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Mack, Douglas-Roberts lead Memphis to 11th straight victory

Feb 3, 2007 - 8:41 PM MEMPHIS, Tennessee (Ticker) -- Doneal Mack could not miss for Memphis and Southern Methodist could not find a way to slow down the Tigers.

Mack put on an impressive shooting display and 12th-ranked Memphis remained unbeaten in Conference USA with an easy 88-52 victory over the Mustangs.

The win was Memphis' 11th in a row and extended its home-court winning streak to 26 games. The Tigers won all eight of their games in January by an average of 17 points and they started their February slate in similar fashion.

Mack was 6-of-6 from the field, including 5-of-5 from the arc, and finished with 17 points. He hit two of his 3-pointers in the final 2:17 of the first half as Memphis (19-3, 9-0 C-USA) opened a 46-26 lead.

"If we're making threes the way we did today, we can beat you by a bunch," Memphis coach John Calipari said.

The Tigers never let the Mustangs make a run in the second half and Mack's 3-pointer with 12:48 to play extended the lead to 63-34.

"I give Memphis credit, they're the most talented team we've faced," SMU coach Matt Doherty said. "When Hunt goes 3-for-5 from the 3-point line and Mack goes 5-for-5, that's really tough on us. They got in a rhythm and it was tough to get them out of that rhythm."

While Mack was bombing away over SMU's zone defense, Chris Douglas-Roberts was slicing his way to the hoop at will. The sophomore guard was 6-of-7 from the field in the first half as he scored 13 of his 15 points.

"I like our zone offense," Calipari said. "We got it inside and we drove the ball. Chris Douglas-Roberts was unbelievable in the first half."

Ike Ofoegbu scored 17 points and was the only player in double figures for SMU (13-9, 2-6), which shot 36 percent (20-of-55) from the field and was outrebounded, 35-22.

"Our game plan was to attack the zone and to not let them have dribble penetration," SMU coach Matt Doherty said. "Once they started shooting that well from the 3-point line our game plan fell apart."

Ofoegbu scored 11 points in the first half and the Mustangs kept it close for a while before the Tigers figured out the zone.

With Mack and Willie Kemp - who scored 11 points - firing away, Douglas-Roberts was able to get to the basket on a number of possessions. He scored on three layups and capped a 15-2 run to give Memphis a 38-21 lead with 3:14 left in the first half.

"When you go out there and they put four guards on the court, they are extremely quick," Doherty said. "They open up the floor and drive you."