The Tigers travel to Wichita state on Thursday

Links to history

MEMPHIS, Tennessee – The Memphis Tigers prepare for an American Athletic Conference showdown in Wichita State Thursday night. Game time is set for 6pm and can be seen on ESPN2. The Tigers are looking to rebound from a 72-64 loss at No. 2 Houston Sunday afternoon, as the short-handed Tigers battled from a 13-point deficit with 7:08 to play within five points and had three chances to take him to one possession but was unable to finish the comeback.
Elijah McCadden AND DeAndre Williams starred against the Cougars, with McCadden notching a season-high 20 points — all in the second half — with six rebounds and Williams adding 18 points, three rebounds and two assists. Memphis (20-7, 10-4 AAC) is third in the league, just a half game behind Tulane (10-3). The Tigers are still trying to secure a top-5 seed and a first-round bye in next month’s AAC championship.

Memphis has won five straight games against the Shockers and won seven of their last eight meetings overall. Wichita State’s only home win against the Tigers in the past 47 years came on January 9, 2020 (76-67). Wichita State is 1-7 against Penny Hardaway with five straight shutouts.

The Shockers (14-12, 7-7 AAC) are hitting back-to-back victories against SMU (91-89) and Temple (79-65). Offensively they are led by Jaykwon WaltonThat’s 14.4 points per game and a 53.2% field goal percentage.
Craig Porter Jr he is the only other Shocker averaging double-digit 12.7 points per time out. He leads the team in rebounds (6.2), assists (4.2) and blocks (1.6).

NEXT
After Thursday’s game, the Tigers return home to welcome Cincinnati Sunday at 1 PM on ESPN2 before traveling to SMU next Thursday (March 2) at 8 PM for their final regular season road test.

GAME DETAILS
Memphis Tigers (20-7, 10-4 AAC) at Wichita State (14-12, 7-7 AAC) on Thursday, February 23, 2023 | 18:00 CT Charles Koch Arena (10.506); Wichita, Kan.Television: ESPN2 (Kevin Brown, pxp; Tim Welsh, analysis)Radio: 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)

GIVE THE NUMBERS

• 4.1: Memphis’s average margin of loss in its seven losses this season, with four coming from three-pointers or fewer.
• 16.0: The Tigers’ average margin of victory during their current five-game hitting streak against Wichita State.
• 71.0: Field goal percentage for Elijah McCadden in the last four games (22-31). The fifth-year transfer is averaging 15.5 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in the stretch.
• 51.2: Memphis field goal percentage over the past nine games, which is best in the AAC (270-527). Tulane is the next highest at 48.4. The Tigers also lead the league in 3-point shooting in that stretch (39.7, 60-151).
• 14:00 Wins in February for the Tigers in the last three seasons (14-3), going back to February 1, 2021; Memphis is 24-10 in February under the coach Penny Hardaway.
• 10: Opponents whose Memphis defense has taken under 40.0% shooting from the field this season. The Tigers are 10-0 in those games.
• 18.2: Points per match of DeAndre Williams during his current 23-game double-digit streak; The fifth-year forward is also averaging a team-best 8.0 rebounds to go along with 2.9 assists in that span.

LAST TIME OUT

• The Memphis Tigers walked into the Fertitta Center shorthanded Sunday afternoon and gave No. 2 Houston all they could handle, but ultimately abandoned a 72-64 decision.
• Elijah McCadden continued his strong game with season-high 20 points and six rebounds, while DeAndre Williams he added 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting.
• Damaria Franklin he also had his best game in a Tiger uniform with 10 points and five boards.
• Alex Lomax he made his return to action after being sidelined by the UCF second half on January 11.
• It was a defensive battle at first with the game tied 13-13 at 9:03 into halftime. Houston hit a 3-pointer and used a 9-0 run to take the lead the rest of the game.
• The offense struggled to keep the ball in the first half, turning it over 14 times to go on the break 32-21. Williams led the team with 10 points in the first 20 minutes.
• In the second half, McCadden took over for the Tigers scoring all 20 points.
• He scored an early six points as he and Franklin nailed back-to-back 3-pointers to bring Memphis within four to 38-34 with 16 minutes left.
• From there, Houston pushed its lead to 13 and appeared to be on course for a win. But the Tigers have never faltered.
• The defense stiffened and held the Cougars without a field goal for nearly four minutes as the Tigers crossed the free throw line.
• McCadden scored three goals before Williams went coast to coast to put him inside and put Memphis up 63-58 with 2:24 on the clock. He would be as close as possible.
• Houston hit nine free throws in the final two minutes to secure a 72-64 victory.

OBSERVING THE OPPONENT

• Wichita State returns just one of its top five scorers from last season’s team that went 15-13 and 6-9 in American Athletic Conference play to finish seventh.
• The Shockers were picked to finish eighth in this season’s preseason poll, behind Temple, UCF and SMU.
• Since the AAC went 0-3 going, the Shockers have gone 7 of 11 and are looking for their first 3-game conference hitting streak since 2021.
• Shocking Foes are shooting just 39.8 from the field, which ranks 18th best in the country, behind only Houston (35.8) in the AAC.
• Wichita State holds its opponents to just 67.5 points per game, which also ranks third in the conference.
• The Shockers go bust the fewest times per game (15.0) of any team in the AAC.
• On the historical side, the Memphis head coach Penny HardawayHis first conference win as a head coach came against Wichita State on January 3, 2019 (85-74).
• Jaykwon Walker He is averaging 14.4 points per game and has reached double figures in each of 10 games since returning Jan. 14 from an ankle injury.
• In that time, he averaged 18.2 points.
• Craig Porter Jr. he ranks second on the team with 12.7 points but leads the way and ranks among the AAC leaders in rebounds (12th, 6.2), assists (5th, 4.2) and blocks (3rd, 1.6).

• The Shockers have posted a home winning record in every season since 1996-97, but will need to win their last two against Memphis and South Florida to keep that streak alive. I’m currently 7-7 at the Roundhouse.
• On the historical side, the Memphis head coach Penny HardawayHis first conference win as a head coach came against Wichita State on January 3, 2019 (85-74).

How to follow the tigers: For complete information on Memphis Tiger Men’s Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team’s social media channels at ChirpingInstagram and Facebook.

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