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    • Tigers vs. RJ Davis scouting report
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    Tigers vs. RJ Davis scouting report

    Eira Gwyneth Posted on

    Memphis basketball will say goodbye to its training wheels on Tuesday.

    Clearly, neither the men’s game against North Carolina (6 p.m., ESPNU) nor the women’s game against defending champion South Carolina (8:30 p.m., ESPN+) – both on FedExForum – will appear on their resumes next March. But the Hoops For St. Jude Tip Off Classic gets the same treatment.

    “I think we’re approaching it like a real game,” said PJ Haggerty, a preseason first-team All-AAC selection and one of the Tigers’ most prominent rookies. “I think it will set the pace for the whole year.”

    Memphis’ game against the Tar Heels is the first of two charity exhibitions for Penny Hardaway’s program. The Tigers will also face Alabama in the Rocket City Classic (7 p.m.) on October 28 at the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

    This is the only women’s championship before the season opener against Mississippi Valley State (11 a.m. Nov. 4).

    Here are three things to keep in mind before the games.

    RJ Davis and UNC’s fast-paced offense

    Hardaway wanted to rebuild the roster to fit his defense-first philosophy.

    Guard Tyrese Hunter and big men Tyreek Smith, Dain Dainja and Moussa Cisse are at the forefront of this facet of Memphis’ transformation with their strong defense. But she and the rest of the Tigers are immediately put to the test.

    North Carolina may be playing point guard RJ Davis — its consensus All-American last season, the ACC Player of the Year and one of the best players in Tar Heels history — since making the Blue-White scrimmage team left on Saturday with what was discovered on the show as a “lower back contusion” after a very serious fall.

    But even if Davis doesn’t play, North Carolina has plenty of weapons.

    Elliot Cadeau, a returning starter, gives the Tar Heels one of the most dynamic backcourts in the country. They also have five-star freshman Ian Jackson and junior Seth Trimble, perhaps the team’s best defender.

    North Carolina didn’t rely as much on the 3-pointer last season, but Hubert Davis’ team likes to push the pace. The Tar Heels ranked 41st nationally in adjusted tempo.

    The projected starting lineup of Cade Tyson and Vanderbilt transfer Ven-Allen Lubin may be in the works early.

    How much playing time North Carolina’s stars will get on Tuesday remains to be seen.

    Penny Hardaway’s rotation for Memphis basketball

    Perhaps one of the most anticipated aspects of any Hardaway team is how the rotations run.

    While it’s safe to assume that Hunter and Haggerty will make up the starting lineup, Colby Rogers will line up in the back three, and Dainja will be the starting center, the rest isn’t quite as obvious.

    Will it be Nicholas Jourdain, the only returning scholarship player, or Smith who gets the first look at the four? Will the other be the first Tiger to come off the bench? How quickly will Cisse get minutes and will Dainja move to the four when Cisse comes in?

    It is almost certain that substitute Baraka Okojie (shoulder) will not play as he is still recovering from surgery in June. Does this mean we’ll see more of Ragi Phillips or newbie Jared Harris? How big will PJ Carter’s role be as Rogers’ primary replacement?

    MEMPHIS BASKETBALL: Penny Hardaway and a culture change? Three signs of change for Memphis basketball

    DeeDee Hagemann, Memphis Women vs. South Carolina

    Memphis women’s basketball finished 13-19 in coach Alex Simmons’ first season.

    The Tigers return Alasia Smith, Hannah Riddick and Tanyuel Welch and have added DeeDee Hagemann, Tilly Boler and Quin Fulmore. Memphis could get a glimpse of what the near future holds when they take on Dawn Staley’s South Carolina team.

    Simmons plans to put the same product on the floor Tuesday as she will the rest of the season.

    “We’re going to play our style, our fast style,” she said. “We will still apply pressure. I think it’s hard to change yourself just because someone else (like South Carolina) comes along.”

    Reach or follow sportswriter Jason Munz at [email protected] @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

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    Eira Gwyneth
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