National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Memphis 91, Tennessee St. 86
When: 3:00 PM ET, Sunday, January 2, 2011
Where: FedExForum, Memphis, Tennessee
Officials: # Pat Evans, # Jeb Hartness, # Mark Whitehead
Attendance: 15831

Antonio Barton finished with 24 points and drained five 3-pointers as No. 22 Memphis held off Tennessee State, 91-86, on Sunday.

Tarik Black added 22 points and Will Barton scored 19 for the Memphis (11-2), which faces a big test at Tennessee on Wednesday.

Both teams shot better than 50 percent in the first half and went into the break knotted at 43-43. Tennessee State took control with a 10-0 run early in the second half, opening up a 60-52 edge as Kenny Moore drained a pair of 3-pointers and broke free for a layup with 13:06 left to play.

But Memphis came right back, getting three straight 3-pointers from Antonio Barton to pull within 62-61 at the 11:52 mark. Tennessee State managed to open the lead back up to eight points but Memphis kept coming, finally regaining the lead when Antonio Barton nailed another 3-pointer to make it 74-73 with 5:09 on the clock.

It went back and forth over the next four minutes, with neither school managing more than a three-point edge until Wesley Witherspoon’s three-point play made it 85-81 in favor of Memphis at the 1:11 mark. Kenny Moore’s 3-pointer with 22 seconds left brought Tennessee State back within 87-86, Antonio and Will Barton scored two points apiece in the final 18 seconds to seal it.
Top Game Performances
 
Tennessee St.   Memphis
Kenny Moore 22 Scoring Antonio Barton 24
Will Peters 7 Assists Chris Crawford 9
Robert Covington 6 Rebounds Will Barton 8
Will Peters 9 Free Throws Made Antonio Barton 7
Michael Green 4 Steals Joe Jackson 2
Michael Green 2 Blocks D.J. Stephens 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Tennessee St. 86 50.0 12-24 20-23 15 25 4 8
Memphis 91 53.2 7-19 18-26 25 31 4 4