Memphis dropped its seventh game in a row Thursday night against South Florida. The Tigers played better, especially in the first half, but the same mistakes popped up, and they lost 96-89.
The Bulls are one of the best offenses in the conference, and they showed it against the Tigers. They finished with 96 points, and four different players finished with more than 10 points.
While two players scored more than 20 points, USF’s two leading scorers combined for only eight points. Bryan Hodgson’s team shot 48.5 percent from the field and 28.6 percent from deep, and they out-rebounded the Tigers 40-to-36.
Memphis played much better against the zone defense, and it shot 37.1 percent from the field and 25 percent from deep. Dug McDaniel led the team with 25 points, seven assists and five rebounds, while Zach Davis added 17 points and eight rebounds.
Fouls continue
In the first game, USF went to the line 35 times, and it looked similar Thursday night in Memphis. The Bulls finished the game with 33 free throws, and the Tigers recorded 25 fouls, which is the most since January 29, against FAU.
16 seconds into the game, Enis was fouled by Aaron Bradshaw while attempting a three-pointer to give USF an immediate three-point lead. Memphis settled down after that first foul of the game, but they let the Bulls shoot 15 free throws over the final 8:34 of the first half.
Hodgson’s team continued to get to the line in the second half and made four free throws down the stretch to secure the win.
Tigers slow down USF’s stars
Entering the game, Izaiyah Nelson and Joseph Pinion were the Bulls’ two leading scorers, and both played well in the first game in Tampa. The two combined for 36 points in the first game, but both struggled on Thursday and combined for only eight points.
Nelson got into foul trouble early, picking up a pair of fouls in the first ten minutes, and he played the final 8:32 of the game with four fouls. Because of the fouls, Nelson couldn’t get into a rhythm, and he finished with eight points, on 3-for-6 shooting, and seven rebounds in only 18 minutes of action.
Pinion entered the game averaging 20.5 points and shooting 40.9 percent from deep in two games against the Tigers, but he was ice cold on Thursday. The guard finished with zero points and went 0-for-9 from the field and 0-for-6 from three-point range.
While the Tigers did a nice job against the best players, other guys picked up the slack, and the Bulls scored 30 points off the bench.
Memphis’ conference tournament hopes come down to Sunday
While the Tigers were playing, Temple beat Tulane at home to 8-9 in conference play, which means Hardaway’s team now sits No. 10 in the conference standings. The conference tournament only invites the top 10 teams, so the Tigers would be placed in the final spot.
With one game left, it will come down to Memphis’ game against Tulane and East Carolina’s game against UAB. If the Tigers beat the Green Wave, they will be the No. 10 seed in the conference tournament, but if they lose, things could get tricky.
It would come down to the Pirates losing to UAB in Birmingham. The Blazers have struggled at home in conference play, but Memphis could be banking on them for a trip to the conference tournament.