The Tigers’ four-game winning streak ended with a thud (somewhat literally) Saturday night in Tulsa. That’s the merely bad news.
Point guard Jeremiah Martin — the Tigers’ top scorer this season — left the game with 6:16 to play when he fell violently to the floor on a layup attempt. He had to be helped to the Memphis locker room by members of the team’s training staff. Martin scored 14 points, ending a stretch of four 20-point games that coincided with the Tigers’ winning streak.
The loss drops Memphis to 13-7 for the season and 4-3 in the American Athletic Conference, while the Golden Hurricane improves to 11-9 (4-4). Daquan Jeffries came off the bench to lead Tulsa with 24 points and 11 rebounds, helping his team avenge a loss in FedExForum on January 6th.
The Tigers suffered a scoring drought of six minutes in the first half, allowing Tulsa to take command (33-20) by halftime. But junior forward Kyvon Davenport spurred a Tiger rally in the second half, one that closed the Tulsa lead to two points (49-47) with less than eight minutes to play. But an 8-0 run by the home team, combined with Martin’s injury, deflated the comeback attempt.
Davenport led the Tigers with a season-high 21 points (along with 11 rebounds). Mike Parks added 11 points but Memphis received no scoring from its reserves. The U of M shot a dreadful three-for-19 from three-point range and 35 percent from the field overall.
The Tigers now have a week off before returning to FedExForum where they’ll host 12th-ranked Cincinnati on January 27th. The Bearcats handled Memphis easily (82-48) on New Year’s Eve and improved to 17-2 with a win over East Carolina Saturday.
