As far as kisses in public places go, this was one Doneal Mack — and 17,238 of his closest friends — won’t soon forget. With just under two minutes to play in what Mack hopes was his final home game as a Tiger, the senior guard lowered himself at midcourt and kissed the U of M logo before heading to the Memphis bench in front of a standing ovation. The last shot he made in the blowout win over Tulsa was appropriately a three-pointer from the top of the key. Better yet, the converted shot gave fellow senior Willie Kemp his 10th assist of the game, a new career high.
“It was spur of the moment,” Mack said after the game. “This was my last time playing on this court for the Tigers; a lot of blood, sweat, and tears on that court. I had many of my best moments on that court. It was a way of showing the fans and city how much I enjoyed them, how much I appreciate their encouragement. My way of saying thank you.”
- Larry Kuzniewski
- Willie Kemp
The Tigers’ final regular season game got off to an ugly start, Tulsa missing seven of its first eight shots and Memphis four of its first five. Ten minutes in, the game was knotted at 11. But Mack hit his first trey of the afternoon and was followed by a thunderous dunk from Elliot Williams over Tulsa’s Justin Hurtt that brought the crowd to its feet. That 16-11 lead was expanded to 30-19 at halftime, thanks in large part to back-to-back three-pointers from Drew Barham and D.J. Stephens (the first trey of the season for Stephens). An 18-9 run over the first eight minutes of the second half ended any suspense.
