Jan. 21, 2013

Memphis Notes  | Tulane Notes  | C-USA Notes 

Memphis (14-3, 3-0) vs Tulane (13-5, 1-2) FedExForum (Memphis, Tenn.) Tue., January 22, 2013 - 7 pm (CT)
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Tigers On TV/Radio/WebTelevision: SportSouth/Comcast digital channel 52 (Pete Pranica, play-by-play; Sean Tuohy)

Radio: WREC 600 AM (Dave Woloshin, play-by-play; Matt Dillon, color analyst; Forrest Goodman, studio host)

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SETTING THE SCENE

• Memphis (14-3, 3-0 C-USA) returns to Conference USA play Tuesday, Jan. 22 against Tulane (13-5, 1-2 C-USA) in a league match-up at FedExForum. The game, to be televised on SportSouth (Comcast digital channel 52), is scheduled for a 7 p.m. (CT) start.
• The Tigers appeared in the Also Receiving Votes category of the Associated Press poll (No. 33).
• The Tigers bounced back after their Dec. 15 setback to No. 6/6 Louisville with eight-consecutive wins over Lipscomb 62-56 Dec. 20, Oral Roberts 72-57 Dec. 28, Loyola, Md., 78-64 Dec. 30, Tennessee 85-80 Jan. 4, East Carolina 67-54 Jan. 9, UAB 69-53 Jan. 12, Rice 77-51 Jan. 16 and Harvard 60-50 Jan. 19.
• Prior to the Dec. 15 loss, Memphis had won four straight with victories over Northern Iowa 52-47 Nov. 24, UT Martin 93-65 Nov. 29, Ohio 84-58 Dec. 5 and Austin Peay 83-65 Dec. 8.
• Tulane has won six of its last eight, including a road victory at Alabama Dec. 30.
• The Green Wave are 1-4 in their road contests, with the lone win at Alabama Dec. 30.
• Tulane returns four starters and nine letterwinners from last year's 15-16 squad.

WHAT'S UP NEXT

• The Tigers wrap up their three-game homestand Saturday, Jan. 26 when they welcome Conference USA foe Marshall to FedExForum. The game, slated for a FOX Sports Net telecast, is set for a 1 p.m. (CT) start.
• The Green Wave return home to Fogelman Arena Saturday, Jan. 26 to host Rice in a C-USA encounter at 1 p.m. (CT).

WHAT THE GREEN WAVE DID A YEAR AGO

• Tulane posted a 15-16 overall record and a 3-13 Conference USA mark.
• The Green Wave finished in 12th place in the C-USA regular-season standings.
• Tulane dropped a 72-64 decision to UAB in the C-USA Tournament opening round.

SCOUTING THE GREEN WAVE

• Tulane brings a 13-5 overall record and a 1-2 Conference USA mark into Tuesday's league match-up.
• The Green Wave have won six of their last eight games with victories over Texas-Pan American, Pepperdine, Hofstra, Alabama, Wofford and Tulsa.
• Tulane is 1-4 on the road with the lone win a 53-50 victory at Alabama Dec. 30.
• The trio of Josh Davis (17.5 ppg), Ricky Tarrant (15.6 ppg) and Jordan Callahan (11.5 ppg) paces the Green Wave offense.
• Davis leads the team and Conference USA in rebounding at 10.3 rpg. Tre Drye is the squad's second-leading rebounder at 6.2 rpg.
• Tarrant is Tulane's top playmaker with 46 assists (2.6 apg).
• Callahan is the Green Wave's top three-point threat, hitting 36.8 percent from the arc.
• Tulane is shooting 40.8 percent from the floor, 32.4 percent from the three-point line and 74.1 percent from the charity stripe.
• The Green Wave are out-rebounding their opponents by an average margin of +5.7 boards per game (36.1-30.4).
• Four of Tulane's starters -- Davis (35.3), Tarrant (35.4), Callahan (31.8) and Kendall Timmons (29.5) -- are averaging nearly or over 30 minutes per game.

TIGERS' BIG WINS OVER TULANE OF LATE

• Of the last 20 match-ups between Memphis and Tulane, only four were single-digit wins for the Tigers (66-61 in 2010-11; 58-57 in 2002-03; 78-72 and 78-70 in 2001-02).
• Memphis' average margin of victory in the last 20 games was 19.7 points.

BATTLE ON THE BOARDS TUESDAY

• The winner of Tuesday's Memphis-Tulane contest may be decided on the glass.
• The Tigers and Green Wave enter the game as two of Conference USA's top-three rebounding teams.
• Memphis leads C-USA in rebound margin at +6.2, while Tulane is third in the league at +5.7.

The Last Meeting

Memphis	82
Tulane	64

February 15, 2012
New Orleans, La.

Second-Half Run Lifts Memphis to 82-64 Win Over Tulane A 16-1 run in the second half propelled Memphis to an 82-64 win over Tulane on Wednesday evening. Will Barton led five Tigers in double-figures with 20 points, nine rebounds and seven assists.

Recap | Box Score | Notes

 

STINGY DEFENSES TO MEET TUESDAY

• When Memphis and Tulane face off Tuesday, the contest will feature two of Conference USA's top scoring defenses.
• The Green Wave is second in C-USA in scoring defense (58.2 ppg), while Memphis is fifth (62.9 ppg).

BATTLE OF TURNOVER WILLS

• Tuesday's Memphis-Tulane game may come down to which team can force its turnover will on the other.
• The Green Wave enters Tuesday's game as Conference USA's top team in taking care of the ball. Tulane averages only 11.8 turnovers per game, the best in C-USA.
• On the other side, Memphis is the league's third-best team in forcing opponents' miscues. The Tigers are forcing their foes to turn the ball over 16.6 times per contest.

OPPOSITE ENDS

• While Memphis and Tulane are similar in rebounding margin and scoring defense, there are three statistical categories in which the teams are on opposite ends of the Conference USA rankings and the following shows those:

TIGERS SUCCESS AT FEDEXFORUM

• The Tigers have a 155-18 overall record (.896 winning percentage) at FedExForum since moving to the arena for the 2004-05 campaign.
• Since the 2005 Conference USA Tournament, Memphis has won 145 of its last 157 home games (.924 winning percentage).
• Against Conference USA foes (regular season and tournament) at FedExForum since 2004-05, the Tigers have a 76-7 mark (.916 winning percentage).
• Under head coach Josh Pastner, Memphis is 25-3 (.893 winning percentage) against C-USA opponents.

TIGERS TOUGH AT HOME IN C-USA

• Since moving to FedExForum in 2004-05, Memphis has turned its homecourt into one of toughest arenas for opponents to play, and that is seen in the Tigers' 155-18 overall record.
• But, it is even tougher for Conference USA foes since conference realignment in 2005-06.
• Memphis has an incredible 68-3 record (.958 winning percentage) at FedExForum versus C-USA opponents (regular season and conference tournament) since 2005-06.
• The following shows the nation's top-10 conference homecourt records since 2005-06 (regular season and conference tournament; credit to Bryan McEldowney for compiling this list and Travis Chell for its updates this season):

BEST HOMECOURT ADVANTAGE

• Since 2004-05, Memphis has won 155 games at FedExForum, the most home wins in the country over that span of time.
• The following are the top-five programs with the most home wins since 2004-05 (credit to former Memphis Athletics Communications Assistant Bryan McEldowney for compiling this list; credit to Travis Chell for updates):

DO YOU REMEMBER?

• Many Tigers fans will recall what occurred five years ago this week.
• On Jan. 21, 2008, Memphis moved into the No. 1 spot in both national polls. It was the second time in school history that the Tigers were the nation's No. 1 team.
• Memphis remained in the No. 1 spot in both national polls for a school-record five-consecutive weeks.

MEMPHIS IN CONFERENCE USA

• The Tigers have an all-time record of 202-65 (.757 winning percentage) in C-USA play.
• Memphis posted double-digit league wins in 14 of its previous 17 seasons in Conference USA, including a school-record and league-record tying 16 games in 2006-07, 2007-08 and 2008-09.
• Last season, the Tigers won the Conference USA regular-season title with a 13-3 league mark.
• Memphis won its first outright C-USA regular season title in 2005-06, and followed that with outright regular season crowns in 2006-07, 2007-08, 2008-09 and 2011-12.
• Memphis also tied for the C-USA regular season crown in 2003-04 (12-4 record) and 1995-96 (11-3).
• Memphis also won three National Division titles in 1997-98, 2001-02 and 2002-03, and captured two league White Division championships in 1995-96 and 1996-97.

TIGERS TURNING UP THE "D"

• Since the turn of the New Year, the Tigers' defense has turned up the pressure even more on its opposition, and that can be seen in Memphis' last four games.
• The following shows how the Tigers put the clamps on the opposition in the last four contests:

TIGERS `BOUNDING THE BOARDS IN 2012-13

• A lot of talk in head coach Josh Pastner's first three seasons centered about rebounding and the Tigers' frustration in that area.
• Well, it looks as if that's been corrected for the 2012-13 campaign.
• Memphis is out-rebounding its opponents by an average margin of +6.2 boards per game (37.1-30.9), which leads Conference USA.
• The Tigers have won the board battle 12 times this season, including games with Minnesota, Ohio, Louisville and Harvard.
• The following shows how the Tigers have done on the glass in Pastner's tenure (first 17 games of each season only):

IT'S A BLOCK PARTY

• It took a few games into the season, but the Tigers are getting back to their "blocking" ways.
• After leading C-USA in blocks a year ago at 5.6 bpg, Memphis began 2012-13 averaging only 3.9 blocks per contest in the first seven games (27 total blocks).
• Well, the Tigers have picked up their intensity on the defensive end in the last 10 games with 72 total blocks (7.2 bpg).
• In each of the last 10 games, Memphis had no fewer than four blocks, including a season-high 11 swats in the Jan. 4 win at Tennessee. The Tigers added 10 swats in their Jan. 12 victory at UAB.