The Memphis Tigers play two conference games this week, looking to move up in the American Athletic Conference standings.
Memphis (12-5, 2-2 AAC) will continue conference play when they travel to Houston (14-4, 4-1 AAC) Thursday and come back home Saturday against Central Florida (12-4, 3-1 AAC).
Last season the Tigers went 0-1 against the Houston Cougars and 2-0 against the UCF Knights under former head coach Josh Pastner.
Houston is tied for second in the AAC and Central Florida is in third, while the Tigers are sixth. If Memphis wins both games, they can pass both teams, moving closer to a top spot in the conference.
Room for improvement
Improvement from the 3-point line will be a key to winning for the Tigers. In the losses to SMU and Monmouth during the holiday break, Memphis allowed 18 3-point makes and made just seven.
Head coach Tubby Smith has been forced to cut down on an already short rotation because of the injury to starting center Chad Rykhoek. Now playing seven players for consistent minutes, starters will have to stay out of foul trouble, which hurt the Tigers in the loss against Ole Miss.
A look at the opponents
Houston is led by Robert Gray, Jr. and Damyean Dotson, who are averaging 20.1 and 15.2 points per game, respectively, but they shoot the ball well as a team from the 3-point line. The Cougars’ 41.1 percent from deep as a team ranks them No. 11 in the nation in three-point shooting percentage.
Memphis has struggled to guard the 3-point line in losses this season, so they will have to close out on shooters and force contested shots when they travel to Houston.
UCF does not rely on one player to create the majority of the offense. They have four players that average between 10 and 16 points per game. The Knights are also balanced on the boards with five players averaging more than five rebounds per game.
Because Memphis cannot focus their defense on just one or two players, they will have to do a good job of playing team defense against UCF. The Tigers will also have to box out and rebound after each shot to keep the Knights off the offensive glass to limit second chances.
Conference players to watch
Memphis forward Dedric Lawson
Lawson has arguably been the best player in the AAC to this point, and the Tigers are highly dependent on him. Lawson has shot under 40 percent from the floor in four games this season, and all of those games have resulted in losses. His offensive efficiency can win or lose games for the Tigers.
Houston guard Damyean Dotson
Dotson is shooting 46.7 percent from three on the season and the team’s second leading scorer. He has the ability to have a big game if the Tigers focus their defensive efforts only on Gray.
UCF center Tacko Fall
The 7-foot-6 center can impact the game in many ways. He is second in the nation with a 79.3 field goal percentage and 13 in the nation in rebounds per game. Fall is also a proven shot blocker with 39 blocks on the season.
Head coach Tubby Smith looks on as his team defeats McNeese State. Smith is off to a 12-5 start in his first season as a Tiger.
