Tigers Host Florida Atlantic Sunday on ESPN in Stripe Out

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis men's basketball team gears up for what has been the most anticipated game of the year when Florida Atlantic visits FedExForum Sunday for a 1 p.m. tip on ESPN.

FedExForum will be striped, so fans need to check social media to see which color to wear.

It will be the first meeting since FAU ended Memphis' season in the first round of last year's NCAA Tournament. Despite the Tigers leading for most of the second half, the Owls got a game-winning bucket from Nick Boyd with 2.5 seconds remaining to seal a 66-65 victory in Columbus, Ohio.

Memphis (19-8, 8-6 American Athletic Conference) will get a chance to bolster its resume with two of the last four games of the season coming against Florida Atlantic.

The Tigers still sit tied for sixth in the league standings and a win Sunday would go a long way in helping pave a way to a top-four seed and a double-bye in next month's AAC Championship.

Memphis is coming off its best performance in conference play with a 24-point beat down of Charlotte on Wednesday (76-52). The 49ers entered the building second-place in the conference, just one game back of AAC leader South Florida, but the Tigers broke the game open early in the second half and then outscored Charlotte 13-2 over the final 6:33 to give Memphis its largest margin of victory this season.

Fifth-year point guard Jahvon Quinerly recorded a team-high 17 points with six assists, three steals and two blocks. Nae'Qwan Tomlin finished with 16 points and seven rebounds, while David Jones added 10 points and three rebounds in just 23 minutes.

Sunday's meeting will be just the third all-time in the series as each team has won once. The only time Florida Atlantic has ever played in Memphis, the Penny Hardway-led Tigers routed the Owls by 50 points, winning 96-46 on Feb. 3, 1993. Hardaway grabbed a double-double in the victory with 10 points, 10 assists and four rebounds in 24 minutes.

Florida Atlantic rides into Memphis tied for second in the AAC with a 21-6 overall record and an 11-3 mark in league play.

The Owls are coming off an impressive 80-70 win over SMU Thursday at home, but away from Boca Raton, they are a different story. They are 4-4 in true road games this season where they've dropped two of the last three and have gone into overtime three times in the last five tries.

UP NEXT
With two weeks left in the regular season, Memphis will hit the road for the first of its final two road contests with a trip to East Carolina on Thursday. The Tigers and Pirates will tip at 6 p.m. CT on ESPN2 in Greenville, North Carolina.

Memphis will then return to FedExForum for its home finale next Sunday when UAB comes to town for a 4:30 p.m. contest on ESPN2.

GAME DETAILS
Memphis Tigers (19-8, 8-6 AAC) vs. RV/RV Florida Atlantic (21-6, 11-3 AAC)
Sunday, Feb. 25, 2024 | 1 p.m. CT
FedExForum (18,400); Memphis, Tenn.
Television: ESPN (Kevin Brown pxp; Jon Crispin, analysis; Myron Medcalf, sideline)
Radio: 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS (Dave Woloshin, pxp; Matt Dillon, analysis)

BY THE NUMBERS

79-12: Record at home in six seasons under Penny Hardaway. They have only lost two games at FedExForum in each of the last two seasons and are 11-2 this season with defeats to Rice and South Florida. The last four losses at home have been by a combined seven points. Seven of the 12 defeats in Hardaway's tenure have finished as one-possession games.
13-1: 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 only loss this season was at UAB (10-9).
12.5: Points per game from Nae'Qwan Tomlin over the last eight games, which is second-best on the team. He has reached double figures in seven of the eight. The senior is shooting 57.1 percent (36-63) in that span with 4.7 rebounds per game.
20: Wins in the month of February for the Tigers over the last four seasons (20-5), dating back to Feb. 1, 2021; Memphis is 30-12 in February under head coach Penny Hardaway.
9.5: Minutes per game the last two outings for local walk-on Joe Cooper. He had not played all season before checking in late at SMU. He's averaging 2.0 points, 1.5 rebounds and 1.0 steal per game.
22.0: Points per game off turnovers for Memphis the last two outings. They scored 24 off 15 Mustang miscues and then turned in 19 points off 12 49er turnovers.
50-2: Memphis' record under Penny Hardaway when shooting 50.0 percent or higher from the field. The Tigers shot exactly 50.0 percent Wednesday against Charlotte (26-52), improving them to 5-0 this season in such games.

SCOUTING FLORIDA ATLANTIC

The Owls enter the game 16^th in the nation and second in the conference, scoring 83.3 points per game.
A big reason for their offensive success is the 48.0-percent mark from the field and 36.5-percent clip from 3-point range, both totals rank second in the league.
Johnell Davis leads the team in scoring (18.3) and rebounds (6.6) per game. He's shooting 48.3 percent overall and 45.5 percent from long range.
Davis has scored in double figures in 20-straight games entering Sunday.
Vlad Goldin is second on the Owls in scoring (14.7) and rebounding (6.4). The big man leads the AAC and ranks sixth in the country with a 64.5 field goal percentage.
Alijah Martin is pouring in 13.7 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, while Nick Boyd is averaging 10.1 points.

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.

Tigers Host Florida Atlantic Sunday on ESPN in Stripe Out

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Joe Cooper

David Jones

Jahvon Quinerly

Nae'Qwan Tomlin

University of Memphis Athletics

Tigers Host Florida Atlantic Sunday on ESPN in Stripe Out

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Joe Cooper

David Jones

Jahvon Quinerly

Nae'Qwan Tomlin

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