After Monday night's 98-88 win over the Dallas Mavericks, the Memphis Grizzlies found themselves in a three-way tie for first place in the Western Conference. 

Memphis linebacker Jackson Dillon’s actions after a tackle and fumble of SMU tight end Ryan Becker during last Friday’s game in Dallas brought criticism from Mustangs coach Sonny Dykes, who called it a “pretty obvious non-football move.”

You know the best part?

The ESPN “College GameDay” crew set up at UCF last Saturday for the undefeated Knights’ American Athletic Conference showdown with Cincinnati. And with UCF ranked 11th in the Associated Press Poll and the Bearcats ranked 19th, it almost felt like a little slice of an SEC Saturday.

It’s not always so simple, but in the modern NBA the team with the best perimeter scorer and playmaker has a pretty big advantage, and it was advantage Grizzlies as Mike Conley scored 28 points to lead the team to its fourth straight win, 98-88, over the Dallas Mavericks (7-9).

James Wiseman, the nation’s top college basketball prospect, will announce his college decision Tuesday morning on ESPN's SportsCenter.

Mike Conley scored 28 points, Marc Gasol had 17 points and 15 rebounds and the Memphis Grizzlies broke open a close game in the fourth quarter to beat the Dallas Mavericks 98-88 on Monday night.

Memphis coach Mike Norvell stepped out of his pregame meetings last Thursday night, saw Houston beating Tulane 48-17 and knew it was paramount that his Tigers needed to defeat SMU the next day.

Head coach Penny Hardaway isn’t fooled by his 2-1 record. He sees too much gambling on defense or bad spacing on offense and knows his Tigers have a long way to go.

It’s got to be Memphis, right?

Tyler Harris stepped to the line with 2.9 seconds left needing to hit three straight free throws to tie the game and send it into overtime.

On a mid-November Saturday night inside FedExForum, it felt like mid-March and the first round of the NCAA Tournament. For 45 minutes – through regulation and the first overtime – Memphis and Yale competed, overcame, refused to blink.

At 10-5, the Grizzlies are in a playoff race again after a two-year absence. But in an unusual double-dip, they may also be in a Rookie of the Year race for the first time in a decade, since O.J. Mayo finished second to Derrick Rose in 2009.

James Wiseman, the nation’s No. 1 prospect, will announce Tuesday his decision on where he will play college basketball during an appearance on ESPN’s SportsCenter at 11 a.m. CST.

Marc Gasol made four three-pointers on Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis and each one extended the Grizzlies’ lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves from single to double digits. Gasol added three blocks and drew a key late charge on opposing center Karl-Anthony Towns as the Grizzlies beat the Timberwolves 100-87 to improve to 10-5 and into a three-way tie for third place in the Western Conference.

Let posterity note that rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. set a new career scoring high with an alley-oop dunk that doubled as a "Whoomp! There It Is!" request, a FedExForum rite of passage that pushed the Grizzlies lead to a game-high 14 points in the third quarter of an eventual 112-104 win over head coach Dave Joerger, suited-and-booted Zach Randolph, and rest of the oh-so-familiar visiting Sacramento Kings.

Forget the turkey and pumpkin pie. This Thanksgiving, Whitehaven is serving up donuts.

Tony Allen started to hand Zamarion Boyd the Thanksgiving basket, but then, noting the size of Zamarion — who is just five — Allen reconsidered and handed the basket to Zamarion’s brother instead.

Memphis (7-4, 4-3) overcame offensive lapses to defeat SMU (5-6, 4-3) 28-18 on the road.

Guard Jeremiah Martin was one of the last ones out of the locker room prior to the LSU game. He saw Karim Sameh Azab’s No. 23 jersey where the center should have been sitting.

Head coach Penny Hardaway believes his Tigers (1-1) can’t look past a tough Yale (1-0) team this Saturday in FedExForum.

Rookie Jaren Jackson Jr. scored a season-high 27 points, Marc Gasol added 19 points and 15 rebounds, becoming Memphis' all-time leading rebounder, and the Grizzlies defeated the Sacramento Kings 112-104 on Friday night.

Matthew Haron arrived in Memphis two years ago as director of football video and wanted to establish a tradition similar to one he had at previous schools.

Boys basketball

University of Memphis basketball player Karim Sameh Azab died Thursday night, losing his battle with leukemia diagnosed earlier this year.