Antonio Barton rattled home a 17-foot jumper with 35 seconds left to play Saturday afternoon in Spokane, Washington, to give the Tigers a much-needed road win and end a two-game losing streak that jeopardized the team’s NCAA tournament hopes. A week after losing by 15 at Marshall, Memphis earned what may be the biggest road win in two years under coach Josh Pastner. The Tigers improved to 17-6 in beating the Bulldogs. The contest was the last in a six-year series, Memphis taking five of the six games.
The Tigers stormed out of halftime with a 15-4 run, a three-point shot by Antonio Barton giving them a 47-34 lead. But they failed to convert a field goal over the game’s next 12 minutes and watched Gonzaga take the lead on a jump-hook by Robert Sacre with 3:15 to play. Charles Carmouche ended the field-goal drought by draining a trey from the right corner with 1:43 to play, a shot that tied the score at 56. Will Barton and Sacre traded a pair of free throws before Antonio Barton’s game-winning bucket.
Antonio Barton led Memphis with 17 points, with his brother adding 12 and Carmouche 13. Will Barton also had six assists and seven rebounds. Steven Gray led Gonzaga with 12 points.
Memphis next travels to Orlando for a tilt with UCF on Wednesday night. The Tigers host Southern Miss on February 12th.
