Hawaii and the week of Thanksgiving have a special connection. Games inside the Lahaina Civic Center will be making waves as the 2024 Maui Invitational tips off on Monday morning {local time} and afternoon. The day’s first game will feature a hungry Memphis Tigers team facing their highest-ranked opponent, the #2 UConnHuskies, since facing #1 Houston in the 2022 AAC Championship. These two programs will tip off at 1:30 CT with the game broadcast on ESPN2 with Dan Shulman and Jay Bilas on the call.
We will analyze who the Huskies are, and three keys for Memphis’ success in round one.
Before we begin, we want to look at some moments from the past on the island for Memphis,
Will It Be A “Blue” Hawaii?
Memphis is no stranger to the Hawaii MTE {Multi team event} as the Tigers will be making their sixth appearance.
It has been quite the hiatus as 2024 is the first appearance since the 2011 event. In that season, Memphis would fall to Michigan, 73-61, in the opening round, followed by a close win, 99-97, over Tennessee. The Tigers, at the time #8, would fall to Georgetown, 91-88, to complete the weekend in Hawaii.
The two coaches on the sidelines have some history in this event, as the 1993 event featured both as players. Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway from Memphis State and Bobby Hurley from Duke. In the event, we would see the Tigers finish third while Hurley and the Blue Devils would win the championship, 89-66, over BYU.
MSU would begin the event against Chaminade {We miss them in this event} 64-56. The Tiger would then fall in the semifinals to the Cougars,73-67, before defeating LSU, 70-66, to secure third place. Both Hurley and Hardaway would be named Co-MVP for the event. This would mark the first championship for the Blue Devils.
Memphis has never won this event and comes into this season as the second most experienced team this season behind North Carolina, who has nine appearances.
Who Are The Huskies?
The Huskies enter the week ranked in the top five following back-to-back defending National Champions in addition to a current 4-0 record. Hurley has a roster stacked with talent, along with nonconference success, as the Huskies are 40-1 against ‘one bid leagues’ in his tenure. Currently, four players are averaging double figures, with Tarris Reed Jr nearly averaging a double-double with 11,8 points per game and 9.8 rebounds per game.
UConn will presumably start the same lineup they have all season, which is guard Aiden Mahaney, guard Solo Ball, wing Liam McNeeley, wing Alex Karaban, and center Samson Johnson. Each of these players brings their list of intangibles that can cause Memphis, and any other opponent they face, issues for the entire forty minutes.
Mahaney is both crafty and skilled as he comes to the Huskies after being with St. Mary’s for the last two seasons. Aiden was a two-time First Team All-West Coast Conference after averaging 13.9 points per game in his first two seasons. In 2024, Mahaney played well and notched his first double-digit game as a Husky, the 53rd of his career, which is a team-high.
Ball is a left-handed guard who is a bucket scorer. The athletic guard opened 2024 with a career-high 16 points versus Sacred Heart. With this, Ball is averaging 13.5 points per game while shooting at an incredible clip. On the season, Ball is shooting 57.6 % from the floor and 47.4 % from beyond the arc.
McNeeley brings great size along with being a prolific scorer for the Huskies. The Mcdonalds All-American wing opened his career with 18 points and 10 rebounds against SHU followed by 10 points and 11 on the glass against New Hampshire. McNeeley is the first freshman at UConn to begin their time in Storrs, Connecticut with back-to-back games of a double-double wince 1978 when Corny Thompson accomplished this.
Karaben is an intelligent wing who brings multiple skillsets offensively. The rugged Consensus Preseason All-American has a deft outside stroke, and this has continued into this season. Karaban, a Blue Ribbon Report,and Sporting News First Team Pick is averaging 16.3 points per game while shooting 63.6% from the field along with a 54.2% clip from deep.
Johnson is a major problem in the paint for the Huskies. The wiry and explosive motion center is a lob threat and quite the weapon in this play for UConn. Johnson burst into the rotation last season, his third, as he would set a single-season record for field goal percentage. The big man scored in double-figures on seven occasions in 2023 and was top five in dunks with 77 on the year.
As we have broken down above, this Huskies team is extremely talented. If this wasn’t enough, Hurley alone is 13-3 in these types of events since taking over the program in 2018. Overall, the Huskies have played 58 games in these events and hold a 44-14 record. This will be the fifth appearance for UConn in the Maui Invitational including wins in 2005 and 2010. All time in this event the Huskies are 9-3.
Keys To Success
For Memphis to be successful in not just the opening game, this event, or this season, they will need to do many things. This is the 17th meeting between these programs, with the current record tied at eight wins each. With both teams being former members of the American {AAC}, they are no strangers to one another. The most recent meeting came in the 2020 season, with the Huskies winning 64-61 in Hartford. The last win for the Tigers came in the first season under Hardaway, 2020, with a 70-63 win.
When it comes to UConn the Tigers will need to do many things yet we have narrowed it down to three main keys.
Smart Shot Selection Early
An issue for the Tigers has been not only a slow start but poor shot selection in the first half. To further this point, Memphis had to score 50 points in three of its four wins in the second half to secure wins. For this trend to end Memphis will need a hot start followed by a complete game as they start in Maui.
Deep Ball Success
While UConn has players who shoot well from the outside, the Tigers, as a team, also do this. The Tigers rank third nationally, in three-point percentage, with 45.9 percent in 2024. This will need to be a point of emphasis but with the above-mentioned smart selection. Could we see Memphis make waves with a top 5 upset to start a week of thankfulness?
Pound Paint
Memphis will need to get the ball to the big men. Simple. Right? Well, in this game this will need to be a primary focus as the Tigers have options down low. Last game, against San Fransisco, Hardaway would bring center Moussa Cisse to the starting lineup. This would have Dain Dainja coming off the bench and this would be beneficial for Memphis. Dainja would score 18 points, a season-high, and help lead the Tigers to a 68-64 win.
Looking forward, the winner of this game will face either Colorado or Michigan State in round 2.
Who will Memphis face? We will soon find out!
