It could be now or never for the Memphis Tigers.
After another poor performance, this time against DePaul,Memphis sits at 0-2 in Conference USA play.
"I thought we were ready for this game," said Memphis coach JohnCalipari. "I knew the importance of it. So it's disappointing."
If the DePaul game was important, Saturday's showdown withCharlotte is crucial.
The Tigers (9-4 overall, 0-2 in C-USA) can ill-afford to drop athird straight conference game, especially at home.
And you don't have to look very far down the schedule to seewhy.
Looming down the stretch are four games against the "big three":Cincinnati, Louisville and Marquette.
Four of the Tigers final nine games will be against those teams.Just one of them is at The Pyramid.
The Tigers don't want their season to hinge on knocking thoseteams off on the road, especially considering the combined 33-3record they possess.
With the heavyweight portion of the schedule only three weeksaway, Memphis has just five games to right the ship.
It would serve the Tigers well to get past Charlotte (10-3, 2-0)Saturday. With an RPI in the 40s, it would be a big win at home.But it won't be easy.
Charlotte has been a good road team. The 49ers traveled toSyracuse and won, handing the Orangemen their only loss of theseason.
The 49ers have won four straight, including a win at SouthernIllinois that ended the Salukis' 31-game home winning streak.
Charlotte is more than capable of strolling out of The Pyramidwith another conference win. And while Charlotte would not beconsidered a "bad loss" in the RPI, it could be devastating for theTigers, who have dropped their first two conference games.
Excluding Charlotte, the schedule is certainlyTiger-friendly.
Their next four games include Tulane, Houston, South Florida andTCU.
Each team traditionally spends most of its time looking up inthe C-USA standings.
Last season, Houston finished as the No. 11 seed in the C-USAtournament. South Florida was No. 10. and TCU, after finishing 3-13in conference play, didn't even make the tournament.
Only Tulane finished the conference schedule at .500 (8-8).
This season, early results show a similar trend.
Houston, Tulane and South Florida are a combined 0-6 inconference play. TCU is a surprising 2-1, but the team's wins cameagainst Houston and Tulane.
Memphis' NCAA aspirations are now on the line. Early winsagainst Mississippi, Missouri and Villanova have become marginal,meaning losses to lesser teams will hurt more. None of those teamshas a RPI ranking higher than No. 72.
Any more bad losses and the Tigers will be forced to win acouple of games against the big three.
C-USA is strong enough to give Memphis a little flexibility, butthe Tigers need to take advantage of this five-game stretch.
The Tigers have a chance to gain confidence before theirschedule gets rough, but they have to take it. As Memphis nowknows, wins aren't awarded for showing up. They're earned.
If the Tigers are not careful, one of the also-rans could bitethem. After all, Memphis handed Southern Miss and DePaul theirfirst conference victories. Bet there is another trio of teamswaiting for that same opportunity.
