Sunday, February 28
Cincinnati, Ohio
Noon
University of Memphis
at
Cincinnati
Photo by: Joe Murphy
Red-hot Memphis starts final week of regular season Sunday at Cincinnati
Feb 27, 2021 | Men's Basketball
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Memphis Tigers begin the home stretch of the regular season Sunday afternoon at Cincinnati. The noon CT tip-off on ESPN is the first game of a three-game road trip to conclude the regular season for the Tigers.
Memphis and Cincinnati are two of the hottest teams in the American Athletic Conference. The Tigers have won four-straight games and seven of their last eight, and Cincinnati has won six of its last seven outings.
The Tigers are currently in third place in the AAC standings, two games ahead of fifth-place Cincinnati.
A win for Memphis on Sunday would give the Tigers 10 conference wins for the fourth-straight season and each of the three campaigns under head coach Penny Hardaway. Another 10-win season in conference play would also be the Tigers' 18th of the 2000s.
Memphis versus Cincinnati always seems to be a battle, but the Bearcats have had the Tigers' number lately, especially at home. Memphis has lost the last seven matchups contested in Cincinnati, with its last win in The Queen City coming on Dec. 19, 2007, 79-69.
The two teams were scheduled to play earlier this month in Memphis on Feb. 11, but the game was postponed due to COVID-19-related issues within the Tigers program.
Game Details
Memphis (13-6, 9-3 AAC) at Cincinnati (9-8, 7-5 AAC)
Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021 | Noon CT
Fifth Third Arena; Cincinnati, Ohio
Television: ESPN (Kevin Brown, pxp; Jon Crispin, analysis)
Radio: 102.7 FM/600 AM (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)
By The Numbers
- 7: Conference opponents out of 12 this season the Tigers have held to fewer than 60 points; it was six in 54 games in the last three seasons combined.
- 5: Memphis freshman since 1992-93, including Moussa Cisse this season, who have averaged at least 7.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game (list on page four of game notes).
- 4: Defensive categories in which Memphis ranks in the top-11 in the nation (3-point defense, 4th; field goal defense, 5th; steals per game, 8th; blocked shots per game, 11th).
- 2: Teams, Memphis and Houston, ranked in the top-5 in the nation in both adjusted defensive efficiency and effective field goal percentage; the Tigers are second nationally in both categories.
- 1: Other five-game winning streak for the Tigers since 2016-17 (10-straight, 2019-20), which this Memphis team can also accomplish with a win on Sunday.
The Last Time Out
- In their first game since Feb. 6 after four postponements due to COVID-19-related issues within the program, the Tigers picked up their fourth-straight win and seventh in the last eight games with a 61-46 victory over Tulane Wednesday night at FedExForum.
- The 46 points are the fewest Memphis has allowed to an American Athletic Conference opponent under head coach Penny Hardaway.
- The Tigers limited the Green Wave to 25.9 percent shooting (15-58), a season low and the lowest by an opponent since Tennessee shot 25.0 percent (15-60) against the Tigers on Dec. 14, 2019.
- Boogie Ellis led the Tigers with 13 points, going 3-of-7 from 3-point range, and DeAndre Williams had 11 rebounds and dished out five assists.
- Nine Tigers had at least five points Wednesday night.
- Alex Lomax had six points and a season-high six rebounds, and with his fourth point of the game he hit the 500-point mark for his Memphis career.
- The Green Wave's only lead was 2-0.
- Memphis shot 38.9 percent in the contest (21-54) and dominated Tulane on the boards, 53-29.
- The Tigers had 15 assists on their 21 field goals.
Noting the Bearcats
- Cincinnati shared The American regular season championship in 2019-20 and returns its second- and third-leading scorers.
- Keith Williams (12.6 ppg) scored in double figures in 12 of the last 13 games in 2019-20 and Chris Vogt (11.0 ppg) shot 64.8 percent from the field last season.
- Williams was on the preseason first team leading into this year, and Vogt was on the second team.
- The Bearcats were picked to finish fourth in the AAC's preseason poll, two spots behind Memphis.
- Cincinnati had six-straight games postponed, one rescheduled, from Jan. 13-30 due to COVID-19-related issues.
Looking Ahead
After Sunday, the Tigers remain on the road and head to Tampa to play USF Tuesday night at 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The regular season concludes next Sunday, March 7, at Houston, which was moved from being played FedExForum in Memphis. Houston is currently in second place in the AAC at 12-3, just winning percentage points behind conference-leading Wichita State at 9-2. Tip-off at Houston will be at 11 a.m., and the game will be televised on CBS.
Information on tickets for the 2021 Air Force Reserve AAC Men's Basketball Championship, scheduled for March 11-14 in Fort Worth, Texas, will be forthcoming from the Memphis Ticket Office. Questions or requests for additional information may be directed to the Ticket Office at (901) 678-2331 or tigertickets@memphis.edu.
Memphis and Cincinnati are two of the hottest teams in the American Athletic Conference. The Tigers have won four-straight games and seven of their last eight, and Cincinnati has won six of its last seven outings.
The Tigers are currently in third place in the AAC standings, two games ahead of fifth-place Cincinnati.
A win for Memphis on Sunday would give the Tigers 10 conference wins for the fourth-straight season and each of the three campaigns under head coach Penny Hardaway. Another 10-win season in conference play would also be the Tigers' 18th of the 2000s.
Memphis versus Cincinnati always seems to be a battle, but the Bearcats have had the Tigers' number lately, especially at home. Memphis has lost the last seven matchups contested in Cincinnati, with its last win in The Queen City coming on Dec. 19, 2007, 79-69.
The two teams were scheduled to play earlier this month in Memphis on Feb. 11, but the game was postponed due to COVID-19-related issues within the Tigers program.
Game Details
Memphis (13-6, 9-3 AAC) at Cincinnati (9-8, 7-5 AAC)
Sunday, Feb. 28, 2021 | Noon CT
Fifth Third Arena; Cincinnati, Ohio
Television: ESPN (Kevin Brown, pxp; Jon Crispin, analysis)
Radio: 102.7 FM/600 AM (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)
By The Numbers
- 7: Conference opponents out of 12 this season the Tigers have held to fewer than 60 points; it was six in 54 games in the last three seasons combined.
- 5: Memphis freshman since 1992-93, including Moussa Cisse this season, who have averaged at least 7.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game (list on page four of game notes).
- 4: Defensive categories in which Memphis ranks in the top-11 in the nation (3-point defense, 4th; field goal defense, 5th; steals per game, 8th; blocked shots per game, 11th).
- 2: Teams, Memphis and Houston, ranked in the top-5 in the nation in both adjusted defensive efficiency and effective field goal percentage; the Tigers are second nationally in both categories.
- 1: Other five-game winning streak for the Tigers since 2016-17 (10-straight, 2019-20), which this Memphis team can also accomplish with a win on Sunday.
The Last Time Out
- In their first game since Feb. 6 after four postponements due to COVID-19-related issues within the program, the Tigers picked up their fourth-straight win and seventh in the last eight games with a 61-46 victory over Tulane Wednesday night at FedExForum.
- The 46 points are the fewest Memphis has allowed to an American Athletic Conference opponent under head coach Penny Hardaway.
- The Tigers limited the Green Wave to 25.9 percent shooting (15-58), a season low and the lowest by an opponent since Tennessee shot 25.0 percent (15-60) against the Tigers on Dec. 14, 2019.
- Boogie Ellis led the Tigers with 13 points, going 3-of-7 from 3-point range, and DeAndre Williams had 11 rebounds and dished out five assists.
- Nine Tigers had at least five points Wednesday night.
- Alex Lomax had six points and a season-high six rebounds, and with his fourth point of the game he hit the 500-point mark for his Memphis career.
- The Green Wave's only lead was 2-0.
- Memphis shot 38.9 percent in the contest (21-54) and dominated Tulane on the boards, 53-29.
- The Tigers had 15 assists on their 21 field goals.
Noting the Bearcats
- Cincinnati shared The American regular season championship in 2019-20 and returns its second- and third-leading scorers.
- Keith Williams (12.6 ppg) scored in double figures in 12 of the last 13 games in 2019-20 and Chris Vogt (11.0 ppg) shot 64.8 percent from the field last season.
- Williams was on the preseason first team leading into this year, and Vogt was on the second team.
- The Bearcats were picked to finish fourth in the AAC's preseason poll, two spots behind Memphis.
- Cincinnati had six-straight games postponed, one rescheduled, from Jan. 13-30 due to COVID-19-related issues.
Looking Ahead
After Sunday, the Tigers remain on the road and head to Tampa to play USF Tuesday night at 8 p.m. CT on ESPNU. The regular season concludes next Sunday, March 7, at Houston, which was moved from being played FedExForum in Memphis. Houston is currently in second place in the AAC at 12-3, just winning percentage points behind conference-leading Wichita State at 9-2. Tip-off at Houston will be at 11 a.m., and the game will be televised on CBS.
Information on tickets for the 2021 Air Force Reserve AAC Men's Basketball Championship, scheduled for March 11-14 in Fort Worth, Texas, will be forthcoming from the Memphis Ticket Office. Questions or requests for additional information may be directed to the Ticket Office at (901) 678-2331 or tigertickets@memphis.edu.
Players Mentioned
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