Penny Hardaway said the No. 18 Tigers were “pissed off” after losing to Temple last Thursday. They certainly looked like it on Sunday.
Memphis (14-4, 4-1 AAC) handled last-place Charlotte 77-68 inside Dale F. Halton Arena to complete its two-game road trip. The 49ers were the first of 11 consecutive Quad 3 or 4 opponents on the Tigers’ schedule. Hardaway’s club returns to FedExForum against Wichita State this Thursday (6 p.m., ESPN2).
Memphis shot 49% overall and 40% on 3-pointers. It also won the rebounding tally 42-28 while recording 14 assists, 12 forced turnovers, 10 offensive boards, 7 steals and 2 blocks. The Tigers scored more bench points (25-9) and more paint points (36-26) than Charlotte, and led by as many as 22 points.
Aaron Fearne’s team (7-12, 0-6 AAC) shot 39% on field goals and 32% from beyond the arc. It also racked up 16 forced turnovers, 10 steals, 9 assists, 6 offensive rebounds and a block. Charlotte trailed for more than 37 minutes. Jaehshon Thomas (18), Giancarlo Rosado (12), Kylan Blackmon (12) and Nik Graves (10) scored double-figure points for the 49ers.
Here are some takeaways from Memphis’ bounce-back win.
Memphis lights up 3-point line in first half
Memphis led the country in 3-point shooting percentage earlier this season, and got its perimeter shooting back on track against Charlotte after coming down to Earth in the past month.
The Tigers shot 7-of-16 from the 3-point line in the first half, and 57.7% from the field. Tyrese Hunter led all scorers with 10 points and two 3-pointers at halftime. Colby Rogers went to the locker room with 9 points and three makes from deep. Dante Harris and PJ Carter also hit a 3-pointer respectively in the first 20 minutes.
Memphis held a 41-25 advantage at intermission, and led by as many as 20 points after a 26-5 run over 11 minutes. The 49ers shot 30% overall in the opening period.
Memphis controls the boards
The Tigers were outrebounded 49-25 at Temple, and they allowed 22 offensive boards. But it was their turn to dominate the glass in Charlotte.
Memphis bigs Dain Dainja, Nick Jourdain and Moussa Cisse made their presences felt after combining for just 11 rebounds in Philadelphia. Dainja grabbed a team-high 9 boards, while Cisse and Jourdain trailed just behind him with 8 and 6 respectively.
Lead scorer PJ Haggerty secured 8 rebounds. Rogers (3), Hunter (2) and Harris (1) combined for another 6.
Balanced rotation
Memphis’ depth and rotation has been a big talking point this season, but Hardaway seemingly found a good balance against Charlotte.
The seventh-year coach deployed eight Tigers in Sunday’s game, and each one played at least 13 minutes. Haggerty scored a game-high 18 points to go with 3 assists and 3 steals in 37 minutes. Hunter finished with 15 points, 5 assists and a steal in 31 minutes. Rogers logged 33 minutes.
Dainja totaled 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting in just 23 minutes. Carter (6) and Harris (5) scored 11 combined points in 33 combined minutes.