Josh Pastner could only think of one positive aspect of his team's 74-70 overtime loss to Christian Brothers in an exhibition game on Wednesday night.
"It doesn't go in the record books," the Memphis coach told reporters afterward.
It's easy to see why Pastner didn't have many compliments for his team after a game in which the Tigers played five of their best players at least 29 minutes apiece yet couldn't beat a Division II team it defeated by 29 points this time last year. Christian Brothers went on to finish a modest 18-11 last season and is unranked in this season's preseason Division II poll.
Memphis' problems began in the backcourt, not surprising considering the Tigers must replace their top four guards from last season, all of whom were seniors. Vanderbilt transfer Kedren Johnson tallied as many turnovers (6) as points and assists combined. Redshirt freshman Markel Crawford and junior college transfer Avery Woodson shot a combined 6 of 19 from the floor. And the Tigers collectively shot a miserable 5 of 22 from behind the 3-point line, leaving themselves vulnerable to upset.
The rough day for the backcourt overshadowed strong performances from Memphis' two top frontcourt weapons. Forward Shaq Goodwin shot 7 of 8 from the floor and notched a double-double and forward Austin Nichols was nearlyas efficient with his 17-point performance, going 7 of 9.
While there will surely be plenty of handwringing in Memphis after Wednesday's game, history suggests an exhibition loss is not necessarily as bad of an omen as one might think.
In 2009-10, a Syracuse that lost 82-79 to LeMoyne won 24 of its first 25 games en route to a Big East title. In 2010-11 a Xavier team that lost 63-61 to Bellarmine took some time to figure out how to play without Jordan Crawford but ultimately overcame some early losses, stormed to a 15-1 record in the Atlantic 10 and earned a No. 6 seed in the NCAA tournament. In 2012-13, Miami fell 69-67 to St. Leo yet went on to enjoy its best season in school history, finishing 29-7, winning the ACC tournament and reaching the Sweet 16.
Memphis may not match the achievements of those teams this season, but the Tigers have a great chance to finish in the top three in the American Athletic Conference and return to the NCAA tournament. They just need to shake the rust off Kedren Johnson and find some semblance of a backcourt before games start counting in the standings.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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