Memphis Basketball picked #2 in American Coaches' Poll

Tigers Picked Second in American Preseason Poll, Reid Named First-Team, Weeks Second-Team

IRVING, Texas – Receiving four first-place votes, the Memphis men’s basketball team was picked to finish second in the American Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll, while senior Jayden Reid was tabbed to the Preseason All-Conference First-Team and senior Tylik Weeks on the Second-Team.

The Preseason Poll and Preseason All-Conference teams were voted on by the 13 head coaches in the league. Memphis earned 131 points and four first-place votes, only behind Wichita State’s 140 points and nine first-place votes.

The Tigers boast a roster with 13 newcomers and nine Division I transfers. Head coach Penny Hardaway enters his ninth season at the helm and carries a 175-87 record including 93-48 in conference.

Reid, a 5-10 guard from Westbury, New York, transferred from Northwestern where he averaged 10.1 points per game. He spent the prior two years in the American Conference at South Florida and averaged 12.6 points and 3.6 assists per game as a sophomore after being named to the 2023-24 American All-Freshman Team.

Weeks, a 6-7 forward from New York, New York, transferred from Southern Miss where he led the Sun Belt Conference in scoring last season with 19.7 points per game. The Sun Belt All-Conference First-Team selection scored in double figures in 32 of 34 games and scored at least 30 points four times.

Click here for the full release from the conference.

Season tickets for the 2026-27 Memphis men’s basketball season are on sale now and can be purchased here.

2026-27 Preseason Coaches’ Poll1. Wichita State (9), 1402. Memphis (4), 1313. South Florida, 1184. Tulsa 995. Charlotte, 956. UAB, 897. North Texas, 848. Florida Atlantic, 759. Temple, 6110. Tulane, 5211. East Carolina, 3412. Rice, 2213. UTSA, 14

Preseason Player of the Year Je’Shawn Stevenson, North Texas

Preseason Freshman of the Year Felipe Quinones, Florida Atlantic

Preseason All-Conference First-Team Kanaan Carlyle, Florida Atlantic Jayden Reid, Memphis Je’Shawn Stevenson, North Texas Sonny Wilson, South Florida Will Berg, Wichita State
Preseason All-Conference Second-Team Justyn Fernandez, UAB Deuce Jones, UAB Tylik Weeks, Memphis Derrian Ford, Temple Gavin Griffiths, Temple Dilion Battie, Wichita State Jordan Frison, Wichita State

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