MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Down three starters, Memphis held on for a 67-64 win over Tulsa at FedExForum on Tuesday night.
The Tigers came in as 13-point favorites despite Jalen Duren (hip), Emoni Bates (finger) and Alex Lomax (ankle) all being unavailable. They faced a Golden Hurricane squad that has won four out of five meetings with Memphis in Penny Hardaway's tenure.
Tulsa opened the game on a 10-0 run, aided by four Tigers turnovers in the first two minutes of play. A Josh Minott free throw at the 14:55 mark finally got Memphis on the board.
Before long, Memphis strung together a 15-0 run of their own and outscored Tulsa 35-14 for the rest of the half.
Malcolm Dandridge came on strong out of the break, ringing up eight points in the first three-and-a-half minutes of the second half. His efforts helped the Tigers establish a 46-28 lead with 15:46 to play.
The Golden Hurricane slowly chipped away until a Sam Griffin three-pointer cut the Memphis lead to just 65-64 with three seconds to play. Landers Nolley II sealed both of his free throws to seal the 67-64 win.
The Tigers (8-5,2-1) host Cincinnati on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. on ABC 24.