Last season was definitely a transition year for the Memphis Tigers men's basketball team. Under the guidance of first-year University of Memphis head coach Josh Pastner, the Tigers scrambled to a 24-10 record and fell short of making the NCAA Tournament, instead ending up in the NIT tournament to finish the year.

While they may have struggled to put up victories last year, without a doubt they are moving forward instead of going backwards, as they landed one of the top recruiting classes in the nation. With players like Will Barton, Joe Jackson, and Chris Crawford leading the list of names joining the Tigers this  season, they deservedly earned a spot in the AP’s preseason poll, ranking 19th overall in the nation.

After their loss to Ole Miss in the NIT ended their season, Will Coleman said he expected a national title for Memphis in 2010-11. While that might be a large leap, there are quite a bit of reasons why Memphis should have moderately high expectations heading into the this season.

Memphis only has four games this season against schools that are currently ranked in the Top 25. If they want any chance at securing a high seed in the NCAA tournament this March, winning at least three of these four games will be extremely important for the Tigers. Josh Pastner showed signs of being a great head coach last year, and it seems likely he will be even better in his second year with the team.

Front Court

Senior Will Coleman is one of two starters from last season’s team that is back, and he will be very important to the Tigers’ success this season. After posting 7.4 points and 6.2 rebounds per contest last year, Coleman will be out to prove he is a man of his word after promising a national championship this year.

If he can duplicate or improve upon his 53.9 percent field goal percentage that he posted last year, he should be able to put up 12-15 points per night this year if he plays enough minutes.

Wesley Witherspoon, the team's other returning starter, will also likely spend most of his time on the floor in the front court. He will be another major key to how far Memphis goes this season.

Joining Coleman and Witherspoon in the front court will be freshmen Tarik Black and Hippolyte Tsafack, along with junior Angel Garcia, who missed a majority of last year with a torn right ACL, but has recovered and is ready to start the new year.

Back Court

The Memphis back court is mostly filled with younger players, headlined by freshman Will Barton, who will likely be one of the most productive players on the Tigers squad this season. ESPN has Barton ranked No. 1 among incoming shooting guards. He is an excellent shooter and should be one of Memphis’ top-scorers this year.

Local sensation Joe Jackson should another solid plus to the team, and will likely be the Tigers starter at the point. He averaged 32.3 points per night as senior in high school, and his offensive talents should translate well into the Tigers offensive game plan.

Chris Crawford will also be expected to contribute a lot in first season with the Tigers, as Rivals.com has him ranked as the 16th best shooting guard in the nation. After averaging a district best 19.7 points per game in his senior season at Sheffield High School, Crawford should be another premiere scorer for Memphis. 

If Jelan Kendrick can return from his indefinite suspension and deliver a decent contribution to the team, Memphis could have one of the best back courts in the nation.

Prediction—1st place in Conference USA

Memphis has all of the pieces to run through a fairly down conference, with their only major threats coming in the four games they take on rated opponents. Away games at No. 7 Kansas and No. 12  Gonzaga are without a doubt the toughest games on their slate, and if they can somehow win those on the road, Memphis could finish the year with only a couple of losses.

Their game at UTEP on Feb. 26 will also be a game to circle, as the Miners went 15-1 in the conference last year and were the only team to finish ahead of the Tigers in the standings.

Memphis should unquestionably make an appearance in the NCAA tournament in March, and with such a talented group of young players, should be able to lock down a quality seed.

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