Memphis Roar

Memphis coaches Josh Pastner and Willis Wilson have a homecoming of sorts tonight in Houston, TX.

TIGERS vs OWLS

DATE: Tonight, January 16th

TIME: 7:00 CST

PLACE: Houston, TX – Tudor Fieldhouse

The Memphis Tigers will take on the Rice Owls tonight at Tudor Fieldhouse in Hoston, TX after prevailing rather easily against East Carolina this past Wednesday night.  For Memphis head coach Josh Pastner, this is his first trip into his hometown as a Division 1 head coach. His dreams and goals were started and set in Houston and tonight, as the Tigers look to tie a college basketball milestone, the reality of Pastner’s acheivement will have come full circle.

For the Tigers, Elliot Williams is, without question, the offensive leader but had a rare off-night against the Pirates of ECU.  Williams poured in 8 point, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.  For the majority of this season, Memphis has relied on Williams to provide a good amount of the offense for the Tigers, continually posing the question, “Who will step up should he have a night like Wednesday night”.  Wesley Witherspoon stepped up with a career high in points (22) while going 6 of 8 from the field  and 9 of 10 from the foul line.  Tiger fans have been waiting for Witherspoon’s potential to pour out on the offensive end. With a string of consistent game, it is possible that the East Carolina game is the start of a reasonable answer to that question.

This young and talented Rice team has struggled so far this season with 6-10 overall record and have yet to log their first win in conference play.  They will be facing a Tigers team chasing after a record of their own.  Standing at 63 consecutive Conference USA victories, the Tigers look to match the unthinkable record of the 1945-50 Kentucky Wildcats team who managed 64 consecutive conference wins. 

For this team, they can’t remember the last time they lost a conference game; that’s because all of the players on this Tigers team, were nowhere to be found when Memphis had anything other than a zero in the “L” column for Conference USA play. When recalling the last loss for the Tigers in conference, names like Rodney Carney, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Joey Dorsey and Darius Washington come to mind.  These former Tigers were on the court in Bartow Arena when UAB upset the Tigers back in 2006. 

Roburt Sallie looks to have become the heir of Antonio Anderson’s defensive prowess.  Though he is still looking for consistency with his shooting touch, Sallie helps provide a boost to the team with superb defense and breakaway points. Consistency is key to winning games, and every team will have struggles.  One consistent factor for the Tigers this season has been the lack of rebounding.  For the Tigers, the hope is that big men Pierre Henderson-Niles and Will Coleman can get their positioning corrected and keep their grip on the ball for put-back points in the paint. 

“We’ve got to have 10 feet in the paint when the ball goes up,” said assistant coach Willis Wilson.

Kazemi is the first Iranian national to play Division 1 basketball in the United States.

For the Owls, they need to lean on their freshman point guard, Tamir Jackson, to help keep this game close.  He is their leading scorer, averaging 11.6 points per game. Also, look for the Owls to rely heavily on their freshman forward Arsalan Kazemi. Kazemi, who has intense style of play and has no regard for his body, will push Henderson-Niles and Coleman in rebounding and loose ball situations in the paint due to his non-stop motor and hustle.

If the Tigers can prevail to tie the record, it will be an extra special night for assistant coach Willis Wilson.  Coach Wilson coached Rice for 16 seasons before going separate ways with the university in 2008.

“For us, this is a business trip. It’s not about Willis Wilson. It’s about the Tigers going in there and taking care of business,” said Wilson when asked about his return to Rice.

MyFox Memphis Interview with Josh Pastner about the game and record

Willie Kemp Interview

Will Coleman Interview

Willis Wilson Interview