12:02 pm
December 15

#3 Tennessee @ Memphis

What will be the GAME RESULT?

#3 Tennessee: Wins By Double Digits

@ Memphis: Wins or Single Digit Loss

 

Current odds:

Tennessee: (TBD)

Memphis: (TBD)

 

• The line for this game is Tennessee by 9 points.

• Memphis has experienced its share of ups and downs through the first nine games of Penny Hardaway’s debut season as coach, but a watershed moment – and a tremendous challenge – awaits at home Saturday when the Tigers host No. 4 Tennessee. With its recent upset of previously top-ranked Gonzaga, Tennessee represents a chance for Hardaway’s squad to measure how far it has to go to reach the Volunteers’ elite level. The Volunteers have looked every bit like a Final Four contender, as their only loss came against now top-ranked Kansas, a perch the Jayhawks reached thanks in part to Tennessee’s 76-73 toppling of the Zags.

• The Volunteers have lost the past three meetings with the Tigers, but the cross-state rivals have not met since January 2013.

• Junior forward Grant Williams leads the SEC in scoring (19.9 points per game) and rebounding (9.3 per contest), but it was guard Admiral Schofield who led the way against Gonzaga after Williams fouled out, finishing with a career-high 30 points. Schofield has averaged 22 points on 59.1 percent shooting from the field and is 10-of-18 from 3-point range in his past three games. The Volunteers rank 10th nationally in opposing field-goal percentage (36.8 percent).

• Freshman guard Tyler Harris has scored 20 or more points in five of his first nine games and is averaging a team-high 16.2 points per game. A fellow Memphis native, senior guard Jeremiah Martin averages 14.1 points per game and leads the team in assists (33) and steals (16). The Tigers have shot 49.1 percent or better from the field in three of their past four games, including a season-best 53.6 percent in a 94-76 victory over UAB on Dec. 8.

• The Volunteers are tied for second in the nation in assists per game (21.1).

• The Tigers have faced two ranked teams this season, leading both contests in the second half before falling to LSU by nine points and Texas Tech by 11.

• Memphis has not hosted a top-five team at home since Feb. 23, 2008, when the then top-ranked Tigers fell 66-62 to second-ranked Tennessee.

5/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
Memphis: Wins or Single Digit Loss
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