No. 16 Memphis, Louisiana Tech each bid to bounce again from first loss

Louisiana Tech and host Memphis will look to overcome their first losses of the season when they meet Wednesday night.

The Bulldogs (7-1) fell to visiting Southern 73-70 last Saturday, and the No. 16 Tigers (6-1) lost to then-No. 4 Auburn 90-76 in the championship game of the Maui Invitational on Nov. 27.

Louisiana Tech coach Talvin Hester said he was disappointed with his team’s effort the last time out. Memphis coach Penny Hardaway, however, was encouraged by his squad’s performance against one of the top teams in the country at the end of a challenging road trip.

“We’re not going to let (the loss to Auburn) define who we are,” Hardaway said. “Obviously we played against a really good team. We didn’t take care of business, but we learned a lot the entire week and saw that we belong. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. We’re only going to get better.”

Hardaway said he was pleased overall with the Tigers during a four-game trip that began with a 68-64 victory at San Francisco on Nov. 21. Memphis beat then-No. 2 UConn 99-97 in overtime in the Maui opener before defeating Michigan State 71-63 to reach the title game.

“I think we have a lot of confidence,” said Colby Rogers, who scored 15 points against Auburn. “… I don’t think we should hang our heads down.

“There are no moral victories, but to go 3-1 on the road trip gives us a lot of momentum. We just have to make sure we learn from this, grow from it and don’t let this carry over. It’s just one game in a long season.”

Hardaway has lamented his team’s rebounding shortcomings. The Tigers were out-rebounded 32-26 vs. Auburn, including 11-8 on the offensive end, and were outscored 44-36 in the paint.

In the victory over Michigan State, Memphis was outrebounded 36-28.

Louisiana Tech, meanwhile, trailed Southern by 14 points with less than seven minutes remaining but went on a 14-1 run to get within one point with 2:22 remaining before coming up short.

“We did not come out with any effort,” Hester said. “I do not think we played hard at all. There were loose balls we did not get. That is a direct reflection of effort. Even when we came back at the end, I thought we just got a few stops and made a few plays.

“I think it was a mental toughness thing. I think people have been reading newspaper clippings and telling us how good we are.”

The Bulldogs committed eight of their season-high 17 turnovers in the first eight minutes. They hope that three days off will help them get refreshed after they played four games in six days.

“They were playing with much more energy,” Sean Newman Jr., who had 10 points and eight assists, said of Southern. “We did not match that. We are definitely pretty fatigued, but everybody else is going through the same thing. We don’t want to make any excuses.”

–Field Level Media