Lester Quinones cut toward the basket, took a pass from Malcolm Dandridge and kicked off the Tigers’ exhibition opener with an emphatic, two-handed dunk.
As you might imagine, the Memphis basketball team mauled LeMoyne-Owen in Sunday’s exhibition game at FedExForum, 105-57. Penny Hardaway’s squad – even without freshman phenom Emoni Bates (thigh bruise); last season’s leading scorer Landers Nolley II; and brothers Chandler Lawson and Johnathan Lawson – dismantled Bonzi Wells’ Magicians, dunk by dunk, 3-pointer by 3-pointer and steal by steal.
Five Memphis players, led by Lester Quinones’ 20 points, scored in double figures in front of a relatively sparse and mostly masked crowd.
Hardaway said Nolley and Johnathan Lawson were held out for “disciplinary reasons.” Hardaway confirmed Bates and Johnathan Lawson have each been cleared for freshman eligibility by the NCAA clearinghouse, but the reason behind Chandler Lawson’s absence is a bit more complicated.
“Chandler is kind of awaiting a decision from Oregon,” he said. “I’m not as well-versed on it, but I do know we’re just still waiting on that.”
Here are five things we learned in the Tigers’ cruise to victory.
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Penny Hardaway’s rotations
With Bates and Nolley taking the day off, Hardaway went big with his first starting lineup of the year. Jalen Duren, Memphis’ other five-star freshman and the AAC’s preseason rookie of the year, was joined by DeAndre Williams, Malcolm Dandridge, Lester Quinones, who have an average height of 6-foot-8 ½. Alex Lomax handled point guard duties.
Less than four minutes into the game, with Memphis leading 9-7, Hardaway shuffled in Earl Timberlake, Josh Minott and Jayden Hardaway in place of Duren, Dandridge and Lomax. Forty seconds later, Tyler Harris subbed in for Williams and John Camden replaced Quinones, clearly spelling out Hardaway’s first and second lines.
The mixing and matching continued, but those were the most defined lineups.
Jalen Duren as dominant as advertised
The scouting report on the 6-11 Duren has focused on his ability to dominate on the block.
He repeatedly lived up to that portion of his billing against LeMoyne-Owen. The undersized Magicians had no answer for Duren down low, as he displayed superior strength and agility underneath, with six of Memphis’ 12 dunks.
More than half of Duren’s dunks were on alley-oops. The few times he tried to expand his shooting range were not as successful, but he finished with 15 points and five rebounds.
Malcolm Dandridge finally healthy
Dandridge, a junior big man, has struggled with lingering knee problems that cropped up at East High School, where he once played for Hardaway.
On Sunday, Dandridge looked as healthy as he ever has in a Tigers uniform. The 6-9 center was explosive, showing off a quickness he didn’t have in his first two seasons with the Tigers. Dandridge was also active on defense, both in defending passing lanes away from the basket and under the basket.
Dandridge was 8-for-11 shooting for 18 points. He also had six rebounds.
“I have been kind of feeling for him over the last couple of years because of his knees,” Hardaway said. “Right now, his legs are feeling as good as they’ve ever felt. He looks fantastic.”
Zone busters?
LeMoyne-Owen maintained a zone defense throughout the majority of the game, which might have given Memphis more problems in years past.
Not Sunday, though.
The Tigers finished 13-for-20 on 3-pointers, taking advantage of the Magicians’ decision to concede the long ball if Memphis could hit it. And hit it the Tigers did. Quinones was 5-for-6 beyond the arc. Jayden Hardway was 3-for-4. And freshman John Camden was 3-for-5.
“I feel really good about it,” Penny Hardaway said. “We have to have pretty much five of the best shooters in the country. You’ve just got guys over there that can really fill it up. That’s a great luxury. That gives us a different dynamic than we’ve ever had.”
Stat-sheet takeaways
Lomax was vintage Lomax. In the days leading up to the game, Hardaway said he wanted Lomax to be a leader, a facilitator and take open shots.
Lomax was 3-for-4 from the field for 6 points. He also had seven assists with four steals and committed only one turnover.
Memphis finished with 18 steals, outrebounded LeMoyne-Owen 46-27 and forced 30 turnovers.
The Tigers also committed 22 turnovers and struggled at the free throw line, going 8-for-16.
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.
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