Memphis Off to Best Start in 20 Years

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Posted 6:23AM on Wednesday, December 28, 2005

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Darius Washington's right thigh is feeling better, and that's very good news for the fourth-ranked Memphis Tigers. Washington scored nine of his 22 points in the final 3:18 to help the Tigers down No. 8 Gonzaga 83-72 on Tuesday night for their seventh straight victory and their best start since the 1985-86 season. The team in 1985-86 started 20-0, but didn't play a ranked opponent during the first 10 games that year. These Tigers (10-1) have played four Top 25 teams and are 3-1 against them, with their lone loss coming to No. 1 Duke. And Washington was a big key to this victory as he led a 17-5 run down the stretch. He had missed the last game after being slowed for the past month with a thigh so bruised that it had calcified. "I gave all I had. I was probably about 95 percent. That was after I warmed up. When I first got out there, I was about 70 or 80 percent," Washington said. "But after I got loosened up and got my rhythm, everything else fell in place." Memphis also held preseason All-American Adam Morrison, the nation's top scorer, without a point in the final 9:31 by switching defenders on him and wearing him down. Morrison finished with 34 points, including 12-of-12 at the free-throw line. "I'm used to it," Morrison said. "I'm used to seeing about every wing or four man gets a crack at me during the game. The loss snapped a five-game winning streak for the Bulldogs (9-3), but Gonzaga coach Mark Few said reporters focus too much on Morrison. "He plays great all the time," Few said. "He's got guys draped all over him, and he still passes and shares the ball. We had opportunities. We had point-blank post-ups we missed and wide-open jump shots that we missed." The Tigers are the only ranked team in the revamped Conference USA, a distinction Gonzaga holds in the West Coast Conference. Memphis will host No. 15 Texas on Monday. In other Top 25 games, No. 13 Boston College beat Duquesne 81-69 and No. 20 Nevada edged Norfolk State 56-46. Rodney Carney had 17 points for Memphis and Shawne Williams added 14 points and 11 rebounds. The Tigers outshot Gonzaga 31-of-63 (49.2 percent) to 22-of-64 (34.4 percent). Memphis fed off the emotion from a crowd of 18,208 and took the lead with an 8-2 run that was capped on Chris Douglas-Roberts' three-point play with 7:25 left. It gave Memphis a 63-62 advantage, the Tigers first since 1:10 was left in the first half. Gonzaga last led 67-66 on a bucket inside by J.P. Batista with 5:13 to go. He was the only other Bulldogs player in double figures, finishing with 15 points and eight rebounds. Memphis coach John Calipari hopes these teams meet again in April. Morrison said the Bulldogs can learn from this loss, and thinks they deserve to be ranked in the Top 5. Their previous two losses were by a combined six points - to No. 2 UConn and No. 7 Washington. "They are as talented as anybody in the country," Morrison said. "We've played UConn and that's the No. 2 team, so they are right up there. They probably will go pretty far this year." No. 13 Boston College 81, Duquesne 69 At Pittsburgh, Craig Smith scored 21 points and held off Duquesne's late comeback bid by scoring on three consecutive possessions. Sean Marshall added 13 points and Jared Dudley and reserve Tyrese Rice had 10 each to help the Eagles (9-2) win their third in a row. But it was McLain who got them going during a 16-4 run midway through the second half that built their lead to 15 at 64-49. No. 20 Nevada 56, Norfolk State 46 At Reno, Nev., Marcelus Kemp scored eight of his game-high 15 points during a key stretch in the second half and Nick Fazekas added 14 to help Nevada overcome a bad shooting night. Mo Charlo and Kyle Shiloh each had seven rebounds and Ramon Sessions seven assists for the Wolf Pack (9-1), who shot 37.5 percent from the field. Tynell Dunkley had a team-high nine points for Norfolk State (2-9), which made only two of its first 21 shots from the field and went without a field goal during a 14-minute stretch in the first half. The Wolf Pack are off to their best start since 1978 and are 33-4 at home over the last three seasons. Tony Murphy and Keith Young each had eight points for Norfolk State, which has played 10 of its 11 games on the road. © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.