Memphis Tigers Shoot Down UCA Bears

The Tigers (3-1), the winningest team in Division I basketball over the past four seasons, made just 1 of 6 three-pointers over the first nine minutes of the game. And not coincidentally, the Bears hung tough during that time, leading 9-7 with 11:35 remaining in the half.

But from that point, the Tigers nailed five consecutive threes, two each by Wesley Witherspoon and Elliot Williams, to pull away from the Bears (1-4). For the game, Memphis made 12 of 24 from beyond the arc, including 6 of 10 in the second half. Williams made 4 of 8 for the game and scored a game-high 20 points and Roburt Sallie was 3 of 5 for 17 points.

"I thought we came out in the first eight minutes and competed hard,' said UCA head coach Rand Chappell. "We defended well and didn't turn the ball over much. And that allowed us to be right in the ballgame.

"Our defensive game plan was to try to shut down the driving lanes and not let them get to the basket and force them to take perimeter shots. Early on, they missed the first four or five three-point shots and it went pretty well. But obviously they end up 12 of 24, so from that point they shot pretty much lights out. They have some good shooters, but I saw some that bounced up and hit the rim twice, went up by the ceiling, but still went through. We could have used those coming out.'

The Bears hung with the Tigers for the first nine minutes with solid defense and just enough offense. UCA enjoyed its last lead, 9-7, after senior guard Mike Pouncy made a driving shot with 11:35 remaining. But the Tigers put together a 22-5 run as the Bears managed only a long three-pointer from senior Mitch Rueter and another pull-up jumper by Pouncy over a seven-minute stretch.

Memphis led 37-16 at halftime after shooting 46.2 percent from the field and 77.8 percent from the free-throw line. The Bears, who came into the game shooting just 34.1 percent overall hit just 5 of 20 in the first half.

"Our big thing was we wanted to take a step forward and improve as a team,' said Chappell, whose team lost to consensus No. 1 Kansas 94-44 last week in Lawrence, Kan. "I think it was a small step. It wasn't a big step, but a small step.

"For us, we shot 39 percent. That's not good, but I guess it's a small victory against a very athletic team. We got a few balls in the basket and got to the foul line enough and shot 60 percent (17 of 28), which is not good enough. We have to take advantage of the foul line better than that.'

The Tigers, who lost to Kansas by two points last week, continued with the hot hand in the second half, shooting 62.5 percent overall and 60 percent from three-point range. UCA shot 55.6 percent (10 of 18) in the second half but connected on only 12 of 23 at the line. The Bears tied the Tigers with 25 rebounds each.

"The first half we held them to 25 percent,' said first-year Memphis coach Josh Pastner, "but the problem is in the second half we let them shoot 56 percent. If we are going to be a team that needs to compete at a high level night in and night out, we can't allow a team to shoot 56 percent against us in any half.

"That's something we can't do. When you allow a team to shoot like that and tie you on the glass, that's a recipe for an out.'

Rueter, a fifth-year senior from Batesville, led the Bears with a season-high 17 points and tied for the team high with six rebounds. Pouncy was the only other UCA player in double figures with 12 points. Junior guard Chris Poellnitz made his debut after serving a four-game suspension and contributed 6 points, 1 assist and 1 steal in 29 minutes.

"We've been saying we have two or three guys who need to step up and give us more,' said Chappell, "and tonight was a good night for Mitch. He gave us more. And obviously, we need improvement across the board.'

The Bears travel to Rochester, Mich., to take on Oakland University on Saturday.