Tigers set for 11 a.m. tip off

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

 

David Minkin

Sophomore guard Joe Jackson sends home a one-handed slam dunk in Friday’s exhibition game against Christian Brothers University.

Today marks the start of the 2011-2012 basketball season for The University of Memphis Tigers. And their first opponent on the season will be Belmont University, a team that narrowly lost to Duke on Friday night, 77-76. But third-year head coach Josh Pastner sees no reason that this game won't be as competitive as the Bruins' last.

"This Belmont game will be a very good game, and I've been saying it since the schedule came out," Pastner said. "We'll know a lot about our team after the game. We're excited about this game because we will be tested."

The Tigers come into the game expected to be one of the best teams in college basketball, ranked No. 10 in both ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and AP Poll, but the ranking doesn't matter to a team like Belmont, according to Pastner.

"We know Belmont's a good team," Pastner said. "You don't win 30 games, go to the NCAA tournament and bring back the same team and not be good. Our guys know that they're good, but our focus has got to be about us – Memphis."

The U of M's plan is to put full-court pressure on teams this season. And with the length, quickness and athleticism the Tigers possess, it shouldn't be hard to do. Belmont presents a difficult task for the young and talented Tigers. They usually like to slow it down and play a half-court game, like Christian Brothers. But Pastner sees a team that likes to mix it up, even playing to the Tigers' strengths.

"Belmont likes to pressure and play up-tempo too," he said. "I don't know if that's what they're going to do against us, but they like to full-court press and run up and down the floor as well."

 After the Tigers' game with the Bruins, it's off to Hawaii for the Maui Invitational. Memphis will play No. 18-ranked Michigan on Monday, Nov. 21, at 2 p.m.

Tigers’ defense stymies CBU

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

   

David Minkin

Sophomore guard Will Barton soars and dunks home two of his game high 27 points against Christian Brothers University on Friday night.

 

Before their final tune-up game on Friday night, U of M Tigers head basketball coach Josh Pastner insisted that defense will have to be the team's calling card this year. And for the first 10-12 minutes the Tigers looked like one of the best defensive teams in the country, albeit against a lesser opponent in Christian Brothers University. The Tigers began the game with full-court pressure, stifling defense and an early 24-point lead en route to cruising past CBU, 79-56.

"If we want to be as good as we want to be, we have to do it for 40 minutes," Pastner said. "Those first 10 or 12 minutes were fantastic. My issue is, why didn't we do it for the next 28 minutes? I told guys in the locker room, ‘You've set the bar. So I'm going to hold you to that standard and those first 10 or 12 minutes, that's how we're playing.'"

That tough Tigers defense caused CBU to miss their first 10 of 12 shots and shoot 9-of-23 from the floor for 39 percent. Five of those nine field goals came from the three-point arc. Pastner said he still doesn't understand why his team can't keep teams from shooting a high percentage from beyond the arc. The Buccaneers shot 37.9 percent from downtown, 11 three pointers in total for the game.

 "My biggest pet peeve is not allowing teams to be able to shoot the three-point shot," Pastner said. "You have to take the three-point shot away. That absolutely stresses me out to not be able to stop the three."

Though the Tigers were without preseason All-Conference USA second team sophomore Tarik Black, who missed the game due to knee soreness, they had plenty of frontcourt help from senior forward Wesley Witherspoon, who grabbed a team high nine rebounds to go along with seven points, three assists and two steals. Sophomore guard Will Barton, who led the team in scoring with 27 points, also chipped in on the glass with five boards.

"I know Wesley was 1-of-5 from the field, but he affected the game in so many other areas," Pastner said. "Will Barton is night-and-day different from last year to this year, and he's playing at a very high level."

The Tigers won't have much time to salivate over this exhibition victory, as they will have to prepare for their season opener today against a Belmont team that took No. 6 Duke University to the wire, losing 77-76. The game will start at 11 a.m. as a part of ESPN's 24-hour College Hoops tipoff Marathon.

Men’s and women’s hoops land marquee prospects

Men’s and women’s hoops land marquee prospects

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

   

 

 

 

The early signing period has begun, and both University of Memphis men's and women's basketball squads were highly active on Wednesday afternoon. On the men's side, 6-foot-6, 190-pound guard Damien Wilson has signed a national letter of intent to play for the Tigers, head coach Josh Pastner announced.

Wilson, from Mouth of Wilson, Va. Oak Hill Academy, is the first to sign with the Tigers and rated the No. 63 overall prospect in the Class of 2012 by ESPNU. While Wilson was expected to sign early after verbally committing last spring, another Class of 2012 signee has yet to sign his LOI. Southwest Dekalb High senior Shaquille Goodwin, from Decatur, Ga., still hasn't made any moves after verbally committing to The University of Memphis via his Twitter account. But head coach Josh Pastner is still content with the signing of Wilson.

"We're very excited to add Damien," Pastner said in a press release. "He's a tremendous player in the open court, and he's great around the rim. He has the potential to be a really high-level defender and rebounder. Assistant coach (Jack) Murphy did an excellent job recruiting him. We are very privileged that he has become part of the Tiger family, and we are excited for his arrival next year."

Not to be outdone by the men, the Lady Tigers basketball team boasts a huge signing class of their own. Head coach Melissa McFerrin's class features six signees and one of the top in the country according to ESPN.com's Hoopgurlz. Hoopgurlz rates Memphis' Class of 2012 as the No. 2 recruiting class by mid-major programs and that was before they added junior college transfer forward Devin Mack from Kishwaukee Junior College.

"The 2012 recruiting class is historic in terms of quantity, but more so in terms of quality," McFerrin said in a press release. "This group of six young ladies brings impressive individual credentials to the table. However, it is their collective focus on winning championships at the University of Memphis that excites me the most."

Prepared for battle

UM to face Alabama-Birmingham, former head coach Tommy West for Senior Day at Liberty Bowl

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

 

David Minkin

The University of Memphis Tigers football team looks to snap a three two-game skid against rival Alabama-Birmingham and former UM head football coach Tommy West, now the defensive coordinaor for UAB.

 

The Tigers (2-7, 1, 4 in Conference USA) are coming off a bye week and looking to finish strong to close out the 2011 football season. The Blazers (1-8, 1-5 in C-USA) are coming off a 56-13 loss to No. 11 Houston where they looked competitive for about two quarters.

Saturday's game at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium is the annual "Battle for the Bones" game, which is played between The U of M and UAB. Both teams are struggling this season in the win column.

This game will pit two of the worst football teams against each other, so something will have to give. The Tigers have one of the nation's worst defenses, giving up 34.8 points per game 107th. But the Blazers aren't exactly lighting up the scoreboards either. UAB comes into Saturday's contest ranked 116th in points for at 14.7 per game, while giving up over 37.4 points per game (115th) – lower than the Tigers.

Both offenses are abysmal at best, with the Tigers rushing game being the second worst in football, averaging 82.8 yards per game (119th). The run game for the Blazers averages 109.0 yards per game — that's 105th in college football. The only stats that both teams are not in the lower tier of the FBS, is the passing game. U of M brings the 92nd-ranked passing game to the field, while UAB's passing attack is a bit better at 219.9 passing yards per game (73rd).

The Tigers and Blazers have met on the gridiron 14 times prior to this Saturday. UAB holds a 9-4 edge, with the Blazers winning the last two encounters. Memphis' last home victory against UAB was a 25-9 win in the 2007 season.

Not only will Memphis welcome back former head coach Tommy West, who's now the defensive coordinator for UAB, Saturday's game is also Senior Day for 16 Tigers seniors. Senior Day is typically held on the last home game for the home team, but due to the Tigers having a weekday game against Marshall on Thursday, UAB was picked for the Senior Day matchup.

The game will be broadcast nationally by Comcast Sports Southeast (CSS) and will be slated for a 3:15 p.m. kickoff.

Big weekend ahead for Tiger fans

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

 

This weekend is full of University of Memphis activities, most of them being athletic events. And with all these opportunities to support Memphis athletics, it begs the question – are really a true blue Tigers fan?

The weekend begins with a pep rally beginning at 12:30 p.m. inside the University Center with players, coaches, cheerleaders and the pep band. Organizers have asked for students and faculty to show their school spirit by donning The U of M's colors, blue and gray.

But which event will draw the most attention? Here's a look at what I think sports fans will be eager to attend this weekend.

FRIDAY

Friday has an interesting slate of events for Tiger fans to choose from. The women's basketball team starts its season at the FedExForum at 5 p.m. against St. Louis University. Afterward, the men's basketball team will take the court to play Christian Brothers University in their final exhibition before the start of the regular season on Tuesday against Belmont. At the same time, the women's volleyball team will serve up kills against Tulane at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. But since this is a basketball town, I think the bigger crowd will be at FedExForum on Friday night.

SATURDAY

Saturday will test diehard Tiger fans, as The U of M football team takes the field to play UAB in the annual "Battle for the Bones" game, which starts at 3:15 p.m. Pregame festivities may be the only thing drawing fans out to see a struggling football team in cold weather. At 7 p.m., the No. 3-ranked women's soccer team plays in the first round of the NCAA tournament at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex, which is also an outdoor event. But since the women have been winning, it will be worth sitting through that game. The volleyball team will also be in action as well on Saturday night, but are you really going to pass up women's soccer?

SUNDAY

As the weekend wraps up, Tiger fans have more basketball to look forward to, as the women's basketball team takes on Belmont University on Sunday afternoon at the Elma Roane Fieldhouse. The game should be an interesting matchup for the Tigers, the favorite to win Conference USA this season.

Tipoff is at 2 p.m.

 

Tigers to iron out a few kinks

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

David C. Minkin

Head coach Josh Pastner, left, gives some pointers to sophomore forward Tarik Black.

 

With two days remaining before their next exhibition game and less than a week from the official start of the season, the University of Memphis Tigers basketball team still has some tweaks to tend to, according to head coach Josh Pastner. With Friday's matchup against Christian Brothers University, the Tigers have the chance to address those issues one more time.

"Some of the things we tweaked was that a lot of the offensive rebounds that we gave up were a result of us not getting back off the press," Pastner said. "Christian Bothers gives us a totally different style than LeMoyne-Owen, which I think will be good for us to be able to prepare for conference play, because you always see different styles."

While Memphis adjusts those different styles, CBU will have to account for the Tigers carousel roster, as Pastner is still mum on a starting lineup and plans to continue spreading out playing time. The third year head coach said his team will have multiple starters throughout the season.

"Going into last game I was playing everybody," he said. "This game I am going to try to go with a more game-like situation, but I keep telling everyone that we don't have a set rotation – we have eight to nine starters. The guys know it, they understand it – those are the facts."

No matter who plays and how many minutes they play, Pastner wants his team's identity to be made on the defensive end of the floor.

"Our whole team, our whole identity this year has to be on the defensive end of the floor," he said. "Because as fast as we are, the one way to use our speed and quickness is to get stops – but we've got to rebound the ball. So our two biggest things are ball pressure, not giving other teams open threes and have the same type of game we had last game turnover-wise, with 11. I was proud of the guys for that."

Though Pastner doesn't quite know how the rotation will pan out this season, there will be one player unavailable to him for 30 or more games. Junior guard and forward Drew Barham decided to redshirt this season in hopes to have a better opportunity to play next season.

"It was a tough decision, but I thought it was the best decision at the moment and for my future," Barham said. "I have a lot that I can improve on to be ready for the next two years. I can have a strong junior and senior year as opposed to maybe a somewhat average junior and senior year."

 

NCAA awards Lady Tigers No. 4 berth in tournament

Women’s soccer team to face UT-Martin with 7-1 all-time series advantage

By Adam Douglas

Sports Editor

Aaron Turner

Above, The University of Memphis women’s soccer team anxiously awaits to hear its name announced as an automatic qualifier in the 2011 NCAA women’s soccer tournament. Below, the team reacts to the announcement of its pairing with UT-Martin in the first round.

 

One day after winning their fifth straight Conference USA title, the undefeated and No. 4 ranked University of Memphis women's soccer team (21-0-1) awaited their fate as they watched the 2011 NCAA women's soccer tournament selection show. And once the show began, the Lady Tigers quickly found out where they were seeded and how the rest of the country felt about them being undefeated, receiving a regional No. 4 seeding.

"When it comes to seeding, I felt like we were disrespected a little bit," said head coach Brooks Monahgan. "But I really like our draw; and when you look at Florida State, who got the No. 1 seed in our region, I think on paper they drew a tougher draw than we did."

The Lady Tigers are appearing in their fifth straight NCAA Tournament, and their opponent in the first round will be a familiar foe in Tennessee-Martin. The Tigers and Skyhawks have met eight previous times, with the Tigers holding a 7-1 advantage in the series.

The two programs haven't played each other since the 2007 season.

Though the seeding wasn't ideal for The U of M, players said they will make the most of it.

"We came up with a good draw," said senior defender Lizzy Simonin. "We feel very confident going into Saturday's game and looking forward to getting that monkey off our back."

Simonin was referring to the Lady Tigers failure to advance past the first round of the NCAA Tournament. But having to host a couple of home games should give the Tigers an edge and help make a deep run in the tourney.

"I think playing at home in the first round is massive," Monaghan said. "Hopefully we can continue to have the support that we've had during the season, plus the conference tournament; especially the tournament final – the atmosphere was incredible, and the kids really feed off that."

Though the regular season went according to plan, the faces of the players, coaches and well-wishers after the brackets were unveiled seemed to convey uncertainty about the Tigers position in the tournament.

"I think (the seeding) kind of shocked everybody because we came up first, and it was like, ‘There we are,'" Monaghan said. "I don't think it affects the girls at all – I know it doesn't affect me. We're just focused on who our next opponent will be."

The Lady Tigers will begin their quest for an NCAA Women's Soccer Championship on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Mike Rose Soccer Complex.