MEMPHIS, Tenn. — As Damaria Franklin stole the ball and his game-winning layup dropped, Kendric Davis watched from the bench in a walking boot.
Memphis avoided a loss in a thrilling, 64-63 win over Central Florida. But while the Tigers hung on to their tournament hopes, they may have lost their star point guard.
The Tigers leading scorer, Davis, went down with 4:25 remaining in the first half after turning his right ankle while going up for a basket. Davis screamed in pain before being helped off the court. He was ruled out for the remainder of the game and returned to the bench with crutches and a walking boot.
Penny Hardaway did not have an injury update on Davis after the game.
"He's a tough kid, he's going back home. I don't know how bad it really is," Hardaway said, adding Davis' boot was used for precautionary reasons. Penny noted this is a reoccurring injury for Davis and is hopeful he can recover "in a couple days."
Memphis' 15-point lead slowly evaporated as the Tigers made 24 turnovers. A pair of UCF's Taylor Hendrick's free throws gave the team a 64-63 edge over the Tigers with 3:10 to play, their first lead of the game.
Four turnovers later, the Tigers prepared to foul, before Franklin swatted the ball loose with 10 seconds remaining. A diving Johnathan Lawson set the ball back to Franklin who got the contested lay-in to fall, sealing the Tigers 20th victory of the season.
"Biggest steal of the game. Biggest steal of the year. Biggest finish of the year," Hardaway said.
Before his injury, Kendric Davis became the American Athletic Conference's all-time leading scorer. In scoring the game's opening basket, Davis surpassed the previous record of 1,860 career points, currently held by Quinton Rose of Temple (2016-20). After scoring 10 points Thursday night, Davis now has 1,869 points in his time between SMU and Memphis.
As the Tigers await an update on Davis, they turn the page to one of their toughest challenges of the season. Memphis heads to Houston to play the No. 2 Cougars on Sunday at 2:00pm.