The University of Memphis men's basketball team tips off the regular season at 7 p.m. on Thursday at the FedExForum against Austin Peay State University. Fans unable to attend can watch the game on SportSouth or tune the radio to 600 WREC for game coverage.
The Tigers played in an exhibition game against Christian Brothers University on Nov. 8, where the U of M collected the 92-63 win over the Buccaneers.
Pastner said the CBU matchup provided the team with a little feel for game experience but said Austin Peay is a great team and the Tigers will have to bring their 'A' game.
"With the amount of talent spread all throughout the country, if you are not ready to play, you can get beat," he said. "You can't just show up, it doesn't matter who it is. You can't just show up - you have to be ready to play."
Veteran coach Dave Loos, who will walk into the FedExFourm Thursday night with decades of coaching experience in his arsenal, is at the helm of the Governors of Austin Peay men's basketball program. Loos has coached at the school since 1990 and has an overall record of 371-333 in his 23 seasons with the Governors.
Loos is no stranger to the Bluff City. A 1970 graduate of Memphis, Loos was a basketball and baseball player for the Tigers and a student assistant coach. Following his collegiate career, Loos served as a coach at what was then known as Christian Brothers College. He returned to his alma mater to assist under Memphis head coach Larry Finch from 1986-90.
"They are a good team overall," Pastner said. "They are well coached by coach Loos, and they've got good veteran guys."
The Governors played in an exhibition game against Central Missouri on Nov. 4. Austin Peay collected the close 78-75 win and played their first regular season game four days later against Oakland City. The Governors grabbed the 84-69 win over the Mighty Oaks.
In the Oakland game, Austin Peay's sophomore center, Chris Horton, had a career high 17 rebounds and was one of three Austin Peay players to reach double digits in total points, scoring 10 for his team. Senior forward Will Triggs also contributed 10 and junior forward Ed Dyson led the team with 17.
Memphis' senior guard Chris Crawford said the Tigers might not be the biggest team, but they are very fast and said rebounding, defense and communication are the three main areas of focus for the team.
"We are excited to play," Crawford said. "We are tired of playing against the same guys...and we are ready to get out there and get our first win."
The last time the Tigers and Governors faced off was Dec. 8, 2012 at the Forum. Memphis defeated Austin Peay 83-65.
Memphis is currently ranked No. 13 in the country, according to the latest Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Polls released Monday. Austin Peay is unranked and is predicted to finish third in the Ohio Valley Conference.
"I love predictions and or preseason expectations, because it is good for the program for relevancy on the national stage," Pastner said. "But as everyone knows, I'm all about action and doing the job. It's just like second place in recruiting - you either get the kid or you don't, and it is very simple...same thing in the game, either you get the win or you don't. You got to produce."
