Tigers can bring NIT championship, 20-win season back to Memphis Sunday

Sunday, March 28

Frisco, Texas / Comerica Center

11 a.m.

University of Memphis

Mississippi State

Photo by: Roger Steinman Photos

Tigers can bring NIT championship, 20-win season back to Memphis Sunday

Mar 27, 2021 | Men's Basketball

Memphis Game Notes (PDF)Mississippi State Game Notes (PDF)NIT Bracket (PDF)

FRISCO, Texas – The Memphis Tigers can close the 2020-21 season on a major high note with a win over Mississippi State Sunday morning in the National Invitation Tournament championship game.

Tip-off in the title clash at Comerica Center in Frisco, Texas, is set for 11 a.m. on ESPN. The top-seeded Tigers took care of Dayton, Boise State and Colorado State en route to the title game appearance.

A win Sunday would be Memphis' fourth-straight and close its season with victories in 11 of its final 13 games since the calendar flipped to February. The only two losses were to top-10-ranked and Sweet 16 participant Houston, with one coming on a buzzer beater and another by two points.

This run to the NIT championship game could be immensely helpful for a young Tigers squad that starts one junior, three sophomores and a freshman. The Tigers are the youngest team still in action in either the NCAA Tournament or the NIT.

According to KenPom, the Tigers' roster has an average experience level of 1.08 years. Only Oklahoma State (1.06), Purdue (1.04), LSU (1.03) and North Carolina (1.01) had less experience among teams in the NCAA Tournament and the NIT, but those four schools have been eliminated from the NCAA Tournament.

Four Tigers are averaging double figures so far in the three NIT games. Landers Nolley II leads the way with 18.7 points per game, Lester Quinones is averaging 14.3, DeAndre Williams is averaging 14.0 and D.J. Jeffries is at 10.0 points per game.

Quinones is shooting 64.3 percent from 3-point range (9-14), and Nolley II is firing at a 12-for-27 clip from distance (.444). Jeffries and Damion Baugh have combined for 23 assists and seven turnovers.

Not only would a win Sunday bring a trophy to Memphis, but it would also be Memphis' fourth-straight 20-win season, including all three campaigns under head coach Penny Hardaway.

The Tigers have one NIT championship to their credit, which came in 2002, and Memphis was the runner-up in 1957 and placed third in 2001.

Tickets for Sunday's game at Comerica Center can be purchased at THIS LINK or at www.ComericaCenter.com. Tickets will not be sold through the Memphis Ticket Office.

Game Details
No. 1 Memphis (19-8) vs. No. 4 Mississippi State (18-14)
2021 NIT Championship
Sunday, March 28, 2021 | 11 a.m. CT
Comerica Center; Frisco, Texas
Television: ESPN (John Schriffen, pxp; Fran Fraschilla, analysis; Kris Budden, reporter)
Radio: 102.7 FM/600 AM (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)

By The Numbers
- 2002: The last time Memphis won the NIT championship; the Tigers were the runner-up in their first NIT appearance in 1957.
- 25.8: Memphis' average win total in the season immediately following its five previous NIT trips in the 2000s.
- 47: Games of postseason play accumulated by the Memphis roster so far this season after entering the AAC Tournament with a combined six games of postseason experience on its roster (five by Alex Lomax, one by Landers Nolley II).
- 62.7: Memphis' scoring defense ranks 20th in the country and is the Tigers' best in a campaign since 2008-09 (58.8) and ninth-best in a season since 1949-50.
- 4.4: Memphis' average defeat in its eight losses this season, including seven by single digits and its last four by one possession.

The Last Time Out
- An all-around complete game, including 27 points by Landers Nolley II and 21 from DeAndre Williams, powered the Tigers to the NIT championship game with a 90-67 win over Colorado State in the semifinals Saturday afternoon in Frisco, Texas.
- Nolley II scored 24 of his 27 points in the second half, including making six 3-pointers in 19 second-half minutes.
- He was 7-for-11 from long range in the game.
- Williams stuffed the stat sheet with nine rebounds, six assists and four steals to go along with the 21 points.
- He was 9-of-12 from the floor.
- Lester Quinones added 18 points and was 4-for-7 from 3-point range.
- D.J. Jeffries grabbed seven rebounds, dished out six assists and had nine points.
- The Tigers shot 55.7 percent from the field as a team (34-61), 51.9 percent from 3-point range (14-27) and made eight of their nine free throw attempts (.889).
- Memphis had 24 assists on its 34 baskets.
- Damion Baugh joined Jeffries and Williams with six assists in the game.
- Trailing 21-15 just over 10 minutes gone by in the game, the Tigers rattled off 15-straight points to take a 30-21 lead and had an extended 22-2 run over six minutes to open up a 14-point lead at 37-23.
- The Tiger defense forced 10-straight misses during this stretch.
- The Rams (20-7) did cut the lead to 44-38 at halftime and were within three at 44-41 after making the first basket of the second half, but Memphis promptly rattled off 12-straight points to take complete control of the rest of the ballgame.

Noting the Bulldogs
- Mississippi State finished the regular season with a 15-14 record and an 8-10 mark in SEC play.
- The fourth-seeded Bulldogs defeated top-seeded Saint Louis, Richmond and Louisiana Tech en route to the championship game.
- The Bulldogs are making their third postseason trip in the last four seasons and 12th of the 2000s.
- D.J. Stewart Jr. was named to the All-SEC Second Team this year, and Abdul Ado claimed one of the five spots on the All-SEC Defensive Team.