If the tie is any indication, Memphis head basketball coach John Calipari likes to wear the color blue.

Could this be foreshadowing? I hope not.

One of my earliest NCAA memories is John Calipari's 1995-96 UMass basketball team, a team he guided all the way to the Final Four as a chipper 37-year-old. During Calipari's eight years in the Atlantic 10 Conference, UMass amassed a 193-71 record, including 91-41 in conference.

Aside from this dream 35-2 season, Calipari was instrumental in leading his team to the NCAA Tournament four other times, where he won at least one game in all four years.

In addition to this, his success included a trip to the Sweet 16 in his first postseason appearance, followed by an eventual Elite Eight and Final Four appearance.

You can tell by his resume, just like in life, that Calipari worked his way up the chain the same way his teams always rose to the occasion; he got the best out of them.

Calipari propelled this miracle 1995-96 season as a No. 2 seed to take a job in the NBA with the perpetually woeful New Jersey Nets, where he didn't fare nearly as well.

After a season that debuted with a stunning 92-82 victory over No. 1 Kentucky, no one knew what was in store for his team, fresh off an Elite Eight appearance the year before.

In what would conclude as a dream season, led by National Player of the Year and eventual No. 2 overall draft pick Marcus Camby—the only player on the squad to make it in the NBA—no other player averaged so much as 10.5 points per game. It was simply superior coaching.

The dream season ended with a Final Four loss to Rick Pitino's Kentucky Wildcats, 81-74.

It could be a cruel twist of fate 13 years later should Calipari join long-time rival Pitino in the Bluegrass State.

National pundits seem excited by the idea of this yearly intrastate rivalry and all its prospects. As an observer of a rival school that would have to witness Calipari turning Big Blue into a national powerhouse again—during all eight years, at the least, of his tenure—I am hoping that doesn't happen.

The thing that makes Calipari so interesting is not the fact that he can simply dominate a weaker conference in Conference USA. It's the fact that he turns little known schools from mediocre conferences into national powerhouses.

Should he go to Kentucky, he'll be just another Wildcat, and just another Wildcat coach forever in the shadows of Adoph Rupp and Pitino—two people he'll always be compared to, but will never outdo, simply because they did it first.

He supposedly stated that going to Kentucky is a once-in-a-lifetime job, like coaching football at Notre Dame, and that it would be hard, if not impossible, to turn down.

If you watched ESPN's First Take this afternoon you heard that, according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, Memphis boosters met with Calipari and supposedly offered to match "whatever Kentucky offered."

Skip Bayless and Jemele Hill went on to debate Calipari's future, but each agreed that the longer this drags out, the better it looks for Memphis to retain him.

So with money being on equal footing, and rumors of the use of a "private jet" and "generous retirement package," it is a matter of loyalty vs. legacy, and the choice is up to Calipari.

I know what I would do, and that is finish what I started in Memphis where I could dominate and get an easier path into the NCAA where anything is possible once you get in.

My biggest fear is that Calipari's 2009 recruits, which again are tops in the nation, most notaby national No. 1 Xavier (pronounced Zav-e-a) Henry, could follow Calipari to UK, where any teaming with Jodie Meeks and/or Patrick Patterson would be unbelievable...not to mention unstoppable. They are ranked 1-3 on rivals.com.

Throw in the fact that Memphis also covets the nation's No. 1 point guard in John Wall and forward DeMarcus Cousins, and you've got a trio of young, balanced scoring. (Think Fab Five II, but on a smaller scale).

Just think, what if the Fab Five was never able to exist? Not only would Michigan be void of two exciting Tournament runs, but the legend and legacy of this trendsetting class would be gone too, not to mention the baggy shorts which came into style along with their playground attitude.

Think of their potential roster:

C DeMarcus Cousins

PF Perry Stevenson

SF Patrick Patterson

SG Jodie Meeks

PG John Hall

Sixth man Xavier Henry?

What do we call it if they go—six deep???

And it could have been, should have been, for Memphis.

Sure, they wouldn't have Patterson, Meeks, or Stevenson, but I'm fairly certain that Calipari could have more than adequately filled in the so-called "missing pieces," and the team wouldn't have lost a step.

That is the situation we as college basketball fans would be robbed of seeing should "Coach Cal," as ESPN has dubbed him, accept a job under the nation's microscope, complete with their unrealistic fanbase.

Memphis was becoming quite the trendsetter as the nation's premier one-and-done school of student-athletes—or as Bayless puts it, "Athlete-students." By the time the season ends and their grades come in, they'd already be working out, talking with agents, and preparing for the draft.

It is simply a shame that UK can—and did—throw tons of money at Calipari, gloating all the while by saying, "Hey we are UK. You know he's gonna take it!"

This brash attitude has been evident from the beginning. From the talk radio prognosticators to the anticipating articles that have already been written, you can just tell they know they got their man...and they aren't afraid to brag about it.

Talk about spoiled rotten. For shame. Two little seasons of misfortune, including one absence from the NCAA Tournament, and all of a sudden they claim, "Never again are we to suffer such an embarrassment!" as Calipari falls into their laps for the taking.

They should have to experience what the Ole Miss' of the conference feel like for just a little bit longer.

If I'm a Memphian, Memphis alum, student, faculty member, or general college basketball fan in general, I'm stunned and angry.

Quick: Who can name Calipari's predecessor?

If you can't answer "Tic Price," or simply choose not to, there is a good reason for that. Calipari brought Memphis basketball back from the likes of the Larry Finch era or Dana Kirk before that.

A removal of Calipari, and I fear a similar regression for the program, and their fans who deserve better, all this coming just 11 months after the school's first and only NCAA Finals appearance. What a whirlwind of emotional highs and lows.

Here's hoping Calipari has a change of heart, comes to his senses, and denies UK their mulligan, rather, their get-out-of-jail free card.

In keeping with the musical theme of this piece, another song comes to mind, this one by The Four Seasons.

It's title? "Stay."

John Calipari will end the suspense this afternoon, and will announce where he will coach next season.

The indisputable facts are simple:

He is the nine-year head coach at the University of Memphis.

He has an offer on the table from the University of Kentucky for eight years at $35 million.

And the administration at the U of M, with the help of the program's most prominent boosters, have promised to be able to match any offer dollar-for-dollar.

What is not known for certain is what Calipari will decide to do.

Reports have been rampant for nearly 24 hours that Calipari was set for Kentucky. If it is announced that he is, indeed, becoming the top Wildcat, it will seem to verify the idea that he made the decision some time in the past 48 hours.

There are those who are saying, however, that he still has not decided, that he is torn between the allure of a dream job and the joy he has felt in building up a once-ailing Memphis program.

Only Calipari himself knows if that is true.

The following, however, was reported by the Memphis Commercial Appeal after a reporter overheard a conversation between Calipari and some close friends:

"Nobody actually came out and asked Calipari if he was leaving, but he said he hadn't made up his mind. He was going to drive around Memphis today and decide this afternoon.

"If you're into reading tea leaves—or coffee grounds, if you prefer—Calipari did say two things that should have Memphis fans worried.

"'Things will be OK here,' he said.

"And also: 'Taking the job is the easy part of the decision. Leaving here is the hard part.'"

First and foremost, this is an opinion article, and is not meant to offend the great Memphis or Kentucky fans.

It is simply and outsiders point of view of the current Kentucky basketball situation and the possibility of Memphis coach John Calipari sitting on the sidelines of Rupp Arena for the next eight years.

This analysis is mostly qualitative, so if anybody has arguments with stats, please prove me wrong. Here are my thoughts:

1. Memphis Fans: Do not blame Calipari for going. You play in Conference USA

If you look at the greatest coaches of all-time, Dean Smith, Bobby Knight, John Wooden, etc, they all have one thing in common: they played in major conferences with legitimate competiion year in and year out.

I am sorry Memphis fans, but Conference USA is not the conference it used to be. Every year come tourney time, the biggest question is how to rank Memphis.

There is no doubt that they always belong as a high seed as evidenced by strong non-conference schedules, but if Calipari had the same team he had in Memphis this year at Kentucky, they would have probably been a favorite to win the tournament.

(Yes, their schedules would have changed, but the SEC was mundane this year and I don't think there is any question that Kentucky would have won it if they had Tyreke Evans, Robert Dozier, and Antonio Anderson).

Who knows, maybe next year we will see another team out of Conference USA in the NCAA tourney other than Memphis.

2. Kentucky Needs John Calipari

There is no doubt that Calipari is a cut above Billy Gillispie in terms of recruiting and coaching. Calipari attracted some of the best recruits in the country to Conference USA basketball, which is a feat in its own.

I don't think anybody argues that he can't coach either. Kentucky cannot give him a short leash though, like they gave Tubby Smith or Billy Gillespie. They need to give Calipari time to develop his program like he did in Memphis. If they give him only a few years, no coach is going to want to coach there.

3. Calipari Needs Kentucky

Like I said above, the greatest colleges coaches of all-time are mostly found in the major conferences, and if Calipari is successful in Kentucky for the next decade, his name will be mentioned along the likes of the greats.

If he stays in Memphis and continues to win, many people will debate the quality of those wins in Conference USA, and will judge him more on tourney wins, which he has none thus far.

In summary, I think that if John Calipari goes to Kentucky, he will be under a lot of pressure to produce right away. Kentucky fans need to relax and realize that despite having a decent team, they need to give their coach at least four years to establish his program.

The biggest problem with Kentucky basketball is not on the court, but the people who are running the administration.

Every March Madness, there is a sub-story to the main plot. And that is the programs who didn't get there and are out to replace their head coaches.

This year, there are some exceptional opportunities awaiting the right people. Two of the best all-time programs are open: Kentucky and Arizona. 

An ACC program with incredible brand new basketball facilities is open: Virginia. 

And two SEC schools looking to turn around their reputations as "football schools" are open: Alabama and Georgia.

So who is going where? 

This is my attempt to answer these questions for you, dear reader. I have here a clear crystal ball that will tell me exactly how all of this will play out! (If only.)

First, I see a new coach in Arizona. It's a coach you've heard of, a proven winner. It's none other than...Rick Pitino. That's right, the man who just blew out Arizona in the Big Dance is going to come back and coach them next year.

Why would he do this? 

For one, Pitino doesn't like to stay in one place too long. He's been in Louisville for eight years, he was at Kentucky for eight years, and he was with the Celtics, the Providence Friars, and the Boston Terriers for shorter tenures.

Also, Pitino wants to retire in the sun. Arizona is as nice a place to retire as any...wouldn't you want to retire there?

Furthermore, Pitino loves rebuilding projects. Arizona needs some rebuilding right about now...and it's an easy place to do it. It's got a great basketball tradition, has a sunny location that recruits love, and it competes in the Pac-10.

So that could leave Louisville with an opening, yet my crystal ball only has information on current openings. Ahem.

Down the road in Lexington, I think the new UK coach will be either John Calipari or Billy Donovan. It's a high-stress job in Kentucky with lots of pressure. 

Only a certain personality type can thrive on that type of pressure, and I think Calipari and Donovan (and Pitino) are the only coaches capable of it.

Billy Boy will again be the top target, and the Gators are a little down right now so it might be a good time to jump. But at the end of the day, I think Donovan realizes that he's already accomplished everything at Florida (back to back NCAA Tournament Championships) so what advantage is there in moving to Kentucky?

Just more pressure to cook you with, and I don't think any coach truly wants that.

My crystal ball sees the Cats with John Calipari. While he has accomplished much at Memphis, I think he feels his coaching resume will never be complete without winning in a "real" conference. He thrives in the spotlight and wants to be "big time" like his hero Pitino, so the Kentucky job is a good fit for him.

On to Virginia. This is an ACC program that has really struggled to find its identity since the heady 1980s and early 1990s, when they went to two Final Fours and five Elite Eights. 

One little known fact is that for the entire decade of the 80s, Virginia won more ACC games than Duke—and this was the golden decade in which Coach K got established at Duke and won a record 37 games in 1985-86.

But that was then, this is now. Virginia won a regular season ACC Championship in 2007, but that has proved an aberration. 

One has to go back to 1995 to find the last time that Virginia was in the Elite Eight, and 1984 to find the last time they were in the Final Four (and no, Ralph Sampson was not on that Final Four team).

Although they haven't been winning games, one thing Virginia has been doing is improving their basketball facilities. Big time. Poorly designed University Hall has been replaced with probably the Taj Mahal of college basketball: John Paul Jones Arena.

There's no corporate name on the arena because Paul Tudor Jones, a UVA alumnus and commodity-trader billionaire (worth $3.3 billion according to Forbes magazine, making him the richest booster in all of college sports) donated the bulk of the palace's $130+ million price tag and named it after his father.

Some say Dave Leitao was dropped at UVA precisely because Jones didn't want a 4-12 ACC team stinking up his father's namesake arena.

UVA doesn't want to offend the man who built them a basketball palace, so my feeling is that they'll go out and pay top dollar for a top coach.

And that coach will be Jeff Capel III, who just skunked Boeheim's team to make the Elite Eight tonight. Oklahoma is paying Capel a paltry $1 million per annum, and Virginia is reportedly willing to pay $2.5 million or more.

Capel has coached at two schools in the state of Virginia (Old Dominion and Virginia Commonwealth) and his father also coached Old Dominion for seven years. Those are strong ties to the area and the fact is that Capel is an ACC guy to the core.

Oklahoma can probably keep up in a bidding war with Virginia, but Capel can't be kept out in the Great Plains for long. UVA has all the resources to build a basketball program around, and Capel has all the tools to make it happen...it's a great fit.

Which brings us to Alabama. This one isn't as hard to predict, they've already made their offer to Anthony Grant, the current coach at Virginia Commonwealth. It's reportedly for $2 million when the man currently makes $700,000. 

Unless Donovan leaps to Kentucky and leaves Florida open, Grant's going to be the new coach at Alabama.

That leaves Georgia. There's no news out of Athens, unlike Tuscaloosa. None at all. So what are they doing down there? No one knows.

I've read the rumors that the Dawgs are interested in Jeff Capel III but if Virginia is interested as well, there is no way that Georgia wins that battle.

Tubby Smith is a possibility. He started in Athens before he coached Kentucky, and I always got the impression he wished he had stayed there. I'd be surprised if Georgia doesn't put out some kind of enormous offer to Tubby before looking elsewhere.

But they will eventually have to look elsewhere, and your guess is as good as mine as to who they end up with. I'm going to go with Brian Gregory of Dayton, because he's built up a great record there and he deserves to move up to a major conference.

And now for one whose name is associated with nearly all of the above jobs but isn't going anywhere: Jay Wright. 

Has no one told you that he is married to a former Villanova cheerleader? 

When you are making the Big Dance every single year and playing in the Big East, there isn't much motivation to go anywhere else. 

When you're from the Philadelphia area and you coach at Villanova, there isn't motivation to go anywhere else.

The Crystal Ball says Jay Wright is at Villanova to stay.

Two Tigers entered the University of Phoenix stadium last night. One of them left a Tiger, and the other a pussycat. Not enough talent? Nope. Poor officiating? Negative. So what is the explanation behind the Memphis thrashing that took place last night?

Lack of talent was most definitely not the reason Memphis got WORKED last night. It was a valiant effort Memphis made down the stretch against Missouri, however Memphis coach John Calipari was once again out-coached and ill-prepared. The final score is not telling of what went down last night in Glendale, AZ. Down 24 at one point, the Memphis Tigers fought back to make the mauling they received look somewhat sensible, losing 91-102.

Wait a minute, I thought Calipari’s guys played lock-down defense? How does a team known for their superior D allow 102 points?! You could credit Mizzou for controlling the rapidity of the game, but as our followers have begun to notice, we love to hate. Calipari was out-smarted and completely out-coached…surprise, surprise.

The Missouri Tigers earned their stripes, and Memphis lost them. Mizzou head coach Mike Anderson just exposed that sad excuse for a coach Memphis has. ‘John, you’ll get nothing and like it. Get your notepad out and take notes. I’m playing this game my way and you can’t do a damn thing about it.’

[Read more Memphis Tigers onslaught here...]

In an entertaining, up-and-down affair, the Tigers of Missouri won the battle of the Big Cats, 102-91, over Memphis in their Sweet 16 contest in Glendale, AZ.

The early portion of the game was a back-and-forth struggle. Memphis last held the lead at 28-26 on a Roburt Sallie three-pointer with 7:56 remaining in the first half. Missouri countered with a trey of their own by Matt Lawrence to take a lead they would not relinquish, 29-28.

The Big 12 conference tournament champions closed the first half with a 23-8 blitz to open up a 13-point bulge, 49-36. The 13-point deficit was the largest the Memphis Tigers had faced all season up until that point.

The 49 points equaled or exceeded the point total Memphis had allowed in 11 contests during the 2008-’09 season.

Missouri ended the first half in a most spectacular fashion.

After a dunk by Shawn Taggart cut the Memphis deficit to 10, 46-36, Mizzou freshman Marcus Denmon raced the ball up about one-third the length of the court and lofted a rainbow just fractions of a second before the halftime buzzer.

The shot touched nothing but nylon to send Missouri to the locker room with the momentum, leaving C-USA’s Tigers to hang their heads as they trudged off the court.

Missouri kept pouring it on as the second half began. Seemingly getting hotter with every possession, the Big 12 representative roared to a 24-point lead, 64-40, on another trey by Lawrence.

This represented the Memphis Tigers’ largest deficit of the season.

After Antonio Anderson cut the deficit to 64-42 with a tough floater in the lane, and came back from the under-16 media timeout to drain the and-1 free throw to trim the deficit to 21, C-USA’s finest proceeded to slash away at their huge deficit.

When Robert Dozier drained a free throw with 14:44 remaining in the game, Memphis had scored seven points in just 1:01 and nine in a row overall to trim the gap to 64-49.

A Dozier steal was followed by a Justin Safford steal for Mizzou, which was countered by an Anderson steal in Missouri’s backcourt. That was three turnovers in eight seconds. Anderson’s driving lay-up made the count 64-51.

The teams essentially traded baskets over the next six-and-a-half minutes until Memphis could muster yet another spurt.

Facing a 15-point deficit, 83-68, Memphis managed eight points in a row over the next 2:11 to get back within seven, 83-76. With both teams in the double-bonus, the rest of the night would essentially become a free throw contest to keep Missouri in the lead.

Though Mizzou was far from perfect from the line down the stretch, they did make enough freebies to keep Memphis from drawing any closer than six points on two different occasions.

J. T. Tiller led the Missouri charge with a season-high 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting, driving to the rim virtually at will for most of the night. DeMarre Carroll supported him with 17 points and 6 rebounds.

Leo Lyons had a double-double with 15 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks, Zaire Taylor chipped in 14 points and Matt Lawrence scored 13, as Missouri placed all five starters in double figures.

Mike Anderson’s deep bench contributed 20 points, three rebounds and three assists to the victorious Mizzou effort.

Tyreke Evans had the finest game of his National Freshman of the Year campaign, scoring 33 points, snaring five rebounds, dishing four assists and collecting two steals.

Seniors Robert Dozier and Antonio Anderson finished their record-breaking careers with strong efforts, as their career record slipped to an astounding 137-14, an NCAA record for victories in a four year career. This was their third 33-4 season, after finishing 38-2 last year.

Dozier woke up in a huge way after the half to finish with 19 points, a career-high 16 rebounds, two assists and one block. Anderson managed 19 points, five rebounds and four assists, but was plagued by six turnovers and a 2-for-7 effort from the foul line.

Doneal Mack was scoreless, shooting 0-7 overall, 0-5 from three-point range and an ugly 0-4 from the free throw line. Shawn Taggart just missed a double-double with nine points and eight rebounds, while Roburt Sallie continued his hot shooting with 12 points on 3-5 shooting (all treys) and 3-of-4 at the line.

Missouri shot a scintillating 53.2 percent from the floor (33-of-62), while Memphis was not far behind at 50.7 percent (35-69). Missouri won the game at the free throw line; though the percentage was not great (66.7 percent), 30-of-45 trumped Memphis’ 18-32 showing (56.2 percent) and provided the margin of victory.

The 102 points allowed was by far a season high for Memphis. The last time they had given up more than 90 was March, 2007, in a 92-76 loss to Ohio State in an Elite 8 game. The last time Memphis yielded 100 points was way back in February of 2000, a 102-75 loss to Alabama-Birmingham.

Missouri (31-6) moves on to oppose the Connecticut Huskies in the Regional Final round. UConn advanced with a 72-60 triumph over Purdue. The winner of that game will represent the West Regional in the Final Four, to be held at Detroit’s Ford Field on April 4^th and 6^th.

The Memphis Tigers ought to come with a warning label attached. Something like this:

Warning: Being a fan of the Memphis Tigers may not be suitable for your health. Persons with heart trouble, lack of patience, or thin skin need not apply.

Heart patients probably wouldn’t have survived the six point deficit with 10:02 remaining against Cal State Northridge.

The thin-skinned might have considered hara-kiri with all the pundits jumping off the "Memphis-Is-Final-Four-Bound" bandwagon.

After a dominating performance in an 89-70 defeat of Maryland, suddenly, there was precious little space on the bandwagon again.

This leads to a series of logical questions: which NCAA tournament showing represents the “real” Memphis Tigers?

Which Memphis Tiger team will show up to take on Missouri this Thursday evening?

What must Memphis do if they want to proceed to their fourth Elite Eight appearance in as many years?

We will attempt to answer these questions one at a time.

 

Which NCAA tournament showing represents the “real” Memphis Tigers?

In a word: BOTH.

No basketball team—college or professional—performs the exact same way all the time. Memphis is no different.

In general, Memphis is a long, tenacious defensive team with an above-average offense and a tremendous transition game.

At times, however, the offense stalls like a car in 10 inches of mud: the wheels keep spinning, but they’re getting nowhere fast.

Defense will have to take this Memphis team all the way.

 

Which Memphis Tiger team will show up to take on Missouri this Thursday evening?

That’s hard to say. We know the Tigers of Memphis defend as well as anybody else in the country; that’s a given.

If they make 10-of-19 from behind the arc again, forget it. Missouri will have no chance.

Memphis’ three-point shooting percentage has risen steadily from the 28 percent range in December to the current 32.9 percent mark, which is still far from earth-shaking.

However, Roburt Sallie and Doneal Mack have heated up. Each has a history as a good shooter, and both young men could easily keep up their blistering pace.

What must Memphis do if they want to proceed to their fourth Elite Eight appearance in as many years?

• Memphis must get Robert Dozier untracked early in the game. Tyreke Evans will get his shot attempts; the ball is always in his hands, after all.

Dozier, however, tends to defer far too much to him teammates at times. There are very few players in the country who can match his unique size and skillset.

Dozier needs to take full advantage of that, while simultaneously making DeMarre Carroll work hard on the defensive end of the floor and perhaps picking up some quick fouls.

• Tyreke Evans needs to do what he does best—penetrate relentlessly—while maintaining control and composure. No one in the country has the answer for Evans; when he performs poorly, it’s usually because he has taken himself out of the game.

If Tyreke commits a player control (charging) foul, gets loose with some passes, or commits senseless turnovers, he will come out of the game until Coach Calipari believes the young man is ready to make positive contributions.

• Look for Memphis to spring their 3-2 zone on the Tigers from Mizzou at some point.

John Calipari has always been loathe to implement a zone into his defensive package. He orders his big men to switch onto guards and to stay there. He recruits tall, long guards so that they can hold up their end of a switch and mark a big man.

However, Memphis has precious little depth in the post. To protect Dozier and Shawn Taggart from foul trouble, Calipari has asked Pierre Henderson-Niles and Wesley Witherspoon to play bigger minutes in the frontcourt.

Witherspoon is 6’8” but lanky. He has no business down low. That’s when Coach Cal came up with his second brilliant idea of the season (along with moving Evans to the point): institute a 3-2 zone with Witherspoon at the top. The results have been amazing.

One final note:

While the three-point shooting was impressive against the Terps, Memphis does not need to fall in love with threes. Coach Calipari’s team typically performs best when they take between 15 and 20 three point attempts per contest.

In 36 contests this season, Memphis took that many treys 20 times. They won 19 of them.

Balance is the key. Of course, converting 40% from downtown never hurts.

Speaking of which, Roburt Sallie’s three-point explosion—10-out-of-15 on the way to a career-high 35 points versus CSUN—not only saved the Tigers’ season.

It had another important effect: the awakening of Doneal Mack.

After the game, some Memphis fans began clamoring for Sallie to take Mack’s place in the starting line-up. Though Mack has become yet another defensive stopper for Memphis, his scoring average had been going in the wrong direction for weeks.

Mack’s biggest problem is simple: he has a proclivity to ‘style-and-profile.’ Rather than square his shoulders, elevate, shoot, and follow-through, he will at times go into a shoulder-lean while kicking his left leg out to the side during his motion and follow-through.

Sallie’s eruption forced Mack to confront his slipshod habits, lest he lose precious playing time to his suddenly white-hot teammate.

So, as much as Sallie did to save the CSUN game, perhaps he has ultimately done even more to bring an NCAA title to Memphis.

My fellow Bleacher Report contributor, Chad Hurshman, collaborated on this story

The latest installment of the wildly popular "Creature vs. Creature" series focuses on what promises to be an entertaining clash in the West Regional. The second-seeded Memphis Tigers, representing Conference USA, face the Missouri Tigers of the Big 12.

With the Connecticut Huskies still trying to get their legs under them after the recent loss of junior guard Jerome Dyson, many have viewed the Tigers of Memphis as more of a 1-B seed.

Meanwhile, the Missouri Tigers, after winning the Big 12 tourney title and earning an RPI of 10 and Ken Pomeroy ranking of 7, have to feel good about their chances, too.

Now, it is time to discuss the impending clash of Tigers from either side of the Mississippi River.

What does the Memphis-Missouri rivalry mean to you?

Leroy: That’s easy. First of all, the Missouri Tigers represent the Big 12. The last time we played a team from that league was a game that we won for 39:57. We owe that conference for 3 more seconds this time.

Second, Missouri’s campus is about 400 miles from the University of Memphis. That means these two sets of Tigers are in the same region. The Memphis Tigers are the 800-pound gorilla in this area.

Everyone else in our dominion—no matter what league they represent—plays second-fiddle to us. We intend to demonstrate that again Thursday night.

So really, in our eyes, there is no rivalry. If the Missouri Tigers or anyone else from around here makes three consecutive Elite Eights and a Championship Game, then maybe we can talk.

Chad: This could turn out to be the beginning of a rivalry.  How could it not?  Both Tigers, both Midwest, both have a deep history. If Memphis wants anything to do with us after the game Thursday, there could be a chance. I have a feeling that they will not be in the mood to pursue us.

After all, a rivalry between our schools has got to mean more to Memphis. We play Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, and others every year during conference play. People talk about the Big East, but the Big 12 might be deeper. Don’t get me started on C-USA.

So Memphis has more to gain from a rivalry with us than vice versa. But we take on all comers.

Will your fans be motivated to make the journey to Arizona for the contest?

Leroy: Memphis fans are the best. We have a nice contingent of devoted, vocal fans who are ready, willing, and able to invade Glendale, Ariz. There will be plenty of Tiger signs and flashing blue, neon-colored shades on display.

The Memphis fans will be making noise: cheering good plays and heckling the officials on borderline calls. We have an attentive and knowledgeable fan base, and we appreciate the little things.

If one of our kids makes some threes, we will roar like crazy. Let him hit the floor scrapping for a loose ball, though, and he will get a standing ovation when he checks out of the game.

Chad: The Missouri fans are very hungry for a win.  Tiger fans haven’t seen this type of play since the “Stormin” Norm Stewart days of old.  With two tourney wins under our belts already, the season has been a success on every level. 

While saying that, there is not a single Missouri fan that isn’t anticipating a third match-up with the rival Kansas Jayhawks.  Since 1907, these two universities have done battle.  One more would make for an epic year.

Don’t get me wrong; we are not looking past a very dangerous Memphis team. But our real measuring stick will be Kansas.

We need to focus, take care of business Thursday night, and if we keep on winning, we might have one last shot at redeeming ourselves against our long-time rival. Our fans will be there every step of the way, sporting the black and gold.

 

So who are the real Tigers here?

Leroy: Just like the so-called “rivalry”, we Memphis fans are not worried about that. There is one set of true Tigers, and they’re not in Auburn, Baton Rouge, Clemson, or Columbia, Mo. The true Tigers are in MEMPHIS.

Next question.

Chad: I don’t mean to hurt anybody’s feelings or to keep harping on it, but the Missouri Tigers are the real thing. We prove it every time we lace up with Big 12 competition.

The guys from Memphis are a good team, but they don’t face the obstacles that we do.

I will enjoy the commentators trying to emphasize which school they are talking about when DeMarre Carroll is dunking on them.  Memphis fans will be wondering if their school made a mistake in mascots and uniforms.

What are some of the keys to this game?

Leroy: I think we have four basic keys to focus on in this contest: experience, depth, dribble penetration, and size. Chad, can we agree on that?

Chad: That list seems reasonable to me. I'm prepared to provide some details, so let it ride.

Leroy: Okay, Experience. People love to toss around the idea that Memphis is somehow inexperienced. This is a fallacy to an extreme degree.

Memphis starts two seniors and two juniors to augment freshman Tyreke Evans, a Naismith candidate. The first guard off the bench is a junior, as is the first big man. The next guard is a sophomore who graduated from high school with the two senior stars.

Mizzou starts three seniors and two juniors, but how many deep NCAA Tournament runs have they made? Zero. Plus, there are underclassmen coming in behind the starters.

Chad: I knew you were trying to stack the deck by starting with experience! However, I do not think Missouri will be at a disadvantage.

The Missouri Tigers have not been this far in the NCAA Tournament for a while.  But will this lack of experience in the Big Dance be their undoing?  The players have been well prepared by an unrelenting and unselfish Mike Anderson. 

There is no doubt that Missouri has the talent to beat any team in the country on any given day.  After the turmoil that has come and gone in the last two years, Mizzou is as tight a team as you will find in the tournament. 

Playing with skills and integrity, Anderson has collected a group of kids that want to join in with his game philosophy.  Some transferred, some recruited, but all bought in.

Leroy: Okay, well what about Depth? Memphis is deep. It has been pointed out that everybody seems to be the same player: long, athletic, fast, tenacious. The team is a legitimate nine-man rotation: five on the wings, four on the block.

Coach Calipari is always running in someone fresh, often yanking a poor performer seconds after he hits the floor, if he makes a series of errors, or if he fails to do what he was primarily sent into the game to do.

Additionally, J.T. Tiller, one of the Missouri starters, has a broken wrist. How will this impact on his ability to play at a high level against the real Tigers, from Memphis?

Chad: Thanks for the concern about one of our stars' health, but Tiller played just fine against Marquette. If anything, the bum wrist caused the player to look to distribute rather than score, and I like the way it boosted the offense.

Yes, Memphis is long. Missouri will counter with senior forwards DeMarre Carroll and Leo Lyons.  This tandem provides the majority of points and rebounds for our team.

A physical, fast-paced action will give Missouri the upper hand.  The guard play has been very strong with ball control.  We force turnovers and score off of them.

Tout Memphis and their nine-man line-up all you like; our bench features shooters and an 11-man rotation that promises fresh legs at any time during the game.

 

Leroy: Okay, well what about Dribble Penetration? Memphis famously runs the Memphis Attack, as John Calipari’s hybrid offense is called. It is based on the theory that the team cycles through a series of dribble-drives until the defense either gives up a shot at the rim or a wide-open three-pointer.

Marquette ravaged Missouri in the second half of their 83-79 second-round triumph. Mizzou players claim that they have learned from the mistakes that they made during the contest.

Tyreke Evans drove at will vs. Maryland. He basically got to the rim anytime that he liked. This is nothing new. He has been doing it all season.

If Missouri had trouble with Marquette, imagine what could happen against Memphis.

Chad: I have heard a lot of talk about how well Marquette drove against Missouri. I'm just not buying it.

Marquette was pretty much toast until halfway through the second half. At that point, we suffered some foul trouble to key contributors that caused Coach Anderson to order the guys to play softer defense. A run was inevitable.

Bottom line is this: when the game was on the line, Mizzou made the critical stops. We showed grit and heart. The same attributes, along with closer attention to good defensive fundamentals, will help us to defend Memphis.

Leroy: What about Size? With being so many interchangeable parts—no one under 6’1”, no one over 6’10”, with every single contributor having quick hands and feet—few teams are prepared for the defensive switches Calipari’s team can pull out.

I have seen Pierre Henderson-Niles, the burly, 6’8”, 295-pound post man, mark point guards and force turnovers from them. His footwork and hands are remarkable for his size.

If Missouri cannot neutralize Memphis’ advantage in size and length, it’s game over.

Chad: I think the size issue is a moot point. Missouri is not a bunch of pee wees on the floor. We might not be quite as tall or long at every position but they don't make us look tiny, either.

Tyreke Evans is a 6’6” freshman guard who leads their team in scoring.  If he is on his game, it will be hard to stop him. The rest of their backcourt plays tall as well. Some might call that an advantage. 

I call it more opportunity for steals.

 

Okay, guys, care to say something nice about the opposition?

Leroy: Missouri is a fantastic team. In fact, if you see this article, you will find that I specifically mentioned them as a team that I did not want to face in the NCAA Tournament. Missouri is very much like looking in the mirror for Memphis.

I have great respect for their program and especially for Mike Anderson. He paid his dues for some 20 years under Nolan Richardson before landing his first head coaching job at UAB. I wish him the best any other time they play, but I will feel no mercy for them Thursday night.

Chad: Memphis is an incredibly talented team. I see some of the records that they have set; it's just amazing.

Memphis has not lost in quite a while (27-game win streak).  I’m sure this is not the way they wanted to go.  John Calipari has worked so hard this year to not go to the Elite Eight.  I wish him the best next year.

Okay, it's time for your predictions.

Leroy: Memphis comes out and slices through the Missouri press like a warm knife through butter. Stunned, Mike Anderson re-thinks this whole "Fastest 40 Minutes" concept and actually slows the pace and cuts into the lead.

Memphis has some nervous moments midway through the second half but then turns on the afterburners to pull away.

Memphis 79, Missouri 67

Chad: The pace is brisk throughout. Missouri rips steals from the taller Memphis guards and cashes in fast breaks at will. Memphis uses its own athleticism to keep the contest close all night.

It turns into a back-and-forth affair that is tied with two minutes remaining. The Missouri Tigers win the battle of free throws down the stretch to come out on top.

Missouri 85, Memphis 81

No. 2 Memphis Tigers vs. No. 3 Missouri Tigers

NCAA Tournament Sweet 16—West Region
Thursday, March 26—9:37 PM ET on CBS

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Preview

Cat Fight! OK that's out of my system now, let's get onto the Sweet 16.

Memphis is on a roll—they are on a 27-game win streak and just quieted anyone who doubted their ability with an 89-70 victory over Maryland. They have reached the Sweet 16 for the fourth straight season, and in the previous three seasons they have moved on to the Elite Eight. They are also a 30-win team for the fourth time in four seasons.

Missouri finished the regular season in third in the Big 12, and they landed an automatic bid to the Big Dance after winning the conference tournament. This is the first time the Tigers have been in the Sweet 16 since the 2002 tournament.

Mizzou is coming off of a tough game against Marquette, where free throws at the end of the game wound up being the difference (that and a toe over the inbounds line). The Tigers have had a number of other nail-biters this season (62-60 W Kansas, 69-65 W Texas, 97-95 W Oklahoma State, 56-51 L Nebraska, 75-71 L Xavier), though they have been on the right side most of the time.

Despite the outcome of any of their nail-biters, Mizzou has followed it up with a double-digit win over their next opponent. With the way Memphis is playing, will they be able to continue the trend, or will this one come down to the wire as well?

Memphis is focused on one thing and one this only right now—proving that they deserved to be a one-seed with big wins. After struggling in their opening game, the Tigers pounced on Maryland. Perhaps it was Vasquez's comments that if Memphis played in the ACC they would have a losing record that fueled them, but they showed no sign of slowing down during the game.

This should be a great game between two very good teams. Only one question remains—if Memphis were in the Big 12, would they have a losing record?

By The Numbers

	Record	Conf	ATS	RPI	SOS	PF	PA
No. 3 Missouri	30-6	12-4	16-9-1	10	38	81.0	66.3
No. 2 Memphis	33-3	16-0	21-10-1	7	49	74.7	57.6

	FG%	D. FG%	3P%	D. 3P%	FT%	RPG	SPG	APG	TPG	BPG
No. 3 Missouri	47.2	41.4	35.5	30.7	67.4	39.5	10.4	18.5	12.1	3.8
No. 2 Memphis	44.8	36.7	32.9	29.7	69.5	42.4	8.9	14.2	12.5	6.0

Stats Leaders

	No. 3 Missouri	No. 2 Memphis
PPG	D. Carroll - 16.7	T. Evans - 16.6
	L. Lyons - 14.5	R. Dozier - 12.7
	M. Lawrence - 8.8	S. Taggart - 10.5
RPG	D. Carroll - 7.3	S. Taggart - 7.6
APG	J. Tiller - 3.6	A. Anderson - 4.5
SPG	J. Tiller - 1.7	T. Evans - 2.1
BPG	K. Ramsey - 0.8	R. Dozier - 1.7

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Prediction

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No. 2 Memphis Tigers vs. No. 10 Maryland Terrapins

NCAA Tournament Second Round—West Region
Saturday, Mar. 21—3:20 PM ET on CBS

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Preview

In their first round game, the Memphis Tigers looked like they were about to become only the fifth team in NCAA Tournament history to be knocked out in the first round by a 15-seed. They were up by only three at the half, and with nine minutes left they were down by three.

A CS Northridge scoring drought that lasted five minutes gave Memphis the opportunity they were looking for, though, and they wound up finishing the game on a 20-6 run.

The Terps pulled off the 7/10 upset over California in their first round game behind Greivis Vasquez's 27 point performance. Maryland held Cal (the nation's leading three-point shooting team) to only 7-for-24 from beyond the arc.

The game was tied with just under 12 minutes left, and that's when the Terps really turned it on and outscored their PAC-10 opponents by 13.

The Tigers currently hold the nation's longest win-streak at 26 games, but many feel that despite this, they still have a lot to prove. They have only faced three ranked opponents this season, and they are only 1-2 against them.

Their other loss this season came against Xavier (who was unranked at the time).

Being in the ACC, Maryland has faced more than their fair share of ranked opponents this season, although they haven't been overly successful against them (they are 3-8).

Five of those losses have come against teams that were in the top-spot of the polls this season (Duke, North Carolina, and Wake Forest), and they have managed to upset both Wake Forest and UNC since the calendar turned.

Maryland's experience against strong ACC opponents this season made them a great sleeper team pick. Will Memphis's lack of experience against quality opponents this season allow the Terps to move into the Sweet Sixteen, or will Maryland's Cinderella story disappear before it even begins?

By the Numbers

	Record	Conf	ATS	RPI	SOS	PF	PA
No. 10 Maryland	21-13	7-9	17-10	55	18	71.5	68.5
No. 2 Memphis	32-3	16-0	20-10-1	7	49	74.1	56.9

	FG%	D. FG%	3P%	D. 3P%	FT%	RPG	SPG	APG	TPG	BPG
No. 10 Maryland	42.2	41.7	33.1	34.4	76.8	40.9	7.7	14.7	12.5	4.3
No. 2 Memphis	44.3	36.2	32.0	29.3	69.6	42.7	8.8	13.8	12.4	6.2

Stats Leaders

	No. 10 Maryland	No. 2 Memphis
PPG	G. Vasquez - 17.2	T. Evans - 16.6
	L. Milbourne - 11.6	R. Dozier - 12.8
	E. Hayes - 10.2	S. Taggart - 10.4
RPG	G. Vasquez - 5.5	R. Dozier - 7.2
APG	G. Vasquez - 5.1	A. Anderson - 4.1
SPG	G. Vasquez - 1.4	T. Evans - 2.1
BPG	L. Milbourne - 1.1	R. Dozier - 1.7

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Prediction

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