Brooks Hot Hand Leads Tigers to Exhibition Win

Thursday, November 4

Memphis, Tenn.

7 p.m.

University of Memphis

0-0,0-0AAC

King University

0-0,0-0Conference Carolinas

King (TN)

Memphis

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Nov 04, 2021 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Tiger's got their first taste of the season in their exhibition match-up against King University. While the Tornado kept it close in the first half, Memphis would get an astounding 23-point performance from Makaiya Brooks to cruise to the 98-61 win.

"The 15 people we were able to play gave us some really good minutes and gave us the opportunity to see some different line-ups," said head coach Katrina Merriweather. "These players have worked really hard since I got here to prove that they want a chance, and they deserve that."

Brooks opened up shop in the first quarter with three consecutive three-pointers to push the Tigers lead out to 11-5 through the first five minutes of play. Coriah Beck followed Brooks third three-pointer up with a big block down in the post on the defensive end.

King would fight back with baskets from Kiki Samsel and Brianna Dunbar to cut Memphis' lead to 11-9, and even tie the game at 12-12 off Semsel's second three-pointer of the game. Jamirah Shutes would end the quarter with two made free-throws to push the Tigers lead back out to 19-14.

Brooks' hot hand continued in to the second quarter, going 2-3 from behind the arc to help the Tigers score on six consecutive plays. On their 17-4 run, Memphis saw Aliyah Green, Maya Stovall and Tyler Frierson get buckets and take a 43-23 lead heading into halftime.

The Tiger's held the Tornado to just nine points in the second quarter while forcing them into five turnovers.

In the opening half, Memphis shot just over 55% from the field and went 6-11 from long range, all six from Brooks.

It was all Memphis in the third quarter. Beck, who made a pair of lay-ups and went 4-4 from the free-throw line led the team with eight points while freshmen Hannah Riddick, Aliyah Green and Laurren Randolph all picked up baskets. Randolph's fast break lay-up at the end of the quarter would push the Tiger's lead out to 69-33 going in to the final 10 minutes of play.

Memphis cruised in the fourth quarter, gaining a lead as large as 41 after Frierson completed an and one with six minutes left in the game.

King would attempt a late run after Jhayda McKinney drained back-to-back three-pointers. But the Tiger's lead was too much for the Tornado to stage a comeback.

Jatyjia Jones would sink the final Memphis bucket of the night with 22 seconds left on the clock to give the Tiger's the 98-61 win.

Brooks led all scorers with 23 points on 8-9 shooting while Beck and Jefferson added in 12 and 10, respectively. Jefferson and Lanetta Williams owned the boards tonight combining for 14 of the team's rebounds. Riddick, Alana Davis and En'Dya Buford all grabbed five rebounds as well.

"I think that we grew today, and I think we got better at some things, but it also showed us what we need to get better at before we play Xavier," said Merriweather.

Memphis will open the regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 9 against Xavier. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. in the Elma Roane Fieldhouse.

Tickets for Tuesday's game can be purchased at GoTigersGoTix.com or by calling (901) 678-2331.

How to follow the Tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tigers Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.