No. 15 Memphis 73, Arkansas-Little Rock 59: Shaq Goodwin scored 16 of his 17 points in the second half as the host Tigers overcame a sluggish start to defeat the Trojans.
Goodwin battled early foul trouble and added nine rebounds to rally Memphis (7-1), which has won six straight and will face No. 19 Florida in New York on Tuesday. Joe Jackson also poured in 17 points while Geron Johnson tallied 13 as the Tigers remained unbeaten in five all-time meetings with Arkansas-Little Rock.
Josh Hagins ended with 17 points for the Trojans (3-6), who became the first opponent to hold Memphis to fewer than 90 points at home. Will Neighbour finished with 15 points and has scored in double figures in every game this season.
Arkansas-Little Rock controlled the action in the first half, holding Memphis to 28.1 percent shooting en route to a 31-24 advantage at intermission. Goodwin scored 10 of his team’s first 13 points after the break to keep the Tigers close until consecutive 3-pointers from Chris Crawford gave Memphis a four-point advantage with just under 11 minutes left.
DeVonte Smith and Neighbour combined for seven of the game’s next eight points as the Trojans rallied and took their final lead at 48-46 with about nine minutes remaining, but back-to-back baskets from David Pellom and a three-point play from Goodwin allowed the Tigers to pull in front for good. Jackson scored five straight and Pellom’s dunk with 2:17 left stretched Memphis’ lead to double figures for the first time.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Jackson’s scoring effort gave him 1,329 points for his career and allowed him to pass Alvin Wright and Anfernee Hardaway for 15th place in school history. … The Trojans have held the lead or been tied at the break seven times, but are only 3-4 in those contests. … Crawford, who scored all nine of his points on 3-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc, passed the 1,000-point mark for his career with the first of his two 3-pointers in the second half.
Arkansas-Little Rock | Memphis | |
Josh Hagins 17 | Scoring | Shaq Goodwin 17 |
DeVonte Smith 4 | Assists | Chris Crawford 5 |
James White 7 | Rebounds | Shaq Goodwin 9 |
DeVonte Smith 4 | Free Throws Made | Joe Jackson 9 |
Will Neighbour 2 | Steals | Chris Crawford 2 |
Will Neighbour 3 | Blocks | Shaq Goodwin 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Arkansas-Little Rock | 59 | 35.8 | 7-20 | 14-21 | 9 | 27 | 4 | 7 | 17 |
Memphis | 73 | 39.0 | 7-23 | 20-27 | 16 | 40 | 3 | 5 | 14 |