Penny Hardaway thinks he's been kicked the whole time he's been coaching at the University of Memphis. (AUDIO)
Tigers Unable to Recover in 84-68 Setback at East Carolina
GREENVILLE, N.C. – Memphis dropped its sixth straight game Sunday afternoon, falling 84-68 to East Carolina at Minges Coliseum.
The Tigers (12-17, 7-9 American Conference) led 16-15 in the opening minutes but struggled to sustain offense the rest of the way. East Carolina answered with a decisive first-half run and carried a 44-30 advantage into the break. Memphis trimmed the margin to seven early in the second half, but the Pirates responded each time and pushed the lead back to double figures.
Julius Thedford paced Memphis with 16 points and nine rebounds. Dug McDaniel added 15 points and five assists and Sincere Parker finished with 12. The Tigers shot 37.3 percent from the field, recorded 12 assists against 12 turnovers and committed 20 fouls. Memphis has now been outrebounded in four consecutive games.
East Carolina (11-18, 6-10) was led by Jordan Riley’s 31 points and 12 rebounds. The Pirates used a 23-8 stretch late in the first half to create separation and maintained control from there.
With two games remaining in the regular season, Memphis sits tied for ninth in the league standings. The Tigers return home Thursday night to face regular season champion South Florida at 8 p.m. on ESPN2.
POSTGAME NOTES
Starting Five: Memphis opened with a starting lineup of Dug McDaniel, Curtis Givens III, Julius Thedford, Aaron Bradshaw and Thierno Sylla. It’s the sixth time the Tigers have used that group to begin a game. Shooting: Memphis shot 37.3 percent from the field (25-of-67) and went just 5-of-16 from the three-point line (31.3%) while knocking down 13-of-20 at the free-throw line (60.0%).Turnovers: Memphis committed 12 turnovers and scored 11 points off ECU’s miscues. Defense: The Tigers allowed East Carolina to shoot 53.6 percent overall (30-of-56), including a 54.8-percent mark in the first half and 52.0-percent in the second.The Pirates, who entered the day ranked as the second-worst three-point shooting team in the country, finished 9-of-18 from long range.They had not made more than eight triples in any game this season prior to Sunday.Memphis also recorded six steals and five blocks. Bench Production: The Tigers’ bench scored just 20 points, the second-fewest in a game this season. Rebounding: ECU outrebound Memphis, 38-30, but the Tigers had a 13-9 edge on the offensive end. Ball Movement: Memphis recorded 12 assists in the loss, led by McDaniel’s five. Julius Thedford just missed another double-double with a team-high 16 points, nine rebounds and three steals in 25 minutes.He was 6-of-12 shooting and hit a team-high four free throws. Dug McDaniel finished with 15 points and five assists in 37 minutes. Sincere Parker added 12 points and two assists in 18 minutes off the bench.
UP NEXT
With two regular-season games to play, Memphis has a split road in the final week of the regular season. The Tigers return home Thursday to host South Florida at 8 p.m., then close out the regular season Sunday at 1 p.m. against Tulane.