 
|
RETURN to main page
Memphis manages to zone Arkansas out in PyramidROB KEYSARKANSAS DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE MEMPHIS -- Arkansas can thank a former Lady Razorback for its 66-58 season-opening loss to Memphis in front of 2,201 at The Pyramid on Saturday. Memphis surprised Arkansas by opening the game in a 1-3-1 zone defense, jumped to a 5-0 lead and never trailed in winning its first season-opener since 1993. "We really didn't make that an issue with the players, but as coaches we had kind of talked about it," Memphis Coach Joye-Lee McNelis said of losing six consecutive openers. "So, we really worked hard to try to offset what Arkansas was going to do." That meant the Lady Tigers starting out in a 1-3-1 zone and mixing in a 3-2 zone at times throughout the game. Playing so much zone defense isn't something McNelis likes. She prefers to play pressing defenses, but Blair Savage-Lansden, a two-time All-SEC player at Arkansas and current Memphis assistant coach, convinced McNelis to stick with the zones. Savage-Lansden won the argument despite McNelis having the support of assistant coach Maurice Stafford. "To be honest with you, we played [the 1-3-1] and a 3-2 zone a heck of a lot longer than I ever wanted to play them," McNelis said. "It was like I had a person sitting on each shoulder, and one was saying, 'Press,' and the other one saying, 'Get in the zone. They're not scoring against it.' Fortunately, the right person took over." Arkansas never quite figured out how to combat the zone defenses, and turned in an ugly performance, even by opening-game standards. The Lady Razorbacks shot 39 percent from the field, 12 percent from three-point range and 48 percent from the free-throw line. Arkansas also committed 22 turnovers. "We were just out of control," Arkansas Coach Gary Blair said. Ole Miss transfer Tiffany Adkins scored 11 of her game-high 17 points in the first half as Memphis built a 29-22 halftime lead despite Arkansas often playing at a furious pace after falling behind in the opening minutes. "I thought we were very impatient," Blair said. Arkansas made a couple of second-half runs, getting within 37-35 on an India Lewis three-pointer with 12:10 to play. Memphis center Shannon Hamp answered with a three-point play, however, and the Lady Tigers stretched their lead to 47-37 before Arkansas made a final charge. Senior forward Lonniya Bragg led that charge, scoring eight of her 14 points in a 10-2 run that tied the score at 53. Bragg's game-tying basket was an alley-oop layup from Amy Wright, whose 10 turnovers offset her 10 points and 8 assists. Kelly Herron made two free throws to give Memphis a 55-53 lead, though, and the Lady Tigers outscored the Lady Razorbacks 11-5 in the final 3:09 to secure the victory. "Their run was a little late," Adkins said. "They made their run with about five minutes to go in the game, and a good team that's wanting to win can't wait that late. I think we deserved to win because we were going as hard as we can the whole game." Memphis had made just 5 of 15 free throws before Herron sank her only two attempts, but made 5 of 6 in the closing minutes. "Coach [McNelis] came in and congratulated us on our win, but we got a pretty good lecture on the free throws," Adkins said. Adkins added a team-high 10 rebounds for Memphis, which also got 14 points and 8 rebounds from Hamp, 8 points and 9 rebounds from Malissa Bush and 8 points and 8 rebounds from Patrice Boyd. Memphis outrebounded Arkansas 49-39, including an 18-11 edge on the offensive end. "They were just relentless on the boards," said Bragg, who had a game-best 12 rebounds. Sophomore guard Dana Cherry added 14 points for Arkansas, which plays at Missouri at 7 p.m. on Monday, then travels to Hawaii for a three-day tournament next weekend.
Halftime -- Memphis 29, Arkansas 22 Officials -- N/A Attendance -- 2,201.
This article was published on November 19, 2000RETURN to main page
Copyright and permissions Copyright © 2000, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. All rights reserved. This document may not be reprinted without the express written permission of Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. |
