Memphis Tigers Basketball, NCAA Basketball NEWS
Memphis Trying To Shake Off Kansas Loss
Published by MoonDog on November 14, 2008
The Memphis Tigers kicked off their 2008-09 season a few weeks ago with a Midnight Madness ceremony at the FedEx Forum that was attended by more than 14,000 fans.
Memphis raised the 2008 NCAA Final Four banner and introduced this year’s team to the crowd, with an emphasis on starting anew.
Memphis Tigers Head Coach John Calipari
Last season, the Tigers became just the third C-USA team to advance to the Final Four and the first to play in the national title game. Although Memphis lost in overtime to Kansas in the championship game, it still had a campaign to remember.
The 2007-08 Tigers went an incredible 38-2 overall under Calipari and they also completed a second straight perfect C-USA campaign, going 16-0. Since the start of 2005-06, Memphis is 48-1 versus C-USA foes and that includes three straight C-USA Tournament titles.
The Tigers though, have some holes to fill this season. Gone are Derrick Rose, Chris Douglas-Roberts and Joey Dorsey. They scored 53 percent of the Tigers’ points last season, and Dorsey was the team’s leading rebounder and shot-blocker.
Rose, the first pick in the NBA draft, was the C-USA Freshman of the Year in 2007-08, while Douglas- Roberts was the league’s Player of the Year and Dorsey the Defensive Player of the Year.
Antonio Anderson
Overcoming those losses won’t be easy, but Memphis has the talent to do so. Antonio Anderson and Robert Dozier are the two returning starters and they enter 2008-09 with their sights set on joining the 1,000-point club.
The 6-6 Anderson was one of the most underrated players around last season, but he showed he could do it all by posting 8.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG and 3.4 APG. He will be counted on to provide leadership as well this season.
Doneal Mack and Willie Kemp are two more experienced players that will log time in the backcourt, but newcomers Tyreke Evans and Roburt Sallie will push hard for starting jobs.
Evans was one of the most heralded prep players in the nation last year and he’s expected to make an immediate impact. Sallie is a transfer from the University of Nebraska that will provide experienced backcourt depth and a proven ability to score.
Robert Dozier
Dozier will anchor the Tigers front court along with Shawn Taggart. The 6-9 forward looks to build off a solid 2007-08 campaign in which he averaged 9.2 PPG and 6.8 RPG. Dozier tried out for several NBA teams in pre-draft camps earlier this year before deciding he needed to play another year in college.
At 6-10 Taggart provides Memphis with a strong interior presence with the ability to step out and make a shot. He averaged 5.9 PPG and 4.2 RPG off the bench last season, but those numbers should increase with an expanded role.
Adding depth along the front court is 6-8 junior Pierre Niles, who has battled weight problems since arriving at Memphis two years ago. Niles has quickness for his size and could see considerable minutes considering the Tigers lack experience on the front line.
Wesley Witherspoon is another highly rated freshman that could see a lot of minutes too. The 6-8 small forward has tons of talent and his skills that closely match the departed Douglas-Roberts. His slashing style is perfect for the Tigers dribble drive offense.
Tyreke Evans
This year’s version of the Tigers won’t be a Final Four team, but they’ll contend for another Conference USA title and should advance at least into the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA tournament in March.
The schedule has some interesting games but won’t be as strong as last season’s. Among the notable non-conference games are UMass on November 18, Georgetown on December 13, Syracuse on December 20, Tennessee on January 24 and Gonzaga on February 7.
The Tigers open regular season play November 15 versus Fairfield at the FedEx Forum. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. Central. Memphis is ranked No. 13 in the preseason Associated Press poll and No. 12 in the preseason ESPN/USA Today poll.
Similar Posts:
- No. 5 Memphis Has No Trouble With SMU
- No. 5 Memphis Wins 19th Straight
- Missouri Ends Memphis’ Season
- Tigers Pound Fairfield In Season Opener
- Free Throw Woes Continue To Haunt Memphis
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...466 views
None
 |
 |
||
|
|||
 |
|
