Zach Davis scored 23 points, grabbed 13 rebounds and helped spur a late charge as host Memphis outlasted Baylor 78-71 on Saturday.
The Tigers (4-4) led by three points at halftime before a Baylor rally pushed the visitors to an eight-point advantage with 12:42 to play. But Memphis roared back, tying the game and taking the lead, 64-63, on a pair of free throws by Sincere Parker with 5:03 remaining.
Those free throws were the first points of a 10-2 run by the Tigers, the final of which came on a free throw by Quante Berry which made it a 72-65 game with 49 seconds to play.
Baylor got to within 72-68 on a 3-pointer by Obi Agbim nine seconds later but would get no closer as Dug McDaniel and Davis canned free throws inside the final 35 seconds to allow Memphis to hold on.
Aaron Bradshaw added 17 points for the Tigers, with McDaniel scoring 11 and Parker tallying 10 in the win.
Tounde Yessoufou led Baylor (6-2) with 22 points while Cameron Carr scored 13.
The Tigers set the tone early, bolting out to a 9-3 lead via a 9-0 run that was culminated by a second-chance 3-pointer from McDaniel at the 15:50 mark of the first half. Memphis built its lead to as many as eight points after Bradshaw’s free throw nine minutes into the half.
Baylor trimmed its deficit to one point twice before the Tigers stoked the margin back to seven points with 1:36 remaining. The Bears then produced the half’s final four points, as Yessoufou canned a 3-pointer with 2 seconds left to bring Baylor to within 37-34 at the break.
Carr and Bradshaw scored 11 points each before halftime to lead their respective teams. Both squads struggled from the floor, with Memphis outshooting the Bears 36.8% to 32.3% in the first half while forcing eight turnovers that it converted into 11 points.
Baylor kept swinging, finally regaining the front at 46-45 on a putback layup by Caden Powell with 15:17 to play. The Bears continued on to forge an 11-0 run that granted them a 53-45 lead with 12:42 remaining.
