Why Memphis basketball and Penny Hardaway are feeling dangerous after another big win
Memphis basketball has a message for the rest of the country: Don't let us get hot.
The Tigers (8-2) have come roaring back from back-to-back losses to Villanova and Ole Miss with three straight wins over VCU, Texas A&M and Clemson. The two most recent rank as coveted Quad 1 victories. Prior to Saturday's 79-77 win over Clemson, Memphis was No. 39 in the NCAA's NET rankings, a measuring stick the NCAA Tournament selection committee leans on heavily when making decisions in March.
And they haven't even gotten good yet.
“We haven’t even started scratching the surface yet,” Memphis coach Penny Hardaway adamantly said. “We haven’t even reached the level we’re gonna reach yet.”
Which shouldn't come as much of a surprise to anyone by this point. Because these sort of things take time, and this team hasn't really had much of it together yet. Only a handful of players on the overhauled roster arrived on campus in May.
The rest trickled in later.
Point guard Jahvon Quinerly and wing Jaykwon Walton showed up in July. Backup point guard Jayhlon Young joined the team on its way to the Dominican Republic in early August. Leading scorer and rebounder David Jones needed until September to officially join his new team. Even Malcolm Dandridge, one of only two returning players from last season, held out until September before officially returning.
So it's easier to forgive the Tigers for their shortcomings, many of which showed up again versus Clemson. Two weeks to the day after shooting 16.7% from the 3-point line in a loss at Ole Miss, Memphis tallied an abysmal 15% (4 for 26). The Tigers' primary scorers − Jones, Quinerly, Walton and Caleb Mills − were ultimately productive, but they were far from efficient. Even though that foursome combined to score 53 points, it shot just 30.3% from the field.
Memphis could still use some help in the rebounding department (losing the battle of the boards to Clemson 37-35), although it is presumably on its way in the very near future in mid-season Kansas State transfer big Nae'Qwan Tomlin.
But, where some areas of the game Saturday left plenty to be desired, the Tigers made up for it elsewhere. They committed just six turnovers (the fewest for a Memphis team since limiting giveaways to just five against Gonzaga at the NCAA Tournament in March 2022). They attacked Clemson with an up-tempo pace that left the visitors "exhausted," according to coach Brad Brownell. They made 17 free throws compared to just 10 for Clemson. Players like Dandridge, Young, Jayden Hardaway, Nicholas Jourdain stepped forward to pick up some slack. That group 12-of-20 from the floor (26 points) and combined for 17 rebounds.
And it was enough.
“It says a lot,” Quinerly said. “We’re still learning each other. I’m gonna keep saying that. I just feel like we did a good job today of being able to, not only respond in a good way from not making shots, but keeping the pressure on Clemson. We didn’t shoot it well from three tonight, but we didn’t let that dictate how we guarded.”
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The moral of the story, according to Hardaway and his players? If Memphis is capable of winning in spite of its current flaws, look out for the Tigers when they fine-tune everything.
“Like JQ said, this team is gonna keep ascending,” said Jourdain.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis basketball feeling dangerous after Clemson win
