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Memphis opens season with winless Jackson State

Nov 16, 2006 - 2:45 PM Jackson St (0-3) at No. 13 Memphis (0-0) 8:00 pm EST

MEMPHIS, Tennessee (Ticker) - Memphis will play for the first time since a disappointing NCAA Tournament loss. The results figure to be better this time around.

Memphis on Thursday will take on winless Jackson State, which will be playing its third ranked team in a week, in a matchup of Tigers.

After winning a school-record 33 games, Memphis dropped a 50-45 decision to UCLA in the NCAA Tournament regional finals last season, its first appearance in the "Elite Eight" since 1992.

Memphis will take the floor without its top three scorers from last season. Senior Rodney Carney graduated, and Shawne Williams and Darius Washington left early for the NBA draft.

However, Chris Douglas-Roberts, Antonio Anderson, Joey Dorsey and Robert Dozier played key roles in Memphis' stellar season, and they are a big reason the team is picked to repeat as Conference USA champions. Douglas-Roberts and Dorsey were picked to the All-Conference squad prior to the campaign.

Jackson State, which already has lost to 11th-ranked Alabama and 23th-ranked Georgia Tech, absorbed a 76-55 setback at Illinois on Wednesday. It is playing nine straight games away from home to start the season.

Memphis has won 11 of the 12 meetings with Jackson State, including a 97-70 victory last season.