Tigers, No. 14 Houston Clash Sunday Morning at FedExForum in Regular Season Finale

Sunday, March 6

Memphis, Tenn.

11 a.m.

University of Memphis

Houston

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Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Tigers, No. 14 Houston Clash Sunday Morning at FedExForum in Regular Season Finale

Mar 04, 2022 | Men's Basketball

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The Memphis Tigers close the 2021-22 regular season with a showdown with 14th-ranked American Athletic Conference regular-season champion Houston Sunday morning at FedExForum. Game time is set for 11 a.m. on CBS, and the game is a White Out.

Sunday's game is sponsored by the Memphis Area Toyota Dealers, who will be distributing 500 free tickets in the FedExForum Grand Lobby when doors open at 10 a.m.

Winners of nine of its last 10 games and 12-of-16 overall, Memphis can pick up a second signature win over the Cougars in the last three weeks with a victory Sunday. It would also give the Tigers three-straight wins over ranked foes for the first time since their NCAA runner-up season of 2007-08.

With Houston having an NCAA NET ranking of 3, Sunday's game is an opportunity for Memphis to log a fourth Quad I win on the year. The 10 other teams in the AAC have combined for six Quad I wins this season. Of note, should Wichita State rise two spots in the NET from 77 to 75, Memphis' road win over the Shockers Jan. 1 would become a Quad I victory.

Memphis is currently lined up for the third seed in next week's AAC Tournament with its current 12-5 conference record. The Tigers can rise to the second seed with a win over Houston coupled with an SMU loss to Tulane Sunday afternoon.

Should the Tigers capture a 13th AAC win on the season, it would be their most since joining the conference prior to the 2013-14 season. Memphis went 12-6 in league action in its first season in the AAC in 2013-14.

Prior to Sunday's game, the Tigers are honoring the contributions of senior Alex Lomax. A native Memphian, Lomax has played 107 games in a Tiger uniform entering Sunday's contest.

After Sunday's game, the Tigers head to Fort Worth, Texas, for the AAC Tournament March 10-13 at Dickies Arena. The tournament bracket will be revealed Sunday evening after the conclusion of all games.

GAME DETAILS
Memphis Tigers (18-9, 12-5 AAC) vs. #14/14 Houston Cougars (26-4, 15-2 AAC)
Sunday, March 6, 2022 | 11 a.m. CT
FedExForum (18,400); Memphis, Tenn.
Television: CBS (Jim Nantz, pxp; Bill Raftery, analysis)
Radio: 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)

BY THE NUMBERS

2013-14: The last time Memphis defeated three ranked teams in the same season (5), which it can accomplish Sunday; also the last time the Tigers advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
11: AAC stat categories in which Memphis and Houston rank one-two (ppg, scoring margin, FG%, FG% defense, rebounding offense, rebounding defense, rebounding margin, blocks/gm, assists/gm, steals/gm, offensive rebs/gm).
14.4: Points per game by Jalen Duren during his current 10-game double-digit streak; the freshman is also averaging 8.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game during the stretch.
21:41: Time Memphis has trailed in its last eight wins out of the possible 320:00 of game time; that includes four games it did not trail at all and one game it was behind for 20 total seconds.

THE LAST TIME OUT

The Tigers won their ninth game out of the last 10 Thursday night at South Florida, coming away with a 73-64 victory at Yuengling Center.
With the win, Memphis earned its most conference wins since also winning 12 league games in 2013-14.
Jalen Duren logged a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Tyler Harris added 14 points.
Alex Lomax finished with 12, four rebounds, four assists and two steals, and Lester Quinones and DeAndre Williams had 11 apiece.
Memphis committed just six turnovers in the game, its season low and fewest in a game since 2017.
The Tigers scored the final seven points of the first half after South Florida came within a point, and Memphis went into the locker room with a 32-24 advantage.
Duren had 12 points and four rebounds in the opening 20 minutes.
After the Bulls pulled within four at the 13:57 mark of the second half, Memphis scored the next seven points and 14 of 19 to create some breathing room at 53-40.
South Florida got within four once again with 12 seconds to go in the game, but Lomax scored the final five points of the contest and had a key steal.
South Florida (8-21, 3-14 AAC) was led by Russel Tchewa's 13 points.

NOTING THE OPPONENT

Coming off a Final Four appearance in 2021, Houston was picked as American Athletic Conference favorite in 2021-22.
Memphis was six points behind the Cougars in the preseason coaches poll.
The Cougars return Marcus Sasser, who was an all-conference second team member in 2020-21, and Fabian White Jr., who started 31 games and averaged 9.3 points per game in 2019-20.
Sasser and Tramon Mark, who hit a buzzer-beater to defeat the Tigers in last year's regular-season finale in Houston, are out for the season due to injury.
Emerging on the scene after the injury bug bit are Josh Carlton and Jamal Shead.
Carlton is the AAC's third-leading rebounder (6.7).
Shead leads the league in assists at 5.9 per game.
With Monday's latest release, the Cougars are ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 for the 43rd consecutive week, extending their school record.
Houston has been ranked in every AP poll since Jan. 20, 2019.
Through games of March 1, Houston was one of six schools to rank among KenPom's top-20 national leaders in both offensive and defensive efficiency.
The Cougars stand 11th nationally in offensive efficiency (117.5) and 15th in defensive (91.5).
Houston joins Gonzaga, Auburn, UCLA, Arizona and Baylor in the top-15 in both categories.
In terms of raw numbers, Houston is the nation's top field-goal percentage defense (.368) and is fourth in scoring defense (57.8).

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