No. 11 Memphis takes down Tulsa

Robert Dozier posted 12 points and eight rebounds and Jeremy Hunt had 11 points for Memphis (16-3, 6-0 Conference USA), which has won its last eight outings. Every triumph during the current streak has come by double figures, including a 61-44 romp over East Carolina on Saturday, and all 11 home games have resulted in victory thus far for the Tigers.

"It’s a good win for us," Memphis coach John Calipari said. "We’re still trying to get guys to understand to play harder than the guys we’re playing against."

Ray Reese scored 17 points for Tulsa (12-6, 2-3), which is a stellar 12-1 on its home floor this season, but has lost all four of its true road games to date. Ben Uzoh posted 10 points and 12 rebounds for the Golden Hurricane, who have also lost three straight overall, including a heart-breaking 69-67 setback to Houston in a home game on Saturday.

Jamel McLean’s jumper with 2:34 remaining brought Tulsa within 10, 66-56, but the Tigers rattled off the next six points, as Mark Hill’s trey with 1:02 was too late to spark a Hurricane rally.

With the game close throughout the opening minutes, Memphis blew it open on a 12-0 run capped by a pair of Dozier free throws with 7:33 remaining for a 31-17 Tigers lead. Tulsa kept it close, outscoring the Tigers 13-7 the rest of the way for a 38-30 Memphis halftime lead.

The game sustained a slow tempo, with only six total points scored off the fast break (Memphis 4, Tulsa 2).

Memphis shot 25-for-63 (40 percent) from the field, compared to 21-for-62 (34 percent) by Tulsa, which did manage to win the rebounding battle 46-41.

"We won the war on the boards, and I’m proud of that," Tulsa coach Doug Wojeik said. "We really hustled."

Game Notes

Memphis continued to play without leading scorer Chris Douglas-Roberts, who is recovering from a high ankle sprain...Tulsa owns a 12-11 edge in the all- time series with Memphis, but the Tigers recorded a 78-67 win in the most recent meeting last season.