The No. 13 SMU Mustangs rebounded from its first loss of the season against Temple last Sunday and defeated the Memphis Tigers 80-68 at Moody Coliseum in Dallas Saturday night.
SMU dominated nearly the entire game, leading by as much as 25 points in the second half. Memphis (13-8, 4-4 American Athletic Conference), coming off a 97-86 victory against UCF in Orlando Tuesday night, looked out of the Mustangs league.
Memphis coach Josh Pastner continually says at least two of the following players: senior forward Shaq Goodwin, freshman forward Dedric Lawson and senior point guard Ricky Tarrant Jr. have to play well for the Tigers to win.
Out of the three, only Goodwin had a solid game for Memphis as he scored 18 points and recorded five rebounds. Tarrant Jr. had 10 points (2-10 FG); three assists and two turnovers while Lawson had seven points (1-9 FG), 13 rebounds and three assists.
Unfortunately, Tarrant Jr. and Lawson’s performances were far more reflective of Memphis’ performance as the Tigers shot 33 percent from the field and 5-20 from three-point range.
While SMU’s final shooting stats (40 percent from the field, 46 percent from the three) are somewhat skewed given the game was a blowout in the second half, its strong play from its starters was not.
Four of the Mustangs’ five starters finished in double figures, led by senior point guard and reigning AAC Conference Player of the Year Nic Moore’s game-high 22 points. His fellow backcourt teammate Sterling Brown had a solid game as well. Brown finished with 12 points, six assists and five rebounds.
After tonight’s loss, Memphis still remains without a win against an Associated Press Top 25 opponent since it defeated SMU in March 2014. The Tigers return to action when they host UConn 8 p.m. Thursday at FedExForum. Memphis will hope to avenge its 81-78 loss against the Huskies in Storrs on Jan. 9.
