What da wybe is, Memphis? That’s slang for “what’s up?” in the Bahamas. And that’s where the Memphis Tigers — and our Tigers basketball reporter Parth Upadhyaya — are today. It’s Thursday, Nov. 20, and the Tigers are playing Purdue in the Baha Mar Hoops Bahamas Championship.

The Memphis Grizzlies are at home though, where they’ll take on the Sacramento Kings tonight. (Thoughts and prayers.) In other news, South Point Grocery is opening its new Southaven store today in Silo Square, and the first 200 customers are in for a treat.

THE NEED TO KNOW

Who was Rockez McDaniel? On July 28, a 33-year-old man became another statistic. Rockez McDaniel is one of the 11 Shelby County inmates to die in custody so far this year. Before his arrest, Rockez had started exhibiting behavior that worried his family. On July 20, McDaniel had a concerning interaction with his dad, a former Memphis police officer, before driving off to a friend’s house. That friend called Memphis Police Department’s Crisis Intervention Team, at the behest of McDaniel’s dad, and McDaniel was arrested. Days later, he was dead.

Update on St. George’s assault: A student from St. George’s Independent School may have been behind the alleged sexual assault that’s under investigation. A search warrant was served at the Olive Branch home of Bryant Swing Jr., 18, who was named in a graphic account from the St. George’s student victim. Swing and his mom have been charged with evidence tampering in the case, but he has not been charged in connection with the alleged sexual assault.

Feagins gets in mayoral race: Former Memphis-Shelby County Schools Superintendent Marie Feagins seems to be taking the Willie Herenton approach to politics. Feagins is running for Shelby County mayor, according to Election Commission records. The former MSCS leader, who was fired by the district’s board in January, joins a field of six other contenders.

On guard: There are currently 865 National Guard members in Memphis right now. (I’ve noticed a handful of them looking pretty bored on their nightly patrols around Cooper-Young this week.) The guard troops are just kind of hanging around in limbo right now after a Nashville judge blocked their deployment on Monday. The state plans to file an appeal.

Fourth time’s a charm? The Lindsey Whiteside case has been quite the hot potato in judicial circles, and multiple judges have withdrawn from the case since her arrest on sexual battery charges. Now, the Mississippi Supreme Court has appointed Senior Status Judge Jeff Weill Sr. for the state’s case. The last judge on the case sentenced her to house arrest, but that drew the ire of DeSoto County District Attorney Matthew Barton, and that judge recused himself. Whiteside, a former youth pastor, is also facing federal charges for allegedly engaging in a sexual act with an underage girl.

QUOTED 

“He was the smartest man I ever knew, and the kindest ... Anybody I talked to, I’d always tell them about my dad.”

— Larry Knox, son of the late Dr. Murray Heimberg
Heimberg, a local World War II hero and pioneering scientist, died Monday at 100 years old. Heimberg escaped a POW camp in 1945, and he went on to study medicine at Cornell. He’s regarded as a leader in lipids research, helping to prove cholesterol’s effect on the body and create the field of medicine for metabolic disorders.

THE NICE TO KNOW

The woman who wants to save Mud Island: Artist Christopher Reyes’ “Baron Von Opperbean and the River of Time” exhibition is slated for a March opening. The immersive exhibit has been compared to Sante Fe’s Meow Wolf, and its CEO Jee Vahn Knight knows a thing or two about Meow Wolf. She worked there for a time and describes it this way: “If you could step into art, what would it feel like?” Knight’s resume also includes restoring artifacts from the Titanic and working on NASA’s Saturn 5 rocket. The Daily Memphian’s Geoff Calkins talked to Knight about what brought her to Memphis and why she chose to work with a “gang of pirates” to save Mud Island.

Flashback to 1900: A little piece of Collierville’s history was recently unveiled when repairs to a roof in the town square uncovered a 125-year-old sign for W.W. McGinnis’ lumber, hardware and paint store. The long-closed business belonged to relatives of the building’s current owner, Bill Cox, who had one of his first jobs in the store. Cox said the sign has been covered for 30 years, and he intends to preserve it. 

Making it rain: Downtown’s Center City Development Corp. handed out grants Wednesday like Oprah hands out cars. Catherine and Mary’s got a grant to spruce up its restaurant. And coming-soon businesses Kuya (a Filipino snack bar) and Ten Nail Bar (a Detroit-based salon) got money to help prep their new spaces. The CCDC also approved a change to a grant request for the immersive Baron Von Opperbean and the River of Time exhibit. The Economic Development Growth Engine for Memphis and Shelby County was in a generous mood Wednesday, too. It handed out $75,000 in small business loans to three South Memphis businesses.

Going bowling: The Memphis Tigers will wrap up their regular season with a Thanksgiving Day game against Navy, but their playoff dreams are already dead. So the most fans can look forward to is a bowl game. Here’s a look at which bowls are most likely.

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

The Memphis Grizzlies’ fifth straight loss Tuesday came in a game that seemed to be going OK until the final minutes. And that followed a depressing weekend of losses for the Memphis Tigers. It’s enough to make a local sports fan give up hope.

Actually, we’ve got an AM/DM podcast, featuring our sports editor David Boyd, on that very topic. On the bright side though, the Tigers women’s soccer team is killing it in the NCAA Tournament right now. Next up, they play TCU on Friday.

Here’s hoping for better luck today for the Tigers and the Grizzlies.