Memphis coach John Calipari took his team back to the locker room in the numbing moments after Saturday’s 79-70 overtime loss at Georgetown and scrawled a single word on the dry-erase board.
“Tough.”
Intangible though it might be, toughness was never an issue a season ago for the Tigers as they sprinted, wove and stampeded their way past more than three dozen opponents and into the national title game. But that was last year, and the No. 17 Tigers (5-2) aren’t quite the same.
True, there’s no Derrick Rose or Chris Douglas-Roberts slashing from the wing, and no team could easily withstand those losses. But Memphis couldn’t assert itself in the latter stages against the No. 19 Hoyas (7-1), a problem Calipari is unaccustomed to after the Tigers reached at least the regional final in three straight seasons.
“It’s not teamwide, but we have some guys, if they don’t play rougher and tougher, we’re not going to be as good,” he said. “Believe me, they’ll be nice college players. It’ll be over.”
Not yet, of course, and there were moments when Memphis looked well-suited for a rough-and-tumble Big East season rather than the procession of mostly blowouts awaiting in Conference USA. Memphis scored 16 second-chance points in the first half, mostly on tip-ins, and dominated the Hoyas inside with its athleticism.
It didn’t last. Even as the Tigers forced overtime on another tip-in, other signs were ominous. Georgetown managed close to a rebounding split after halftime. Senior Robert Dozier missed a layup with two minutes remaining and Memphis was just a bit tentative a few too many times.
“They were getting rebounds, getting loose balls,” said freshman guard Tyreke Evans, who had 20 points. “They were playing harder than us.”
That’s never a fun admission, and it is one the Tigers must react to if they are to remain a factor this season. Memphis matched its loss total from a season ago with Saturday’s choppy performance, which featured shoddy shooting (34.6 percent) and shaky ballhandling (20 turnovers).
Of particular concern was the offensive production of Dozier and Antonio Anderson, who combined for nine points in 75 minutes. Both were effective tertiary scorers during the Final Four run but are struggling to adapt to larger roles this season.
“I think they need to know it’s going to be on their shoulders if we’re going to do something special,” Calipari said. “You have to understand, last year at this time, both Doz and Antonio were not good. In fact, they played poorly at this point. But as the season went on, they played better and did more and were more active. I know they have it. Now we just have to get them on the court and doing it.”
Unlike the past few seasons, when league play was merely a two-month tune-up for the postseason, Memphis might actually need to fare well in January and February. The Tigers have lost to their two best opponents (Xavier and Georgetown), and there are no sure victories among the three remaining heavyweights (Syracuse, Tennessee and Gonzaga) on the schedule.
But, after Saturday’s loss, at least Memphis knows what is required to sustain the program’s recent success.
“We just have to get tough,” forward Pierre Henderson-Niles said. “At the end of the game, they wanted it more than us. I’ll just tell my teammates we have to get tougher, come up with loose balls and whatever we’ve got to do to win.”
Please read our comment policy before commenting.