Tigers make winning plays down the stretch for sixth win in seven games

Saturday, February 6

Memphis, Tenn.

1 p.m.

University of Memphis

12-6,8-3AAC

East Carolina

8-7,2-7AAC

East Carolina

Memphis

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Tigers make winning plays down the stretch for sixth win in seven games

Feb 06, 2021 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Alex Lomax was one assist shy of a double-double, and Lester Quinones buried a massive 3-pointer with 26 seconds left to help the Memphis Tigers to a 66-59 win over East Carolina Saturday afternoon at FedExForum.

Memphis (12-6, 8-3) has won six of its last seven games and is 8-3 in American Athletic Conference action for the first time since 2013-14. The Tigers have now won six-straight games against the Pirates (8-7, 2-7 AAC).

Lomax turned in an impressive stat line of 10 points, nine assists, five steals, and five rebounds, and he was one assist shy of Memphis' first points-assists double-double since Jeremiah Martin at Cincinnati on Feb. 23, 2017.

Landers Nolley II finished with 12 points and five rebounds, and D.J. Jeffries added 12 and four. DeAndre Williams led Memphis with eight rebounds to go along with seven points, and Malcolm Dandridge had seven points, two rebounds, a steal, and two blocked shots in 14 key minutes off the bench.

Memphis led by as many as 13 points in the first half and by nine at halftime, but the Tigers found themselves trailing the Pirates at the 5:00-mark of the second half, 54-53, after the Pirates came out on fire in the second half.

Nolley II split a pair of free throws to tie the game at 54 with 3:47 to play, and Lomax came up with a steal to feed a Jeffries jumper to put Memphis back on top. A couple of minutes later East Carolina's Jayden Gardner made two free throws to bring the Pirates back within two, but on the next possession Lomax dished it Quinones in the corner, who buried a triple to give the Tigers a two-possession lead with 26 ticks left on the clock.

That was all the Tigers needed to finish off the victory and end a stretch of seven games in the last 17 days with a win.

Gardner, the second-leading scorer in the AAC entering the game, led all players with 23 points and nine rebounds.

The Tigers made seven of their first 10 shots of the game and opened up a 21-8 lead nine minutes into the contest. Six different Tigers hit baskets during that stretch. From there, however, East Carolina scored 11-straight to cut the Memphis advantage to 21-19, but a Dandridge and-1 dunk ended the burst.

Nolley II hit back-to-back 3s a couple of minutes later to help push the Memphis advantage back to seven, and Boogie Ellis followed with a triple of his own to help send the Tigers into the halftime locker room up 35-26.

Memphis had 10 assists on its 11 first-half baskets, with Lomax having six of those in 12 minutes.

The Tigers ended the game with 14 assists on their 20 field goals and held East Carolina to 1-of-13 shooting from behind the arc (.077).

Up Next
The last game on Memphis' current four-game homestand is Thursday against Cincinnati at 6 p.m. on ESPN2 or ESPNU. After that, the Tigers hit the road for crucial contests at Houston (Feb. 14) and Wichita State (Feb. 18).

A limited number of tickets are available for home games with social distancing safety guidelines in place. Tickets may be purchased online at www.GoTigersGoTix.com or by calling (901) 678-2331. Fans with existing season tickets or ticket packages can use their current tickets for upcoming games. More information can be found at www.GoTigersGo.com.

Postgame Notes

Memphis used the starting lineup of Boogie Ellis, Lester Quinones, Landers Nolley II, DeAndre Williams, and Moussa Cisse for the third-straight game.
- When it was used for the first time before Memphis' game against UCF on Feb. 1, it became the Tigers' eighth different starting lineup in the first 16 games.
The Tigers now lead the all-time series between the two schools 23-4.
- That includes a 13-1 mark in games contested in Memphis.
Memphis has won six-straight games at FedExForum and is 9-1 at home this season.
The win was Memphis' first of the season when trailing with 5:00 to play in the game.
- The Tigers were down 54-53 at that point and were 0-4 this season before today.
Alex Lomax filled the stat sheet with 10 points, nine assists, five steals, and five rebounds.
- The nine assists were two shy of a career high, set earlier this season against Mississippi Valley State (Dec. 8).
- He is averaging 6.0 assists per game over Memphis' last seven outings.
- He has also scored in double figures in three of the last five games.
- The five steals matched a career high (2x, last at South Florida, Jan. 12, 2020), and the five rebounds equaled his season high (2x, last vs. Auburn, Dec. 12).
Landers Nolley II had 12 points for his team-best 13th game in double figures.
- He was 3-for-7 from 3-point range and has made multiple triples in four of the last five games.
D.J. Jeffries' 12-point game marked his second-straight game in double figures.