Penny Hardaway hit rock bottom as Memphis basketball’s head coach on March 14, 2024, when his Tigers lost to Wichita State in the American Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament quarterfinals—completing a 7-8 collapse in their last 15 games to miss the NCAA Tournament after a 15-2 start.
Three hundred fifty-eight days later, he finished his climb back to the top as Memphis clinched its first outright AAC regular-season title by beating South Florida inside FedExForum on Friday. Hardaway and the Tigers threw confetti, cut down both nets and hoisted the trophy. But the seventh-year headman made sure to address the crowd before the celebration began.
“What a difference a year makes,” he said.
The difference Hardaway speaks of is palpable, since this year’s Tigers (26-5, 16-2 AAC) are the exact opposite of last year’s. Sure, they had hiccups along the way with losses to Arkansas State, Temple and Wichita State. They also let other inferior opponents hang around a little too long sometimes, and battled various spurts of inefficient play. But unlike its predecessor, Memphis showed the fortitude, determination and effort necessary to overcome whatever challenges came its way.
“When you fall down and you can get back up, that’s what life is all about. That’s like the American story. When you see someone fall, and then they get back up and they become victorious, that motivates people,” Hardaway told reporters postgame. “It is gratifying. That’s how I sum it up. It’s special.”
Hardaway—the detached net hanging around his neck—believes that both this season and last were essential to his growth as the Tigers’ leader. The 901’s favorite son smashed the reset button after Memphis’ collapse in 2023-24. Whether it be the roster, the coaching staff or the culture, everything about his program changed.
What resulted is a team that went 10-3 against the NCAA Evaluation Tool’s (NET) third-hardest non-conference schedule, stayed in the Associated Press (AP) Top 25 for 10 consecutive weeks (will be 11 come Monday) and mostly ran through a mentally-draining conference slate. No coach wants to reach the low point Hardaway did last season, but the 53-year-old now knows it’s exactly what he needed.
“If we would’ve had a successful season like we should have [last year], and gone to like a Sweet 16 or an Elite Eight, I would not have grown. We would’ve just won, to be very honest,” he said. “That fall that I took—it actually made me better. It made the team better, because I got better.
“I’ve grown a lot. I didn’t feel like I had it all together [in my first six years]. I knew the X’s and O’s, and I knew I was gonna work hard. But [from] building a culture, getting the right staff, finding out what I really needed to work with me [and] to make me better and not just grabbing guys, I had to learn a lot. This growth this year is what I needed.”
Memphis has much to smile about over the next few days. Its first regular-season conference championship since 2012-13 is now in place, and that likely won’t be the only plaque Memphis receives in the near future. PJ Haggerty (21.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.8 steals per game) is widely expected to win the AAC Player of the Year award. Hardaway is the heavy favorite for Coach of the Year. Tyrese Hunter (14 points, 4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.4 steals) and Dain Dainja (13.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 1.2 blocks) should achieve All-AAC honors too.
The Tigers still have tons of basketball on the horizon, though, starting with next week’s AAC Tournament. Memphis—the No. 1 seed in the bracket—begins its postseason next Friday (noon, ESPN2 and ESPN+) at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, where it hopes to win three times in as many days and claim its second conference tourney title in three years. After that, Hardaway’s club goes dancing for the third time in his tenure.
So, Memphis will enjoy itself for now before getting right back to work on Sunday. The Tigers wouldn’t want it any other way.
“We’re in the locker room enjoying it, but everybody’s like, ‘Hey yo, we ain’t done. You know we’re not done,'” Hunter said. “We’re gonna enjoy this, but it’s really go time now.”