Tigers Basketball Insider: How Arkansas State loss affects Memphis’ NCAA resume
University of Memphis defender Tyrese Hunter (middle) applies pressure to Arkansas State guard Taryn Todd (left) on Sunday, Dec. 8, 2024. (Mark Weber/The Daily Memphian)
Welcome to this week’s Tigers Basketball Insider. Below you’ll find the latest news and analysis from The Daily Memphian’s Parth Upadhyaya, John Martin and Tim Buckley.
Before the dust could even settle on Memphis’ loss to Arkansas State at FedExForum on Sunday afternoon, some expected the worst when it came to the dent the defeat left in the Tigers’ early NCAA Tournament resume.
The Tigers, prior to falling to the Red Wolves — up to No. 113 in the NCAA’s NET rankings and No. 111 in KenPom at the time of this writing — 85-72 to take their first Quadrant III loss, had jumped out to a 7-1 start to this season. The stretch included neutral site wins over UConn (No. 22 in the NET) and Michigan State (No. 28) at the Maui Invitational, a neutral site win over San Francisco (No. 50) at the Chase Center in California and a home win over Missouri (No. 35). It pegged the group as a top-15, top-20 team in the minds of national pundits and had it projected by many to clinch a top-four seed in the Big Dance.
Though that perception certainly took a hit, it appears that Memphis — No. 46 in the NET and No. 39 in KenPom — hasn’t quite undone all the work it did through the first month of the season.
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