Memphis Finishes as Battle 4 Atlantis Runner-Up
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – The Memphis men’s basketball team struggled from the floor early and found itself in too big of a hole to overcome as the Tigers fell 79-63 to Villanova in Friday evening’s championship game at the Battle 4 Atlantis.
The Tigers (5-1) struggled from the beginning when they nearly lost the opening tip out of bounds, perhaps a sign of what was to come.
Villanova (6-1) didn’t leave any room for the Tigers to struggle. The Wildcats opened the game by hitting six three-pointers in the first eight minutes, while Memphis couldn’t get anything to fall. Villanova opened the game with a 16-2 lead and held the Tigers to single digits before finally reaching 10 on a free throw at the 5:17 mark.
Villanova used a 12-0 run late in the half to take a 44-16 advantage into the intermission. Memphis got just 4-of-27 shots (14.8%) to fall in the opening period, including 1-of-12 from deep (8.3%). Villanova, on the other hand, made 15 total field goals with eight of them being triples. It was a completely lopsided first half on the box score.
The Wildcats didn’t let up in the second half, eventually building a 35-point lead.
With Memphis trailing 67-35 with 8:58 to play, head coach Penny Hardaway turned up the defensive pressure with a full-court press and got Villanova out of sorts. After a five-second call, Jahvon Quinerly and Ashton Hardaway drilled triples to spark a run. Over the next five minutes, the Tigers went on a 21-0 run where they forced Villanova into five turnovers and got 15 combined points from Quinerly and David Jones.
At the 3:42 mark, Jones buried a triple to cut the deficit to 13, but that was as close as the Tigers got. Villanova closed the game on a 10-3 run to help close things out.
Villanova improved to 9-0 all-time at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament, winning its third title at Atlantis.
POSTGAME NOTES
Memphis used the starting lineup of Jahvon Quinerly, Caleb Mills, Jaykwon Walton, David Jones and Jordan Brown for the fourth-straight game. Jones, a Battle 4 Atlantis All-Tournament selection, led the Tigers with 13 points and seven rebounds in 33 minutes. Quinerly added all 12 of his points in the second half and only had one assist. Caleb Mills added 10 points and five rebounds. Jaykwon Walton scored eight of his nine points in the first period and went 7-of-8 at the free throw line. Ashton Hardaway connected on two triples and finished with eight points. Memphis shot a season-low 35.1 percent from the floor after hitting 20-of-57 shots Villanova scored 16 points off 11 Memphis turnovers, with 14 coming in the first half. Villanova put five players in double figures, led by 11 points from Tyler Burton, Eric Dixon and Justin Moore.
