So much for the Tigers’ first winning streak six weeks.
Avery Woodson drained a three-pointer from the right wing to bring the Tigers within three points (60-57) with 4:30 left in tonight’s game in Philadelphia, but that’s the closest Memphis would get in an attempt to sweep its season series with the Owls. Devin Coleman hit a three-pointer for the Owls with 1:33 left to extend Temple’s lead back to seven points and seal his team’s 19th win of the season. Now 13-4 in American Athletic Conference play, the Owls can clinch the AAC’s regular-season championship with a win Sunday at Tulane or an SMU loss in either of the Mustangs’ final two games. (SMU hosts UConn tonight.)
The loss extends a season of misery for the U of M, now 16-14 overall and 7-10 in the AAC. The Tigers shot 38 percent from the field (though 40 percent from beyond the three-point line, 6 for 15). Dedric Lawson earned his 15th double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Shaq Goodwin scored 16 points and Ricky Tarrant Jr. led the team with 18. No other Tiger player scored as many as eight points.
Memphis will complete its regular season Sunday at East Carolina. They will enter next week’s AAC tournament as the sixth seed and face the third seed in a Friday-night quarterfinal. The Tigers will need to win the AAC tourney — three games in three days — to land an NCAA tournament berth. The tourney’s top seed (Temple) will be on the opposite side of the bracket.
