A title is up for grabs inside the Lahaina Civic Center.
Memphis (6-0) takes on No. 4 Auburn (6-0) in the Maui Invitational championship game Wednesday afternoon (4 p.m., ESPN). Penny Hardaway’s Tigers beat No. 2 UConn and Michigan State to reach the tournament final, while Auburn knocked off No. 5 Iowa State and No. 12 North Carolina.
Memphis won in two different ways in the past two days. Monday’s victory against the Huskies was a back-and-forth shootout that saw both teams score at least 97 points. But Tuesday’s showdown with MSU proved to be a much slower, more physical affair where neither squad shot 50% from the field.
The Tigers emerged as the better team in both scenarios, and Hardaway couldn’t be prouder.
“I saw grit, I saw toughness, I saw execution, I saw winners, just saw guys that really wanted this tournament,” he said postgame Tuesday. “These young men, they need all the credit because we push them really hard. Even though they don’t like it all the time, they respond. Right now you’re seeing the response, like a reset. They put in so much work. These guys live in the gym. When it’s time to compete, they get up to compete.”
This is the third meeting in the last five seasons between Hardaway and Auburn coach Bruce Pearl, with their series currently being tied at one win apiece. Auburn edged out the first matchup 74-71 in 2020-21, and Memphis controlled the second game 82-73 in 2022-23. Both contests took place at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta.
Here’s what to expect during Memphis’ final game in Maui.
Who can stop Tyrese Hunter?
Perhaps nobody.
The 6-foot guard has been the undisputed star of the Maui Invitational, having scored 49 combined points on 60% 3-point shooting in his first two games.
Hunter finished Tuesday’s contest with a game-high 23 points while shooting 7-for-15 from the field and 50% from beyond the arc, and led the Tigers to a 71-63 finish against the Spartans. He even made a fan out of legendary Michigan State coach Tom Izzo in the process.
“You’ve got to give Hunter a lot of credit. He made some shots that I’m sure Penny—I don’t know if Penny made those shots when he played, and I mean that. He was falling right, falling left, end of the shot clock, and he drained them,” Izzo said. “Someone is going to have to really play well no matter what they do, not to be MVP of this tournament the way he shot it.”
Hunter, who’s 6-3 in NCAA Tournament games, never shot better than 34% on 3-pointers in his first three seasons with Iowa State and Texas. But he’s now hitting 52.6% of his attempts this year.
It turns out all he needed was a mentality shift.
“Just my confidence, putting in the work. I know when I came to this program, just talking with Penny, it’s like, ‘You’re shooting good, but you got to get more of them up,’” Hunter said. “And just trusting in that, trusting in my work ethic and just letting it play out through the summer, practice, into the games.”
Foul trouble in the frontcourt
Both of Memphis’ centers were chronically absent against Michigan State.
Three personal fouls by the 8:53 mark in the first half quickly zapped out Dain Dainja for most of the period. Dainja, who finished the game with 7 points and 2 offensive rebounds in 15 minutes, fouled out completely at the 6:33 mark in the second half. The 6-foot-9 senior was also whistled for 4 fouls during Memphis’ victory over UConn, when he recorded 14 points and 5 rebounds in 22 minutes.
Cisse largely avoided fouling in Tuesday’s first half, but he also disqualified himself from the game by committing 4 personals in just under 15 minutes during the second. He finished the contest with 9 points and 7 rebounds in 25 minutes.
Both have been effective when on the floor lately, but their lack of availability could hurt Memphis a ton in the future if it continues.
What Auburn brings to the table
Auburn is arguably the hottest team in college basketball right now, though Memphis has an argument for that crown too.
Pearl’s club owns three Associated Press (AP) top-12 victories in Iowa State, North Carolina and No. 6 Houston. It’s currently No. 1 in KenPom and No. 4 on Bart Torvik. Memphis, for reference, is No. 27 and No. 28 respectively in both metrics. KenPom also ranks Auburn No. 2 in adjusted offensive efficiency and No. 5 in adjusted defensive efficiency, whereas Memphis is No. 23 and No. 40 in the two categories.
Johni Broome is one of the best frontcourt players in the country. The 6-foot-10 forward averages 20.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3 blocks while shooting 60.5% from the field and 31.8% from 3-point range. Broome, who’s in his third year with Auburn, recorded 23 points, 19 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks against UNC. He’s notched a double-double in four consecutive games.
Chad Baker-Mazara is a deadly scoring threat at all three levels. The 6-foot-7 guard puts up 12.3 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game while shooting 53.7% overall and 44.4% on 3-pointers. He’s dropped 12 points or more in four straight games.
Denver Jones does it all for Pearl’s team. The 6-foot-4 guard averages 11.2 points, 3.5 assists and 1.2 steals on 42.9% field goal shooting and 36% perimeter shooting. Jones is also a 91.7% free throw shooter.
Other players to watch for are 6-foot-6 guard Miles Kelly (11.3 points on 42.1% 3-point shooting), 6-foot-7 forward Chaney Johnson (10.8 points and 6.7 rebounds) and 6-foot-1 guard Tahaad Pettiford (10.2 points and 3 assists).
The Prediction
Auburn defeats Memphis to claim the Maui Invitational title.
Hunter and PJ Haggerty will stop at nothing to salvage this one, but Broome and Johnson should easily overpower Memphis’ frontcourt. Dainja, Cisse and Nick Jourdain are all very prone to foul trouble in this matchup, which would create even bigger problems than Memphis already faces.
Hardaway’s team is certainly capable of pulling off another top-5 upset. But the task is probably too tall this time around, as Memphis is simply outgunned here.
Expect another close finish.