The 2009–10 Memphis Tigers men's basketball team represented the

University of Memphis } The University of Memphis (UofM) is a public research university in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 22,000 students. The university maintains the Herff College of Engineering, the Center for Ea ...

in the 2009–10 college basketball season, the 89th season of Tiger basketball. The Tigers were coached by first-year head coach

Josh Pastner Joshua Paul Pastner (born September 26, 1977) is an American college basketball coach, and the current head coach of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Pastner was a player on the 1997 Arizona Wildcats men's basketball national championship team, ...

, played their home games at the

FedExForum FedExForum is a multi-purpose arena located in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee. It is the home of the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA and the NCAA Division I men's basketball program of the University of Memphis, both of whom previously played home ...

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

and are members of Conference USA. They finished the season 24–10, 13–3 in C-USA play. They were the 2 seed in the 2010 Conference USA men's basketball tournament where they were upset by 7 seed and eventual champion

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

. They failed to be invited to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2005. Instead, the Tigers were invited to the

2010 National Invitation Tournament The 2010 National Invitation Tournament was a single-elimination tournament of 32 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I teams that were not selected to participate in the 2010 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. T ...

where they advanced to the second round before losing to the

Ole Miss Rebels The Ole Miss Rebels are the 18 men's and women's intercollegiate athletic teams that are funded by and represent the University of Mississippi, located in Oxford. The first was the football team, which began play in 1893. Originally known as th ...

Preseason

The 2008–09 Memphis Tigers finished the season 33–4 (16–0), as Conference USA regular season and tournament champions. After three early losses, the Tigers went on a 27-game unbeaten streak, finally coming to an end with a season-ending 102–91 loss to the

Missouri Tigers The Missouri Tigers intercollegiate athletics programs represent the University of Missouri, located in Columbia. The name comes from a band of armed Union Home Guards called the Fighting Tigers of Columbia who, in 1864, protected Columbia fro ...

in the Sweet 16. Memphis finished the season ranked 9th in the final Coaches' Poll and 3rd in the

AP Poll The Associated Press poll (AP poll) provides weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling 62 sportswriters and broad ...

. A turbulent offseason for the Tigers began with the news of Billy Gillispie's firing at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

. Despite assurances that “Memphis is where I want to coach,” John Calipari resigned as head coach of the Tigers to take the job at Kentucky on March 31, 2009. After a week-long coaching search, Memphis

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches an ...

R.C. Johnson announced the hiring of former

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and Memphis assistant

as head basketball coach. At 32 years of age, Coach Pastner is the second-youngest men's head basketball coach in the NCAA. Calipari's departure resulted in the disintegration of Memphis' recruiting class. Signed recruits

DeMarcus Cousins DeMarcus Amir Cousins (born August 13, 1990) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "Boogie", he played college basketball for the Kentucky Wil ...

and Darnell Dodson were allowed out of their

letters of intent A letter of intent (LOI or LoI, or Letter of Intent) is a document outlining the understanding between two or more parties which they intend to formalize in a contract, legally binding agreement. The concept is similar to a Heads of agreement ( ...

and followed Calipari to Kentucky.

Xavier Henry Xavier Henry (; born March 15, 1991) is an American former professional basketball player. He played one year of college basketball with the Kansas Jayhawks before he was drafted in the 2010 NBA draft by the Memphis Grizzlies. Henry's brother, ...

was also allowed to leave, and while briefly considering following Calipari as well, ultimately decided to attend the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

. Guard Nolan Dennis was also allowed to leave, choosing to attend

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

. Of Memphis' original 2009 recruiting class, only

JUCO A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in su ...

forward Will Coleman decided to honor his commitment to play for the Tigers. Sophomore forward Ángel García lost most of the season with an ACL tear, but made an unexpected debut after only five months of recovery. Despite shooting 52% in 2-point field goals and 41% in 3-point field goals, García saw limited action due to the recovery process. Memphis' roster was also devastated by other departures not directly related to the coaching change.

Redshirt Redshirt, Red Shirt, or Redshirts may refer to: Entertainment * ''Red Shirts'' (film), a 1952 film about Anita Garibaldi by Franco Rossi * Redshirt (stock character), originally derived from ''Star Trek'', a stock character who dies soon after ...

freshman

C. J. Henry Carl Joshua Henry, Jr. (born May 31, 1986) is an American former basketball and professional baseball player. Henry played in minor league baseball, minor and independent baseball and in college for the Southern Nazarene University men's basketb ...

, brother of Xavier Henry, chose to transfer to Kansas to play with his brother after sitting out the season due to an ankle injury. Memphis recruit Latavious Williams decided not to honor his commitment, instead deciding to play professionally in China; ultimately, Williams was drafted into the NBA Development League. On March 31, 2009, freshman sensation

Tyreke Evans Tyreke Jamir Evans (born September 19, 1989) is an American professional basketball player for the Indios de Mayagüez of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). After playing college basketball for the Memphis Tigers, he was selected with the f ...

declared himself eligible for the

2009 NBA draft The 2009 NBA draft was held on June 25, 2009, at the WaMu Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City. In this draft, the National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball players and other e ...

, ultimately being drafted 4th overall by the

Sacramento Kings The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...

. Senior forward Shawn Taggart declared for the draft on June 6, 2009, despite having one year of eligibility remaining. Seniors

Antonio Anderson Antonio Andrew Anderson (born June 5, 1985) is an American former basketball player and the current head coach at Springfield Commonwealth Academy. He majored in interdisciplinary studies at the University of Memphis and played basketball for ...

and

Robert Dozier Robert Lorenzo Dozier, Jr. (born November 6, 1985) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Phoenix Pulse Fuel Masters of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). College career In the 2007–08 season, Dozier sta ...

also declared for the draft after their graduation from the University; Chance McGrady, brother of Houston Rockets guard

Tracy McGrady Tracy Lamar McGrady Jr. (born May 24, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player, best known for his career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). McGrady is a seven-time NBA All-Star, seven-time All-NBA selection, two- ...

also graduated, but did not declare for the draft. The Tigers began the 2009–10 season on October 16, 2009 with Memphis Madness. Over 18,000 fans attended the free event at FedExForum, with several hundred fans turned away at the door by the Memphis Fire Department for safety reasons. The capacity crowd was the largest to ever witness a Memphis Madness event.

Departures

''Statistics accurate as of 29 March 2010.''

Recruiting

Roster

Schedule

, - !colspan=9, Exhibition , - !colspan=9, Regular Season , - !colspan=9, 2010 Conference USA tournament , - !colspan=9,

." ''2009–10 Schedule'' Retrieved on 20-10-2009.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:2009-10 Memphis Tigers Men's Basketball Team 2009–10 Conference USA men's basketball season, Memphis Memphis Tigers men's basketball seasons