Tennessee State next for men's basketball

Saturday, December 22

Memphis, Tenn.

2 PM

University of Memphis

Tennessee State

Tickets

Senior forward Kyvon Davenport is averaging 26 points off the bench the past two games.

Photo by: Joe Murphy

Dec 21, 2018 | Men's Basketball

Memphis Notes (vs. Tennessee State)Tennessee State Notes (vs. Memphis)

Tigers vs. Tigers at 2 p.m. at FedExForum will be a reunion.

By: Phil Stukenborg

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis finishes its pre-Christmas schedule Saturday at FedExForum against Tennessee State by hosting what amounts to a family reunion.

Tipoff is 2 p.m. and will be preceded by a Birmingham Bowl Watch Party inside FedExForum.

For the UofM, former Tennessee State assistant Rodney Hamilton, now Memphis' director of basketball operations, welcomes back familiar faces. For Tennessee State, multiple players with Memphis connections return home.

Donte Fitzpatrick-Dorsey and Demarcus Mitchell are Memphis natives. Michael Littlejohn and Damarri Moore are former Southwest Tennessee Community College players. Fitzpatrick-Dorsey leads TSU with a 17.2 scoring average.

The UofM will attempt to add to what has been a successful homestand. The only blemish during a FedExForum-heavy schedule has been last weekend's loss to No. 3-ranked Tennessee.

Memphis is coming off a 99-89 win Wednesday night at home against Little Rock, a game in which it placed five players in double figures. Senior guard Jeremiah Martin led the team with a season-high 22 points, but the UofM again got contributions from its bench.

Reserves Kareem Brewton and Kyvon Davenport scored 15 points each. In its past two games, the bench has averaged 46 points, led by former starter Davenport. He scored a career-high 31 against Tennessee and followed with 15 points and a career-high 15 rebounds against Little Rock.

For the UofM, guard Antwann Jones is expected to make his second-straight start following an impressive debut as a member of the starting lineup. Jones, a 6-foot-6 freshman from Orlando, had 13 points and six assists against Little Rock, including leading the team out of trouble in the final four minutes.

Memphis trailed, 86-84, when Jones re-entered the game at the 3:52 mark. He proceeded to tie the game on a layup, then gave the UofM a 90-86 lead by feeding Martin for layups after grabbing the rebound on Little Rock's ensuing two possessions.

A minute later, he assisted on another layup, this one by Davenport, on an athletic, leaping, one-handed pass from underneath the goal.

"I was having fun out there just being a part of the starting lineup," Jones said. "I had a lot of energy being out there."

QUICK FACTS

A pre-game Birmingham Bowl Watch Party showing the UofM's football game against Wake Forest on the FedExForum video boards will begin at 11 a.m. for those who have purchased tickets to the game. Doors open at 11 a.m.
After today's game, the Tigers will enjoy a holiday break before returning to FedExForum Dec. 29 to play host to Florida A&M in a game that tips off at noon.
Through 11 games, two UofM players – guards Jeremiah Martin and Tyler Harris – have started each game.