Memphis falls to 1-2, loses 92-78 to UNLV
Josh Pastner came back to FedExForum and his UNLV Rebels defeated his previous team 92-78, handing the Tigers their second loss of the season.
First Half
The Tigers started the game on a 5-0 run. However, the Rebels responded with their own 8-0 run that turned into an 18-8 lead with 14:32 to go.
Bad turned into worse when the Rebels took advantage of Tiger turnovers and gained a 14-point lead. Memphis finished the first half with 10 turnovers, and UNLV scored 10 points off those takeaways.
Memphis settled in defensively and started to force turnovers of their own and cut the deficit to five. Behind a few Sincere Parker layups, the Tigers were right back in the game.
That was until the Rebels outscored the Tigers 12-3 over the next four minutes to take a 45-29 advantage, their biggest lead of the half.
The final three minutes of the half belonged to Julius Thedford. The guard scored all seven of the Tiger’s points to keep Memphis afloat, but still behind 49-36.
Second Half
UNLV picked up right where they left off to start the second half. The Rebels controlled the pace of the game and took advantage of Memphis’ turnovers.
The Tigers did cut the lead to single digits at 17:11, however, the Rebels responded quickly with a 6-0 run. By the 9-minute mark, the Rebels held a 77-56 advantage, a 21-point lead, the biggest of the game.
Memphis did respond with a 10-0 run that was capped off by a Zach Davis and-one play that ignited FedExForum and seemingly changed the momentum for the Tigers. Memphis trailed by nine with 5:50 to go, until Issac Williamson hit his 5th three of the night to quiet the roar of the stadium and push the Rebel lead back to 12.
One minute later, Quante Berry scored 4-straight points to cut the lead to 8 once again, but the Tigers failed to capitalize. Memphis did not make another push and fell for the second time this season, 92-78.
Worthwhile Stats
The Tigers ended the night shooting 25-59 (42.4%) from the field and a detrimental 4-17 (23.5%) from the perimeter. Julius Thedford led the Tigers with 16 points and six rebounds.
Memphis turned the ball over 18 times, which resulted in 30 points for UNLV. On the other hand, the Tigers forced 14 turnovers, and scored 21 points off those takeaways. The Rebels also scored 50 of their 92 points in the paint.
What Went Wrong
Coach Penny Hardaway is clearly still finding out what his team is made of and who is going to be his main group of guys.
“I’m trying, along with the staff, to just go to war every day and find five guys, find seven guys, find eight guys that can just run through a wall, not even just shoot well, play well, and we’re still trying to figure that out right now.”
The Tigers lack of group experience continued to shine in this game vs an injured UNLV squad. Memphis’ turnover problem is a reoccurring issue and it is a hard thing to solve.
Six of the 18 turnovers came from starting point guard Dug McDaniel. The guard finished with 2 assists and 6 points off 1-10 shooting.
Whats Next
Memphis will travel to the Bahamas to take on the Purdue Boilermakers in the Baha Mar Championship. The Boilermakers are the #2 ranked team in the country and are 3-0. Tip off is set for Thursday at 5 p.m.
