It feels eerily similar, doesn’t it?
On Jan. 31, 2024, Memphis lost a Quad 4 game to Rice 74-71 inside FedExForum. It was the fourth of what eventually became eight losses in the Tigers’ final 15 games of 2023-24—a season Memphis started with a 15-2 record and a top-10 Associated Press (AP) Top 25 ranking. Memphis ended the year by falling to Wichita State in its American Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament opener and missing the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2020-21.
On Dec. 8, 2024, No. 16 Memphis (7-2) lost another Quad 4 game to Arkansas State 85-72 in the same arena, though it’s now a Quad 3 loss since A-State jumped from No. 167 to No. 124 in the NCAA’s NET rankings. The Tigers became one of the biggest stories in college basketball with their impressive showing in last month’s Maui Invitational, which included Quad 1 wins over No. 25 UConn and Michigan State. But Memphis might be trending in the wrong direction now after roughly beating Louisiana Tech and falling to the Red Wolves in its last two games.
Penny Hardaway, however, isn’t so quick to compare—even mere moments after his team got embarrassed by its cross-state foe.
“It’s just one game, man,” Hardaway told reporters postgame. “I know everybody can kinda use that narrative, because of what happened last year…[But] this is a totally different team. We’ve been playing good ball, and I’m not gonna panic after one loss.
“My faith is gonna stay strong. I’m a totally different guy. Last year, my mom was fighting cancer. I had so much stuff going on, [so] I’m locked in with a free mind [this year].”
Hardaway said he still felt déjà vu during Sunday’s game. But it came from the last few weeks, rather than last year.
He first felt it when Memphis got out to another slow start—just like it did in wins over Missouri, UNLV, San Francisco and Louisiana Tech. The Red Wolves claimed a 42-29 halftime advantage after leading by as many as 18 points in the first half. The Tigers shot 28% from the field and recorded just 7 field goals during the period.
The revolving door remained ajar as Memphis—the nation’s No. 324 3-point defense—allowed yet another opponent to torch it from beyond the arc. Arkansas State finished the game at 33% from 3-point range after it shot 39% in the first half.
“Never in a million years did I think that we were gonna lose this game from my point of view, because I’m competitive,” Hardaway said. “You gotta want it more. We don’t see the energy at the beginning of the games. I don’t know why. [The players] just think it’s gonna happen.”
Hardaway also could’ve sworn he saw flashbacks as the Tigers were outrebounded for the fifth time in six games, or when Memphis attempted to close the double-digit gap with last-minute heroics instead of well-organized basketball.
PJ Haggerty, Dain Dainja and Colby Rogers combined for 56 of Memphis’ 72 points, but no other Tiger scored more than 7. Star guard Tyrese Hunter notched just 4 on 1-for-7 shooting.
“The déjà vu is us trying to play hero ball in a few games this year,” Hardaway said. “We gotta stop spotting people the points and come out and be ready.”
Hardaway tried to give his team an energy boost by subbing in Dainja, Baraka Okojie, Jared Harris and PJ Carter for starters like Haggerty, Rogers, Nick Jourdain and Moussa Cisse in the first four minutes. The Tigers didn’t respond well, however, as A-State first took a double-digit lead at the 11:30 mark in the first half.
Memphis never cut the deficit to less than 7 points.
“It was weird today, man. It just seemed like they just thought we were gonna win. They’re not out there trying not to play. It just seemed like they thought, ‘At any moment, we’re just gonna turn it around and we’re gonna win,'” Hardaway said. “[Arkansas State] played way harder and wanted it more. They definitely wanted it more than we did.”
The Tigers’ spirits weren’t much higher postgame either. Dainja and Jourdain conducted interviews with Memphis radio play-by-play man Dave Woloshin, but they didn’t speak to reporters Sunday afternoon.
“Players are gone. Sorry,” a Memphis spokesperson said.
Hardaway admits his team could’ve reacted better to the upset.
“It was a bad response, because we know we let an opportunity go away,” he said. “It had everything to do with us today. We had a lot that we could’ve done about it, and we didn’t do anything about it.”
Memphis plays at Clemson next Saturday (10 a.m., ESPN2). It’ll then visit Virginia on Dec. 18 before finishing its non-conference schedule with home games against Mississippi State and No. 23 Ole Miss later this month.
Three of those four matchups are currently projected Quad 1 opportunities, giving the Tigers plenty of chances to make up for the Quad 3 knock now sitting on their resume.