Why is Memphis basketball struggling? Penny Hardaway says it comes down to a lack of ‘discipline, sacrifice and buy-in’
Memphis Tigers Head Coach Penny Hardaway calls a play against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the second half at FedExForum on Dec. 17, 2025. (Wes Hale/Special to The Daily Memphian)
STARKVILLE, Miss. — We’re less than two months into Memphis’ basketball season, and the Tigers are already on their second three-game losing streak.
A 71-66 loss to Mississippi State on the road Saturday marked the team’s fifth single-digit loss through 11 games and dropped it to three games below .500, guaranteeing that the program will enter conference play with a losing record for the first time since the 2000-01 season.
The Tigers (4-7) have let a handful of opportunities slip away, and their poor late-game execution against the Bulldogs (7-5) was another example of just that. They turned what was an early 10-point deficit into a 3-point lead with 8:12 left remaining but turned the ball over six times, committed five fouls and made only four of their 14 shot attempts the rest of the way en route to the 5-point loss.
So why can’t these Tigers make winning plays down the stretch to close games?
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Memphis Tigers Memphis Tigers Basketball Mississippi State Bulldogs Memphis vs. Mississippi State Penny Hardaway Zach Davis Aaron Bradshaw Subscriber Only2025 is almost over. Now is the time to support your trusted local news source.
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Parth Upadhyaya
Parth Upadhyaya covers the Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team. A Raleigh, N.C., native and a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill’s Hussman School of Media and Journalism, Upadhyaya is a longtime college hoops junkie. Prior to joining The Daily Memphian in 2022, he covered high school sports in western Pennsylvania for the Beaver County Times and Penn State football for the Centre Daily Times.
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