With nostalgia in the air, the 22nd-ranked Memphis Tigers welcomed long-time rival UAB to the FedEx Forum for a highly anticipated matchup between the two best teams in the American Athletic Conference. Picked one and two in the preseason polls, many people had this game circled as one of the best games of the season for both Memphis and UAB; as the game rolled around, the hype surrounding the matchup was undeniable for a rivalry game. Memphis went as far as announcing earlier in the week that the matchup with the Blazers of UAB would be the throwback to Memphis State days for Memphis as they placed a shirt on every lower bowl seat in the arena to encourage a stripe out and the Memphis State theme for the game.

With Memphis State on the front of the uniform, Coach Penny Hardaway and his Memphis Tigers looked to pay homage to the past by placing a beat down on a long-standing rival in the UAB Blazers.

It was all Memphis in the first half as they opened a beat down of the Blazers, racing out to a 52-39 lead at the break. Compared to the Witchita State game on Thursday night, the Tigers were a completely different team in the first half against UAB on Sunday. Led by a monster first-half performance from Dain Dainja, who finished the first half with 16 points, the Tigers would look to put away UAB early in the second half.

Memphis opened the second half on a mission, racing to a 64-47 lead over the visiting UAB Blazers at the under-16 media timeout. At the under-8 media timeout, Memphis held a 76-59 lead over UAB. At the game’s final media timeout with 2:37 remaining, the Tigers were well on top of UAB with a 90-73 lead.

Dain Dainja finished his day with 6:21 after picking up his 5th foul due to a technical. Dain finished with 21 points. With Dain fouling out, PJ Haggerty finished the day as the leading scorer for the Tigers with 23 points.

Despite being picked behind UAB in the preseason polls, Memphis showed they were the better team on Sunday. If Memphis puts their mind to it, the Tigers can play with and beat just about anybody in the country. Even with a few minor runs from UAB, the game was never in doubt, as they dominated UAB in all aspects of the game.

Memphis will return to action on Thursday night. They will travel to New Orleans to take on the Green Wave of Tulane before heading to Houston to take on the Rice Owls on Sunday. The next home for the Tigers will come on the 5th of February as they welcome Tulsa to the FedEx Forum.

Photo Credits – Memphis Basketball on X