Memphis snapped its seven-game losing streak in its regular-season finale with a 96-95 victory over Tulane in overtime. Despite trailing for most of the overtime period, the Tigers closed the game on a 9-4 run to secure a spot in the conference tournament.
Zach Davis was a game-time decision, but he was able to start and play 34 minutes for Penny Hardaway. With Davis in the fold, Hardaway elected to start Dug McDaniel, Quante Berry, Julius Thedford, Davis and Aaron Bradshaw.
Memphis got out to a slow start, and the Green Wave, who led by as many as 11 points through the first 20 minutes, led by nine points at halftime. Tulane, who has struggled to shoot the ball for most of the season, shot 50 percent from the field and went into the locker room with 40 points.
On the other side, the Tigers shot only 37.5 percent from the field and went 2-for-9 from deep through the first 20 minutes of the game.
Hardaway’s team responded in impressive fashion in the second half and opened the second half on a 13-4 run to tie the game with 16:05 remaining in the game. A few minutes later, Memphis took its first lead of the game when Curtis Givens III buried a three-pointer to break the tie.
The two teams traded baskets before the Tigers extended the lead to nine points with 1:49 remaining in the game. After that, Tulane closed the half on a 10-1 run to tie the game and send it into overtime.
Memphis shot 60.6 percent from the field and made five three-pointers, while holding Ron Hunter’s team to only 44.1 percent from the field, but they couldn’t come up with stops inside the final minute.
With all the momentum going into the extra time, the Green Wave went on a 6-0 run and looked in full control. Despite the momentum completely swinging, the Tigers never gave up and continued to get to the free-throw line, chipping away at the lead.
Hardaway’s team went 9-for-10 from the free-throw line, and Berry went 5-for-6 from the charity stripe. Berry finished with five points, including the game-winning free throws, while Bradshaw added six points over the final five minutes to secure the win.
The game almost completely flipped in the closing seconds as Tulane’s Rowan Brumbaugh, who made the late-game shot to beat the Tigers in Memphis, got a decent look at a half-court shot, but it didn’t find the bottom of the net as time expired.
As a team, Memphis shot 51.6 percent from the field, 36.8 percent from deep and 69.4 percent from the free-throw line, and five players finished the game in double figures. Berry led the team with 22 points, three rebounds, three assists, a block and a steal, while McDaniel added 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
Thierno Sylla became the X-factor off the bench for the Tigers, and he finished with 17 points, four rebounds, three blocks and a steal in 30 minutes of action.
Memphis won the rebounding battle 41-to-32, and it scored 13 second-chance points on 15 offensive rebounds.
On the other side, the Green Wave shot 49.3 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from deep, and five players finished with 10 or more points. Brumbaugh led the team with 31 points, including 23 points in the second half and overtime, and Asher Woods added 21 points.
Tulane only turned the ball over eight times, and it scored 16 second-chance points on 12 offensive rebounds.
With the win, Memphis secures a spot in the conference tournament, and it will wait until this evening to find out who it will play in the first round. The Tigers will start the conference tournament on Wednesday and will be tasked with winning five games in five days.