The Tigers 80-70 victory over conference foe Louisville Wednesday night may have proved that winning is more important than individual statistics.
At least for Memphis senior forward Kelly Wise, that is.
Wise, who entered Wednesday’s game with 989 career rebounds and 1,400 points, became Conference USA’s first 1,000-point scorer and rebounder after a 16-point, 18-rebound performance against the Cardinals.
“I mean we won,” he said. “(The record) is cool, but other than that . . .”
Wise also added to his C-USA career record for double-doubles (41) with his 13th of the season Wednesday.
The 6-10 forward, who currently ranks fourth nationally in rebounding, already owns the C-USA record for career rebounds with 1,007 after passing former Cincinnati standout Kenyon Martin’s 869 rebounds earlier this year.
Sophomore guard Antonio Burks, who scored 10 points and had six assists Wednesday, tooted Wise’s horn for him.
“This just shows that he is one of the best players, regardless of his weight,” Burks said. “He isn’t just big enough to play the forward position, he can play anywhere he wants to because he plays hard.”
Memphis head coach John Calipari said he wasn’t surprised at all by Wise’s accomplishment.
“He is a machine when it comes to rebounding the ball,” Calipari said.
Wise now ranks fourth in the Memphis record books behind Keith Lee with 1,336, Forest Arnold with 1,209 and Ronnie Robinson with 1,066.
Wise’s 207 blocked shots rank him fourth behind Keith Lee with 320, David Vaughn with 235 and William Bedford with 234.
Wise is currently a finalist for the CLASS (Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School) Award, which is presented annually to an outstanding senior male and female college basketball player by the Kansas City Club.
The award was formed in response to the recent trend of collegiate players leaving college early to pursue professional careers.
