It took two overtimes to settle, but the Memphis Tigers defeated Southern Miss 91-79 to win the Conference USA Tournament. With the win, a collective sigh of relief goes out to teams such as Virginia, LaSalle, Kentucky, Middle Tennessee State and others who may have felt their bubble burst with a Memphis loss.
It was a classic Championship Game on Saturday, as the game went back and forth with neither team able to establish a solid lead until the very end.
Joe Jackson
Joe Jackson led the Tigers with 22 points and 7 rebounds while Adonis Thomas added 19 points and 8 rebounds.
In one of the most exciting games of Championship Week, Southern Mississippi had a chance to win the game in the 1st overtime. With the game tied and 12 seconds left, they had the ball for the last shot but did not get a game winning shot attempt off.
In the second overtime, it appeared that Memphis finally wore down the spirited Golden Eagle team. They finish the season with a 25-9 record and await the possibility of a post season tournament.
Meanwhile Memphis, who came into the Tournament as overwhelming favorites, will await their seeding and opponent for the NCAA Tournament. They will enter with a record of 30-4 and went undefeated in Conference USA regular season play.
The Tigers have the potential of being a threat in the Big Dance but with only one ranked opponent on their schedule this season, they are a bit of an unknown. They are certainly explosive and have very solid balance.
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