Tag: Alex Lomax

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Sports Tiger Blue

#23 Wichita State 76, #21 Tigers 67

Bye-bye, Top 25.

Five days after a loss to Georgia that dropped them 12 spots in the Top 25 (from 9th to 21st), the Tigers were declawed at Wichita State, surely toppling out of the rankings for the near future. Memphis has lost consecutive games for the first time this season, now 12-3 overall and 1-1 in the American Athletic Conference. The Shockers improve to 14-1 (2-0).

The U of M shot miserably in the first half (1 for 13 from three-point range), but closed a 13-point deficit to six (37-31) by halftime. Wichita State opened the second half with a 9-3 run and extended the lead to 17 points midway through the period. A Tyler Harris trey and Precious Achiuwa layup keyed a 13-4 Memphis run that reduced the Shocker lead to six points (66-60) with just over three minutes to play. But a pair of turnovers by Alex Lomax interrupted the comeback. The Tigers and Shockers have now split four games since Wichita State joined the AAC before the 2017-18 season.

Precious Achiuwa posted his eighth double-double of the season with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Harris scored a season-high 17 points off the bench, but no other Tiger scored as many as 10. D.J. Jeffries returned to the starting lineup after missing the Georgia game due to illness. He scored only three points in 28 minutes of action.

Jamarius Burton led the Shockers with 16 points.

The Tigers made only four of 21 shots from three-point range and had almost twice as many turnovers (18) as assists (10).

Memphis returns to action Sunday with a game at USF (8-8). Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. The Tigers return to FedExForum on January 16th when Cincinnati comes to town.

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Sports Tiger Blue

#15 Tigers 71, Bradley 56

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

“It’s a mental thing. I’m back to myself.” — Alex Lomax

On a team dominated by its freshmen, sophomore guard Alex Lomax has seized the role of “glue guy,” the oft-celebrated player who does what’s necessary — regardless of circumstance — to make winning easier. The pride of East High School (and longtime protege of Tiger coach Penny Hardaway) came off the bench Tuesday night at FedExForum and led Memphis with 17 points, hitting four of seven shots from the field and nine of 12 from the free throw line to help his team to a fifth straight victory. Now 7-1, the 15th-ranked Tigers remain undefeated (5-0) since another former Mustang — freshman center James Wiseman — began an NCAA-mandated 12-game suspension last month.
Larry Kuzniewski

Alex Lomax

The win made ugly look pretty. The Bradley Braves had more offensive rebounds (23) than they did field goals (22). The visitors put up 21 more shots than did the Tigers and still lost by 15 points. Former Germantown High standout Darrell Brown entered the game averaging 14.0 points per game for Bradley and missed 15 of 16 shots in front of friends and family. The Tigers led big early (12-4), stretched the lead to 10 (29-19) by halftime, and never allowed the Braves (5-3) close enough to threaten the outcome. Nonetheless, it was not a game Hardaway, Lomax, or any member of the Memphis team will call upon for year-end highlights.

“Once we got a nice lead, we got a little complacent,” said Lomax, now shooting 62 percent from the field this season. “We’re a young team, still have a lot to learn. We learned some things not to do [tonight]. We gotta toughen up. This was a bad game for us.”

“This was almost like a trap game for us,” said Hardaway. “They are definitely capable of beating us. For us to come out and scrap through . . . it was ugly, because they kind of just hung around. It’s a little disappointing, but we’ll definitely take the win.” Hardaway acknowledged the handful Bradley forward Elijah Childs became, with 21 points and 14 rebounds. But holding Brown and Nate Kennell to a combined two field goals (on 24 shots) was the difference.

Precious Achiuwa pulled down 14 rebounds for the Tigers but fell short of a fourth consecutive double-double with only six points, as he missed 10 of 13 shots from the field. “They had his number,” said Hardaway. “They shrunk the paint and let him come to them. They didn’t foul him.” D.J. Jeffries scored 10 points and pulled down nine rebounds and fellow freshman Boogie Ellis added 12 points. Ellis took a hard fall on his back after being fouled on a dunk attempt in the second half, but continued to play.

Count Hardaway among the most grateful for Lomax’s emergence, and not just on a night in early December when he was needed in the scoring column. “What happened with Alex last year happens to a lot of freshmen,” said Hardaway. “They try to do more than what they’re supposed to do. They get away from their own game. Alex has always been an energy player, a great defender, get the team involved, get to the basket, get to the foul line. Last year he tried to become a jump-shooter. Now he’s letting the game come to him.”

The Tigers travel to Birmingham to face old rival UAB Saturday afternoon (tip-off scheduled for 4:30 p.m.). A week later, they cross the state to face Tennessee in Knoxville. They’ll return to FedExForum to host Jackson State on December 21st.

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Sports Tiger Blue

Tigers Scrape By Ole Miss, 87-86

CREDIT: Larry Kuzniewski

The Memphis Tigers squared off against regional rival Ole Miss at FedExForum Saturday. It was the Tigers’ third game without star center James Wiseman, who is serving a 12-game suspension levied by the NCAA.  Larry Kuzniewski

Precious Achiuwa

The first half was close, with the lead see-sawing back-and-forth, neither team able to create much separation until five minutes before the intermission, when the Tigers made a few stops and stretched the lead to seven points, 45-38, at half. Memphis was led in scoring by Precious Achiuwa (13) and D.J. Jeffries (10) in the first half.  Photographs by Larry Kuzniewski

Coach Penny Hardaway

Achiuwa came out aggressively in the opening minutes of the second half, scoring a quick seven points on a couple of strong drives and a steal at mid-court that was followed by a drive and dunk. The Tigers defense also ramped up a notch, forcing several turnovers and pushing the Tigers’ lead to 11 at the 16-minute mark.

Tyler Harris knocked down a pair of three-pointers to push the Tigers’ lead to 14 with 12 minutes to go. But Ole Miss began chipping away, and with three minutes left, the Tigers’ lead was down to eight. Ole Miss cut the lead to three with 16 seconds left, and then to 2 with 8 seconds to go. Damien Baugh made one of two free throws, giving the Tigers a three-point lead — and giving Ole Miss a shot to tie with a three-pointer.

The Tigers fouled Ole Miss guard Breein Tyree in the backcourt with 5 seconds left. Tyree made the first of two and missed the second, giving the Tigers a quick fast-break bucket, which was followed by a buzzer-beating Ole Miss three-pointer from half-court, making the final score 87-86.

Achiuwa led the Tigers with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Jeffries had 23 points; Tyler Harris added 15, and Lomax finished with 14. 

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Opinion The Last Word

200 and Counting: Thoughts on Memphis’ Bicentennial

CREDIT: Susan Ellis

When I found out 2019 was Memphis’ bicentennial year, I expected a nonstop party. But here we are, almost halfway through January and I have not been invited to a single birthday function. Nor have I seen photos from a birthday function I wasn’t invited to. People don’t even know. You’d think it was just some regular year, not the dawn of the Third Century of the Bluff City.

The bicentennial has barely garnered a mention since the state legislature tried to punish us for removing those Confederate statues by taking our birthday party money away.

Susan Ellis

Calvin Farrar

You only turn 200 once. Plenty of haters — the yellow fever, for one — didn’t think we would make it this far. This is no time to be bashful. Sure, the “big day” is still four months away, and I know we’re not the type of city that likes to make everything about us. But if anyone’s saying “Ugh, we get it, it’s your birthday year” by then, do we really need that kind of negativity in our lives?

Maybe, like me on my 30th, Memphis doesn’t feel like it’s accomplished as much as it had hoped. In that case, I can empathize with the desire to keep things low-key. But listen, Memphis: 200 isn’t the end. We are going to take every lesson learned in the first 200 years and use them as the foundation for our Best Century Yet. We’re not going to dwell too much on the past and somehow make this another Elvis thing. I’m taking it upon myself to get the party started with some shoutouts to a few present-day Memphians I admire, because the people make the place. Also, the water. But mostly the people. I could probably list 200, but in the interest of word-counts I’ll start with three who, like the city itself, are unsung, underrated, and understated.

Gary Crain is the pastor at the New Testament Christian Church at the corner of Quince and Mount Moriah. I don’t attend his church, and I’ve never heard his sermons. But he has been a part of my mornings for as long as I can remember. No matter the weather, he’s standing out front, smiling and waving to commuters most weekdays. Sometimes cars pull over to stop and chat, and other drivers quietly go around them. It amazes me that an act as small as a wave can bring so much joy to a person’s day. Multiply that by thousands of drivers and passengers: It’s a movement. It makes me want to be more neighborly. I plan my commute around that wave.

You may not know his name, but if you’ve seen painted windows in Midtown and Downtown, or shopped at Cash Saver or the Superlo on Southern, you definitely know Calvin Farrar‘s work. For years he’s brightened the windows at Silky’s, Huey’s, the Bar-B-Q Shop, and dozens of other businesses with those colorful and imaginative murals. Griz dunks on Santa Claus, Pouncer devours Huey burgers, all in the most perfectly old-school, quintessentially Memphis style. Parking Can Be Fun is only fun because there is usually a Farrar painting nearby. Nobody does what he does. He is an institution, and watching him work is a treat.

Memphis basketball fans love local players who stay home. Maybe I’m overanalyzing, but I think the appreciation transcends your standard-issue hometown-hero worship. They represent the belief that you don’t have to choose between the city and your dreams. That is a lot to put on a kid, which explains why many still choose to leave and others stay and fail.

It’s early, but Alex Lomax is a teammate. I’ve watched him flex after assisting on a layup and chest-bump a teammate after drawing a foul — no victory is too small to celebrate. He doesn’t score a ton of points (yet?), but he leads in other ways. A 5’10” point guard, he had eight rebounds against Wichita State. And what he lacks in size, he makes up for in hustle. If that’s not Memphis as hell, I don’t know what is. He is easy to root for, just like his coach, and his coach’s coach before him.
Nearly 200 years in, is Memphis perfect? No way. Is it even close to perfect? Also no. Is it full of fantastically kind, brilliant, talented, and creative people? Yes, we do have that going for us. Let’s celebrate them all year and beyond.
Jen Clarke is an unapologetic Memphian and digital marketing strategist.