Tigers Ride Three-Game Win Streak into North Texas

Thursday, February 15

Denton, Texas

7:00 PM

University of Memphis

North Texas

Forward Nick Jourdain (2) during the Memphis vs. UTSA Men’s Basketball game on 01102024.

Photo by: Matthew A. Smith

Feb 14, 2024 | Men's Basketball

ESPN+Live Stats Listen Memphis Game Notes (PDF)North Texas Game Notes (PDF)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis men's basketball team and North Texas are set for the first clash as American Athletic Conference opponents Thursday night in Denton, Texas. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

On the strength of a 90-78 win over Tulane Sunday, the Tigers will carry a three-game win streak and momentum into the AAC Showcase. Memphis (18-6, 7-4) currently sits sixth in the league standings, one game ahead of North Texas

With an extra day added to the conference championship this season, the top four seeds receive a double-bye in the AAC Tournament. Five of Memphis' final seven games are against teams in the top-six of the standings with three of those being at home.

David Jones is fresh off his second-straight double-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the win over the Green Wave. He leads the conference in scoring and ranks fifth in the nation with a 21.9 average.

North Texas brings a 13-10 overall record and 6-5 league mark into the contest. The Mean Green sit seventh in the AAC after being picked sixth in the preseason coaches poll.

After putting together a six-game win streak through the middle of January, the Mean Green have since dropped four of its last five games. The only win in that stretch was a 68-55 victory at Tulsa on February 7.

Four players are averaging double figures for North Texas, led by Jason Edwards' 18.1 points per game. He is also the team's top three-point threat with 56 makes at a 35.4-percent clip.

Two of North Texas' top-four leading scorers have missed several games recently due to injury. Point guard Rubin Jones (11.7 ppg, 3.8 apg) has missed the last five games, while guard CJ Noland (9.8 ppg) has missed the last three.

Thursday marks the 24^th meeting all-time between the two programs with Memphis leading 17-6. The squads haven't met on the hardwood since the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament when the Tigers took a 73-58 win in New Orleans. It will be the first time they've met in the regular season since 1983.

UP NEXT
Memphis stays on the road to finish out its Texas road swing with a 3 p.m. tip Sunday inside Moody Coliseum against SMU.

GAME DETAILS
Memphis Tigers (18-6, 7-4 AAC) vs. North Texas (13-10, 6-5 AAC)
Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024 | 7 p.m. CT
The Super Pit (9,797); Denton, Texas
Television: ESPN+ (Kyle Youmans pxp; DJ Draper, analysis)
Radio: 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)

BY THE NUMBERS

2: Consecutive games David Jones has recorded four assists. In the previous 22 games, he only had one game with at least four dimes. In those games, he has two double-doubles while averaging 23.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 4.0 steals while shooting 62.5% (15-24) overall and a team-high 72.7% from deep (8-11).
8.0: Scoring average for Jonathan Pierre over the last two games after averaging 0.8 points for the season entering that stretch. He leads the Tigers with a 71.4-percent clip (5-7) from the field in those games. Pierre has played over 27 minutes in the last two games after only seeing only 52 minutes in his first 12 contests combined.
11: The number of steals Memphis had Sunday against Tulane, marking the fourth time in five games the Tigers have totaled double-digit thefts. They have nine such games this season.
12-1: Memphis' record this season when making more 3-pointers than its opponent. In the previous two seasons combined, the Tigers had only made more triples in 12 total games than its foe. The Tigers are on pace to flirt with the program's all-time 3-point record of 302. Entering Thursday, they have made 197 triples, which is 17 more than any Memphis team has converted through the first 24 games in at least the last 15 seasons.
18.5: Scoring average for Jahvon Quinerly over the last two games to go along with 6.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. He's also connected on 7-of-14 from long distance.
19: Wins in the month of February for the Tigers over the last four seasons (19-3), dating back to Feb. 1, 2021; Memphis is 29-10 in February under head coach Penny Hardaway.
52.4: Three-point percentage for David Jones over the last six contests, hitting 22-of-42. He's also averaging 24.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.3 steals and 2.4 assists per game in that span.

SCOUTING NORTH TEXAS

The Mean Green tout one of the nation's top defenses, ranking fourth in the nation in holding their opposition to just 60.5 points per game.
Just once has North Texas allowed an opponent to reach 80 points this season and it took overtime for that to happen. UAB won 82-79 in Denton on Jan. 31.
The Mean Green's field goal defense (39.7%) trails only SMU in the conference and ranks 16^th in Division I.
UNT leads the AAC and ranks 38^th in the country with a 36.9-percent mark from three-point range. As a team, they are averaging 8.0 made triples each time out.
Aaron Scott is the team's second-leading scorer (11.8) and rebounder (6.1). He is also tops on the team with 36 blocks and 28 steals.
Big man Robert Allen paces the Mean Green with 7.3 rebounds each time out.
North Texas is averaging 67.3 points per game and is shooting 43.1 percent from the field as a team.

HOW TO FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For complete information on Memphis Tiger Men's Basketball, visit www.GoTigersGo.com and follow the team's social media channels on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.