SAN ANTONIO — In a closely contested game, Dain Dainja poured in 19 points to power No. 16 Memphis to a 75-70 victory over UTSA on Tuesday night, ensuring at least a share of the American Athletic Conference regular-season crown.
The Tigers celebrated their first regular-season conference title since the 2012-13 season when they were part of Conference USA. With this win, Memphis secured the top seed for the conference tournament kicking off on March 12.
PJ Haggerty contributed significantly with 18 points, displaying composure by hitting all six free throws in the critical last 10 seconds for Memphis (25-5, 15-2 AAC). Nick Jourdain and Colby Rogers also chipped in with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
On the other side, UTSA (11-18, 5-12) saw Jonnivius Smith lead with a personal season-best of 18 points. Marcus Millender followed him closely with 16, while Primo Spears added 14 points alongside seven assists, and Tai’Reon Joseph rounded out their efforts with 12 points.
The pivotal moment in the game came when Rogers made a jumper, granting the Tigers a lead they didn’t relinquish, almost seven minutes in. Rogers then drilled a three-pointer, followed by Haggerty’s layup which culminated a 13-1 surge, pushing the score to 17-11. When Smith nailed a three-pointer shrinking UTSA’s deficit to 23-21 with 8:35 left in the opening half, Dainja quickly retaliated with consecutive baskets, preventing the Roadrunners from closing in further.
In terms of gameplay analysis, Memphis showed resilience, particularly on defense, and managed to seal a road win despite grappling with a season-high 22 turnovers.
For UTSA, the team employed an aggressive defense that disrupted Memphis’s flow for much of the match but couldn’t sustain it as their offense lagged in the crucial final moments.
A key instance came when Millender sank the first of two free throws with 3:23 to go, slicing UTSA’s margin to 69-67. However, the Roadrunners went scoreless until Millender sunk a three-pointer with just 0.8 seconds left on the clock.
Highlighting significant stats from the game, Memphis dominated the boards, outrebounding UTSA by a commanding 45-25 margin, and converted more free throws (20) than the Roadrunners had attempts (18).
Looking ahead, Memphis will conclude their regular season at home against South Florida on Friday, while UTSA’s finale takes them to Charlotte on Sunday.
