Senior Night Showdown Awaits as Memphis Hosts South Florida

Thursday, March 5

Memphis, Tenn.

8:00 PM

University of Memphis

South Florida

Senior Night Showdown Awaits as Memphis Hosts South Florida

Mar 04, 2026 | Men's Basketball

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MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis closes out the home portion of its regular season Thursday night, hosting American Conference regular-season champion South Florida at FedExForum. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on ESPN2 as the Tigers celebrate Senior Night.

In a pregame ceremony, Memphis will honor six seniors: Dug McDaniel, Sincere Parker, Zach Davis, Tariq Ingraham, Thierno Sylla and Mason Matthews. The program will also recognize senior managers Jackson Grimes and Owen Petersen.

With two games remaining, Memphis enters the night fighting to secure a spot in next week's American Conference Tournament. The Tigers currently sit near the cutoff line in the standings, making Thursday's matchup a critical one down the stretch.

South Florida (21-8, 13-3 American) arrives in Memphis riding a seven-game winning streak after clinching the league's regular-season title. The Bulls feature the conference's top scoring offense, powered by Izaiyah Nelson, Wes Enis and Joseph Pinion, a trio that combined for 56 points in the teams' first meeting on Feb. 19.

Memphis counters with a balanced scoring attack led by Dug McDaniel (13.4 ppg), Sincere Parker (12.0 ppg) and Curtis Givens III (9.4 ppg). Inside, Aaron Bradshaw has been one of the Tigers' most efficient scorers, shooting 57 percent from the floor while averaging 8.9 points per game.

Thursday's contest marks the final opportunity for Memphis to play in front of the home crowd this season as the Tigers look to send their seniors out with a win and strengthen their postseason position.

GAME DETAILS
Memphis Tigers (12-17, 7-9 American) vs. South Florida (21-8, 13-3 American)
Thursday, March 5, 2026 | 8 p.m.
FedExForum (18,400); Memphis, Tenn.
Television: ESPN2 (John Schriffen, pxp; Chris Spatola, analyst)
Radio: 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Ken Moody, analyst)

BY THE NUMBERS

10.0: Julius Thedford is averaging 10.0 rebounds per 40 minutes, the second-best mark among American Conference guards (min. 300 minutes). Thedford would be the third Memphis guard this century to have a double-figure average along with D.J. Stephens (11.2 in 2012-13) and Trahson Burrell (10.4 in 2015-16).
10.4: Memphis ranks 12th nationally with 10.4 steals per game at home this season. The Tigers are on pace to become just the third American Conference team to average 10.0+ steals per game, joining: Memphis (10.73) in 2020-21 and UTSA (10.43) last season.
11.6: Sincere Parker is averaging 11.6 points per game off the bench, the seventh-highest average in American Conference history. His 15 double-figure scoring games off the bench this season are tied for the 10th-most in a single season in conference history.
27: Dug McDaniel is 27 points away from becoming the seventh active Division I player with 1,500 career points and 500 assists.
30.0: Memphis opponents are shooting just 30.0 percent from three this season, a figure that would mark the lowest allowed by an American Conference team since Houston held teams to 27.9 percent in 2022-23.
31.1%: Since Penny Hardaway took over in 2018-19, Memphis has held opponents to just 31.1 percent from three-point range, the fifth-best mark among Division I programs in that stretch. Only Houston (29.2%), Tennessee (30.9%), VCU (31.0%) and Michigan State (31.0%) have allowed a lower percentage in that span.
33-1: Over the last three seasons, Memphis is 33-1 (.971) when holding opponents to 70 points or fewer, the seventh-best mark in Division I in that span (minimum 10 games). The loss was against Wake Forest (Nov. 21, 2025) after the Deamon Deacons hit a buzzer beater three-pointer to win 69-68.

SCOUTING THE BULLS

Under first year head coach Bryan Hodgson, South Florida enters Thursday at 21-8 overall and 13-3 in conference play, riding a seven-game win streak.
The Bulls lead the conference in scoring at 88.3 points per game (10^th in DI) and are on pace to become the highest-scoring team in program history.
USF also tops the league in rebounds (42,9; 3^rd in DI) and offensive rebounds (15.5, 3^rd in DI) per game.
The Bulls lead the nation in free throws made per game (20.8) and free-throw attempts (27.9) while their 17.1 assists per game are 29th.
Forward Izaiyah Nelson averages 16.2 points and 10.0 rebounds, leading the conference in rebounding and field-goal percentage (56.8).
He is third in the country with 18 double-doubles this season.
Wes Enis (15.9 PPG, 3.5 made threes per game) and Joseph Pinion (14.4 PPG, 3.3 made threes per game) form one of the nation's most productive 3-point tandems.
They both rank in the top-20 nationally in three pointers made per game and in total three-point attempts.
Enis and Pinion have combined to make 189 three-pointers this season. In comparison, Memphis' entire team combined had made 193.

UP NEXT
The Tigers close out the regular season with a Sunday road trip to Tulane for a 1 p.m. tip on ESPN+.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS:
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