2011 NCAA Men’s Basketball Team Previews – Memphis Tigers
The Memphis Tigers were one of the youngest teams in Division-I college basketball last season but still managed to post an overall record of 25-9 with several freshman playing a key role in this success.
The Tigers finished play in Conference-USA with a very pedestrian record of 10-6, but shined in the conference tournament’s championship game with a 67-66 victory over UTEP as five-point underdogs.
Memphis’s postseason success was short-lived with a 77-75 loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament to Arizona as a 5.5-point underdog.
Most of the preseason polls have Memphis ranked in or near the top 10 in the country. The ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll has it ranked ninth, while the AP Poll has it ranked 11th. The Sporting News has the Tigers ranked the highest at No.8 and Rivals also has them ranked 11th.
With a full season of experience under its belt, the Memphis lineup is ready to grow-up in a hurry to make a deep run at a national title this season. The back court features a pair of dynamic sophomores in Will Barton and Joe Jackson. Barton led the Tigers in scoring last season with an average of 12.3 points per game, while Jackson was second with 9.9 points. [soliloquy id=”82219″]
Both averaged close to three assists a game and Barton was second on the team in rebounds with just under five a game. Senior guard Charles Carmouche is also a projected starter. Last season he averaged close to 25 minutes a game and chipped-in 7.4 points and 3.3 rebounds a game.
The front court features sophomore forward Tarik Black, who averaged 9.1 points a game and five rebounds. He will be joined by freshman forward Adonis Thomas. He is a Memphis native and comes to the team as a five-star recruit. Look for forwards Ferrakohn Hall and Stan Simpson to bolster the front court off the bench.
Hall is a transfer from Seton Hall and Simpson is junior college transfer after starting his college career at Illinois.
Memphis kicks its season off on November 15 against Belmont in the EA Sports Maui Invitational. It will face No.18 Michigan and No. 8 Louisville early in the season in non-conference play and then starts things up in C-USA against UAB on January 7.
The Tigers come into this season as the favorite to win its conference and BetOnline has them at +2200 to win a national title.
The over/under line on their seed for the NCAA Tournament is set at 3.5 with the money line on the under at -120 and the over at -110.
If the youth on this team continues to gel as the season progresses, Memphis is talented enough to make a serious run at the Elite 8 and has an outside shot at being a Final Four team.
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