First-Half Drought Sinks Tigers in Loss at South Florida

Thursday, February 19

Tampa, Fla.

6:00 PM

University of Memphis

12-14,7-6American

South Florida

19-8,11-3American

Memphis

South Fla.

First-Half Drought Sinks Tigers in Loss at South Florida

Feb 19, 2026 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

TAMPA, Fla. - Memphis built an early cushion, but a prolonged first-half drought proved too much to overcome as the Tigers fell to American Conference leader South Florida, 87-66, Thursday night at the Yuengling Center.

Julius Thedford paced Memphis with 13 points, while Aaron Bradshaw and Curtis Givens III added 12 apiece. Bradshaw was flawless from the field, going 4-for-4 overall, 2-for-2 from three and 2-for-2 at the free-throw line.

Bradshaw ignited the Tigers out of the gate, scoring 10 points in less than six minutes - including a pair of triples - to stake Memphis to a 21-16 lead with 13:24 remaining in the opening half. From there, the offense stalled.

Memphis missed its next 19 shot attempts and went nearly 12-and-a-half minutes without a field goal. During that stretch, South Florida flipped a five-point deficit into a commanding lead behind runs of 8-0 and 13-0, part of a decisive 26-5 surge. The Bulls carried a 47-31 advantage into halftime after Thedford converted twice in the final minute to trim the margin.

Bradshaw (10) and Thedford (11) combined for 21 of Memphis' 31 first-half points. Dug McDaniel and Sincere Parker were held scoreless on 0-for-12 shooting in the first 20 minutes. The Tigers shot 8-of-32 (25.0 percent) before the break but connected on five three-pointers and went 10-of-12 at the line. The 17-point halftime deficit marked Memphis' third-largest of the season.

Facing a 22-point hole with 12:40 to play, the Tigers showed fight. An 8-point burst from Parker sparked a 14-4 run, followed by a full-court layup from McDaniel and a two-handed dunk by William Whorton that trimmed the deficit to 12.

That would be as close as Memphis would get.

South Florida responded with a 19-10 run down the stretch while knocking down free throws and its ninth three-pointer of the night to seal the result.

The Bulls (19-8, 11-3 American) placed four players in double figures, led by Wes Enis (20), Joseph Pinion (19), Izaiyah Nelson (17) and CJ Brown (14). Nelson recorded his league-leading 17th double-double with 14 rebounds and four blocks.

Memphis drops to 12-14 overall and 7-6 in conference play.

POSTGAME NOTES

Starting Five: Memphis opened with a starting lineup of Dug McDaniel, Curtis Givens III, Julius Thedford, Aaron Bradshaw and Thierno Sylla.
- It's the fourth-straight game the Tigers have used this starting five.
Shooting: Memphis shot 32.8 percent from the field (21-64) and went 9-24 from the three-point line (37.5%) while knocking down 15-20 at the free-throw line.
- The Tigers shot 25 percent from the field in the first half, making it the lowest percentage in a first half this season.
Turnovers: Memphis committed 13 turnovers, which the Bulls converted to 13 points.
Defense: The Tigers allowed the Bulls to shoot 36.4 percent overall (24-66), including 9-30 (30%) from three.
- The Bulls went 30-of-35 from the free-throw line, the third game where an opponent made 30 or more free-throws against the Tigers this season.
- It marks the 16th time this that Memphis has held an opponent to 30 percent or lower from behind the arc.
- Memphis also recorded six blocks and a season-low three steals.
Bench Production: The Tigers' bench put up 20 points, the second lowest total this season.
Rebounding: South Florida outrebounded Memphis 52-39, including 22-17 on the offensive end.
Ball Movement: Memphis dished out 14 assists, with Dug McDaniel totaling six.
Julius Thedford led the way with 13 points and five rebounds in 29 minutes.
Aaron Bradshaw finished with 12 points and four rebounds in just nine minutes.
- He was 4-of-4 from the floor and matched Thedford with a team-high two triples.
Curtis Givens III also totaled 12 points with five rebounds and five dimes in a team-high 31 minutes.
- He paced the team with a 5-for-6 night at the stripe.
Sincere Parker scored eight points, all in the second half.
Dug McDaniel recorded seven points, a team-high six assists and three rebounds.
- He failed to record a steal for the first time this season in 29 minutes.
William Whorton matched his season high with five points and four rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench.

UP NEXT
Memphis returns home on Sunday to welcome UAB for an 11 a.m. tip at FedExForum.

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.