Penny Hardaway and his Memphis basketball team escaped Thursday with a 68-64 win over San Francisco at the Chase Center.
Tyrese Hunter scored all of his 11 points in the second half, and Dain Dainja led the Tigers (4-0) with 18 points. Malik Thomas dropped 25 to pace the Dons (4-1).
Hunter came down with a critical rebound and hit one of two free throws to put Memphis up 62-59 with 22 seconds left in the game. Dainja – after picking up an offensive rebound off a missed Hunter free throw – knocked down a pair of clutch free throws to give the visitors some breathing room.
After PJ Haggerty drained a pair of free throws, Thomas buried a 3-pointer with 5.9 seconds on the clock, cutting Memphis’ lead to 66-64.
But Haggerty made two more free throws to seal the win. Haggerty finished with 13 points.
The Tigers were abysmal in the first half, hitting just 24% of its field goal attempts, connecting on 28.6% of its 3-pointers and turning the ball over 10 times. But, apart from starting the game 3-of-3 to stake them to an 8-0 lead, the Dons didn’t fare much better. They were 8 for 28 from the field after that and led 31-22 at the break.
Memphis faces No. 2 UConn Monday (1:30 p.m., ESPN2) at the Maui Invitational.
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Memphis basketball vs San Francisco score updates
The Tigers’ senior point guard was quiet in the first half. But he came alive in the second. After being shut out through the first 20 minutes, Hunter has put up 10 points in the first 12 minutes of the second half.
His surge has helped Memphis pull ahead 50-46 with 8:16 left in the game.
The Tigers were dreadful in the first half, shooting just 24% from the field and just 28.6% from the 3-point line. They also committed 10 turnovers and have four players with two fouls apiece. But San Francisco hasn’t been much better. The Dons lead 31-22 at halftime.
Barry Tompkins, who is handling play-by-play duties for ESPN during tonight’s Memphis-San Francisco game, portrayed a sportscaster in “Rocky IV” during the Rocky Balboa-Ivan Drago fight.
As hot as the Dons’ start was (3-of-3 and 4-of-6), they have gone ice-cold since, hitting just one of their last 12 field goal attempts. In the meantime, Memphis has narrowed the deficit to 14-12 with under nine minutes left in the first half.
After falling behind 10-1, Memphis’ leading scorer PJ Haggerty gave his team a spark. His 3-pointer started a 6-0 run that interrupted San Francisco’s strong start.
San Francisco has made each of its first three field goal attempts (two of them 3-pointers) to jump out to an early 8-0 lead not even three minutes into the game.
Memphis basketball center Moussa Cisse will make his first start of the season, while Dain Dainja will come off the bench, according to the school’s pregame radio show.
The rest of the Tigers’ starting lineup is the same: Tyrese Hunter, PJ Haggerty, Colby Rogers and Nicholas Jourdain.
What time does Memphis basketball vs San Francisco play today?
Date: Thursday, Nov. 21Time: 9 p.m. CTLocation: Chase Center
What channel is Memphis basketball vs San Francisco game on today?
TV channel: ESPNU
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 98.9-FM The Roar (Dave Woloshin, play-by-play; Matt Dillon, color analyst)
Memphis basketball vs San Francisco live stream options
Memphis basketball vs. San Francisco will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU. Barry Tompkins and Dan Belluomini will call the game from the Chase Center. Streaming options for the game include ESPN+.
Memphis basketball vs San Francisco predictions
The toughest game on the Tigers’ schedule thus far, the Dons will test Penny Hardaway’s team. Far from a standard pre-Maui Invitational tune-up, Memphis will have its hands full. But the Tigers will prevail in a squeaker.
Memphis basketball vs San Francisco betting odds
Game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Thursday:
Spread: San Francisco -1.5Over/under: 154.5Moneyline: Memphis +100, San Francisco -120
Memphis basketball vs San Francisco injury updates
Tigers Tyrese Hunter (kneecap) and PJ Haggerty (knee) have played through injury issues that have kept them off the practice floor much of the past two-plus weeks. But neither is expected to be restricted in games because of them.
Memphis basketball upcoming schedule
Tipoff times not yet set (unless otherwise noted)
Nov. 25: vs. UConn (1:30 p.m., CT, Maui Invitational, ESPN2)Nov. 26: vs. Michigan State or Colorado (TBD, Maui Invitational)Nov. 27: vs. North Carolina, Iowa State, Auburn or Dayton (TBD, Maui Invitational)Dec. 4: vs. Louisiana Tech (7 p.m., ESPN+, FedExForum)Dec. 8: vs. Arkansas State (3 p.m., ESPNU, FedExForum)
Buy Memphis basketball tickets this season via StubHub
San Francisco basketball upcoming schedule
All times central
Nov. 25: vs. Clemson (5:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network)Nov. 26: vs. Penn State or Fordham (TBD, CBS Sports Network)Dec. 1: vs. Mercyhurst (6 p.m., ESPN+)Dec. 5: vs. Saint Louis (9 p.m., ESPN+)Dec. 11: vs. Stanislaus State (9 p.m., ESPN+)
Memphis basketball news
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at [email protected] or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.
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