What To Watch For: South Florida at Memphis
TAMPA, Fla., (Dec. 28, 2022) – South Florida returns to action and begins American Athletic Conference play Thursday night at Memphis. The game is a homecoming for Bulls guard Tyler Harris (Cordova, TN) who began his collegiate career at Memphis and played three seasons for the Tigers.
USF ended its non-conference slate on a five-game winning streak and wins in seven of its last eight games overall. The Bulls are averaging 75.6 points over its seven wins.
Memphis has won 12-straight games at FedExForum and are 62-9 at home under head coach Penny Hardaway. The home winning streak is currently the longest streak in the AAC and the 25th-longest streak in the nation.
BullsInsider.com has your quick facts and what to watch for against Memphis:
Quick Facts
Matchup: USF (7-6; 0-0) at Memphis (10-3; 0-0)
Date: Thu. Dec. 29
Time: 8 p.m. ET
Location: Memphis, TN | FedExForum
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: 102.5 The Strike HD-2 & Bulls Unlimited (TuneIn)
History: This is the 38th meeting between the two programs. The Bulls are 7-30 all-time against the Tigers. Memphis won the last matchup 73-64 on Mar. 3, 2022. USF last won at Memphis on Feb. 8, 2020.
The Opponent: Memphis returns two starters and seven letter winners from a 2022 NCAA Tournament team. They are experienced, long, athletic and have great on-ball defenders.
Fifth-year guard Kendric Davis leads the Tigers in points (19.3) and assists (5.7) per game. Davis has been named the AAC Player of the Week three times this season. The 6-foot, 177-pounder is extremely quick and is an aggressive scorer. Davis likes pull-ups and floaters and loves to spin. Defenders must keep chest in front of Davis.
Second leading scorer and fifth-year forward DeAndre Williams is a long, athletic, skilled, versatile forward. He runs hard in transition. Memphis will ISO him and he uses ball screens well. Williams doesn’t attempt many threes. He is an elite offensive rebounder who averages more than three per game.
Guard Damaria Franklin wasn’t ruled eligible by the NCAA until three weeks ago and he quickly made up for lost time by averaging 8.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. Franklin will push it in transition, will use ball screens and is always hunting for shots. At 6-foot-3, 200-pounds, Franklin is strong, finishes through contact but has a very good mid-range pull-up. He goes hard to the glass.
Combo guard Alex Lomax is in his fifth season at Memphis. The 6-foot, 190-pounder is a tough guard who is mainly playing off the ball this season with Davis on-board. Not a great perimeter shooter, Lomax will push in transition to get to a pull-up mid-range jumper. He uses ball screens to get into the paint. I like how he uses his body to create space and get into his step-back. Lomax is also a tough on-ball defender averaging 2.9 steals per game.
I have liked center Malcolm Dandridge going back to his high school days. A big body post (6-foot-9, 260-pounds), Dandridge is strong, physical and plays hard. A good rim runner, Dandridge scores off drop offs, put-backs and screen-and-rolls. He wants to get to his left shoulder in the post. He crashes the glass hard.
Kaodirichi Akobundu-Ehiogu played sparingly in the three games we watched in November but averaged 20 minutes in the Tigers’ last two games. The 6-foot-10, 210-pound transfer from UT-Arlington is long and very athletic. A good rim runner who scores on put-backs, dump-offs and screen/lobs. He has 22 blocks this season in 12-games.
The Tigers want to run. Memphis averages 71.9 possessions per game. That’s the second highest tempo in the AAC. They are excellent in transition. Memphis spreads the floor and shares the ball. They lead the AAC in assists per game.
Memphis plays almost exclusively (93.9 percent) man defense. Memphis tries to speed you up into quick shots. They switch on screens and stab at the ball. Memphis will use some 2-2-1 zone pressure in the back court after made baskets into a 2-3 zone that sometimes starts off as a 1-1-3. They will also go zone when opponents have a baseline out of bounds under its basket.
KEYS TO A WIN
USF must play great transition defense, contain the ball without fouling, rebound as a team, take care of the ball (Memphis is averaging 19 points per game off turnovers in its last five games), do not waiver against their full court pressure or allow them to speed you up, be the tougher team. USF might need to play some zone.