.

"You've got to do everything right to win four games in a row. It's not impossible. It's been done (by other programs) before, maybe not by our school, but it's been done."

Achiuwa, the only Tiger to start each of the team's 31 games, is averaging 20.3 points and 17.7 rebounds in his last three games.

"When the season started out, the game was a little too fast for me," Achiuwa said. "Eventually, everything slowed down. I think I'm at the point now where everything has slowed down. It just took patience and consistent work."

ECU is led by sophomore Jayden Gardner, the league's leading scorer at 19.7 points per game. Gardner is close to averaging a double-double. He grabs 9.2 rebounds per game.

The Pirates have lost three straight and six of their last seven.

TIGERS NOTEBOOK

The Tigers are playing ECU in a postseason game for the first time since March 11, 2011. In that game, the UofM beat the Pirates, 76-56, to advance to the Conference USA finals. Joe Jackson had 24 points to lead the Tigers.
Memphis is 5-0 when playing in Fort Worth, Texas. All five games were played against TCU.
In its history, the UofM is 6-6 in American Athletic Conference postseason games.
ECU assistant Steve Roccaforte is a former Tigers assistant coach under John Calipari. He served as an assistant from 2000 to 2003