It was a neon night inside the FedEx Forum on Wednesday night as the 17th-ranked Memphis Tigers welcomed Tulsa for a night of American Athletic Basketball.

Memphis came into the matchup with Tulsa riding a five-game winning streak and looking to extend it to six against one of the bottom-tier teams in the conference. However, these two teams have a long history of having overly competitive games despite the Tigers always having better teams. Wednesday night was no different, especially in the first half when the Tigers held on to a 39-34 lead over Tulsa at the break.

As the Tigers entered the second half of play, Tulsa would put together a few runs here and there to keep things interesting, but as the under-8 media timeout rolled around, the Memphis lead over Tulsa had extended to 71-57.

Wednesday night was PJ Haggerty and Dain Dainja’s night. They combined for 44 points, and Haggerty led the way in scoring with 23 points.

With a six-game winning streak in conference play, the Tigers continue to showcase their superior talent, building momentum for a serious conversation about the legitimate Final Four contender that Coach Penny Hardaway has in his Memphis Tigers. Those who have played both the Auburn Tigers and Memphis draw the correlation between the two being two of the most complete teams in college basketball. A lot of luck is involved in reaching the Final Four, but Memphis has the talent to beat anybody in the country.

As it usually does in college basketball, the talent rose to the top on Wednesday night as the 17th-ranked Memphis Tigers defended their home court and sent Tulsa home with another conference loss, their 7th within conference play this season.

With their win over Tulsa, the Tigers improve to 19-4 on the season and 9-1 in AAC play. With Temple looming on the horizon on Sunday, the win over Tulsa was a good win for the momentum heading into the season’s final month before the real deal starts in March.

Memphis will remain home on Sunday as they welcome the Owls of Temple to the FedEx Forum for a rematch with the only school in the AAC to have beaten the Tigers this season.

Photo Credits: Memphis Basketball on X