Josh Pastner and the Memphis Tigers bounced back against Oklahoma State to take the championship game of the Old Spice Classic. In a more organized and easy-on-the-eyes repeat of the match-up seen on 11/19, the Tiger's backcourt leadership showed up today and led the team to a 73-68 victory over the 5th ranked Cowboys.
To be fair...
Josh Pasner's decision to put Geron Johnson on Smart late and then switch 1-5 gives him a signature win! Deserving@UofMTigersHoops @ESPNCBB
— Bruce Pearl (@coachbrucepearl) December 2, 2013
I would love to see this be the beginning of something great for Pastner and the Tigers. I truly hope the coaching, the trust in the talented Tiger big men and the improved guard play were signs of good things to come for this team. While 1-13 is much nicer than 0-14, it's still 1-13. Pastner needs to take a team to or through the Sweet 16. That said, this is a well-deserved and relieving win that buys the coach the benefit of the doubt for the near future. Congrats to Coach Pastner and the Memphis Tigers.
We are two games into Pastner's fifth year as the head coach of University of Memphis basketball team. Some career highlights:
0-13 vs ranked opponents.
One NCAA tournament victory - a two point victory over Saint Mary's.
Best locks in the game.
Absolutely great guy and great advocate for the city.
And, and, and...
No intelligible scheme on either side of the ball. Lots of smiling. Complete lack of team discipline. Plenty of optimism. Zero cursing. Tons of curls. Not a drop of caffeine. All talk. No results.
Not for lack of trying. I believe Pastner is one of the hardest working people in any sport. He is consistently regarded as a top recruiter for that reason alone. Yet, we've had five years of hard work, with no measurable success to show for it.
The time is drawing nigh for someone else to take the reins of the University of Memphis basketball program...
This spring, the three-year show-cause penalty levied against Bruce Pearl by the NCAA will be lifted. Frank Haith will have coached roughly 30 games by that time. There will be ADs fighting for the chance to work with Bruce Pearl. For a coach who filled the seats of Thompson-Boling in the land that Peyton built, he will assuredly succeed again.
OK, that is a bit extreme. Most fans appreciate everything Pastner has done. He took a rudderless program and maintained a high level of talent on each team he fielded for five years. The time of talent-for-talents-sake is over. It's time to win ballgames. It's time to win them on national television. It's time to win them in March.
There was a time when Memphis made a big hire, bringing in a shamed, scandal-ridden coach to revitalize their program, as well as his own. It is no stretch to think Memphis can do the same thing again and find a coach who can bring home the trophy.
The Tigers have clawed their way back in Bracketology. Over at ESPN, Lunardi (with a solid history of predicting the teams who'll be heading to the dance) has included the Tigers as one of his 11 teams to claim one of the bubble spots for the Big Dance! Go Tigers!
The University of Memphis Basketball Program is holding a 6:30pm press conference tonight at the Peabody to announce the signing of a "high level" recruit for the 2010 season.
Rumors:
Just heard that it will be Jelan Kendrick, a 6'6 SF from Marietta, GA. Kendrick is ranked 8th in his class and the #2 SF.
Very unconfirmed rumor that it could be Kendrick AND local talent, Tarik Black, a 6'7 C ranked 47th nationally.
The Memphis Tigers will play the first exhibition game of the season tonight against LeMoyne-Owen. Tonight will be an interesting night, as the fans will get the first glimpse of rising star Elliot Williams, while witnessing the first exposure to Josh Pastner's style of coaching and gameplan. Dan Wolken has a good summary of tonight's game here. Support your Tigers! Get to the Forum at 7pm tonight!
One of the loyal visitors to the Tomb of Doom fueled some of his off-season angst into this glorious t-shirt representing the future of Kensucky basketball. You can follow this link to purchase one of these clever t-shirts. Tell your friends, child. The Tomb of Doom and it's affiliates had no part in the creation or selling of this product. This is strictly a fan-produced item and sold exclusively through CustomInk.com.
It seems for Coach X it's "New School, Same Story". According to ESPN, Kensucky prize recruit John Wall's amateur status is being called into question. Turns out his former AAU coach is also an agent. Can't say I'm surprised by this.
Every now and then I see something unrelated to the Tigers that just needs some love.
As I was checking the injury report for my fantasy football team this morning, I was stunned to see how bright the future truly looks for the Detroit Lions.
Close up of the Lions injury report:
I found out that Megatron is a nickname for one of their players. Regardless, it didn't stop me from searching for him among the free agents in my Yahoo league. If only...
Allen Iverson Rudy Gay Penny Hardaway Yo Gotti 2010 commitment Will Barton 2010 commitment Antonio Barton 2010 commitment Joe Jackson 2010 commitment Chris Crawford 2010 recruit Jelan Kendrick 2012 recruit Perry Ellis
and there are rumors of an appearance by ANTONIO BURKS!
The minute hand has three more revolutions to make before first light, yet the Tomb is abuzz, even at such a rare hour as this, fueled by the anticipation of what the sunrise will bring. At 6:17am, light will start sweeping across Memphis, and, in doing so, symbolically complete the cleansing of a city and of a basketball program. A new day begins for a city now free from the sleazy, for a basketball program now free from the slimy.
It is only fitting that today ushers in a new mayor and a new coach. It's poetic even, given how much Memphis and Tiger Basketball are intertwined. Memphis has given Tiger basketball a brand new Tomb of Doom but also a hungry, tired people, desperately desiring something to rally behind. Tiger basketball has given Memphis national exposure and an economic stimulus but also a source of pride. Both the former mayor and the former coach realized the financial upside of such a symbiotic relationship, but neither appreciated the people's need for truth and unification. Such talk of unification made the previous mayor "sick", and truth, well that was nowhere is the previous coach's vocabulary.
Yet, Memphis overcame. We amassed behind Tiger basketball, not because of the coaches, or the new uniforms, or the records, but because of the guys on the court who inspired us, who allowed us to share in their successes, and support them in their shortcomings. Sure, Memphis has the Grizzlies, the Redbirds, Beale St., the Zoo, Graceland, Sun Studios, even Mud Island, but, besides Christmas, Tiger basketball is the only reason the First Tennessee Bank building turns its colored lights on. What a sense of solidarity and pride to see a "M" and "Go Tigers" spelled out in blue lights on a downtown building! The fact that a corporation would use such effort and resources to show its support, speaks volumes to the power of Tiger basketball.
Now, on this new day, Friday, October 16th, at 7:30pm, the new scope of that power, tried and transformed during the summer, will finally be unveiled to the nation at Memphis Madness. Our Coach Pastner will get to show off all the hard work he has put into revitalizing a team that was utterly decimated over the off-season. He will also show off the four and five star recruits he has lined up for next year. Yes, he has done all of this without ever having coached a game at the college level. We WILL succeed this year, and for many, many years to come.
Finally, Memphis and Tiger basketball can take a step forward, together. And I can think of no better way to celebrate this than a performance by Yo Gotti! Doors open at 7:00, Memphis! Be there!
