MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — PJ Haggerty scored 22 points and Tyrese Hunter added 16 as No. 24 Memphis used a late rally to beat Wichita State 61-53 on Thursday night.
Memphis (15-4, 5-1 American Athletic Conference) broke open the tight game by scoring 12 straight points in the final five minutes. There were 10 lead changes and three ties in the contest.
Harlond Beverly led the Shockers (11-8, 1-5) with 18 points. Corey Washington scored 11 points and Quincy Ballard added 10 points and 10 rebounds for Wichita State. which has lost five of six.
The first half was filled with turnovers and poor shooting. Memphis' sloppy play led to 14 miscues before the break. Neither team shot better than 40%, and together they shot 5 for 20 from 3-point range.
The Shockers led 27-23 at the break.
Takeaways
Wichita State: The Shockers held the lead through much of the first half, showing much better than their conference record.
Memphis: As has been the case in other home games, Memphis got off to a poor start and trailed at the break. It took a late rally for the Tigers to pull out the win.
Key moment
Haggerty had 18 points with 4:54 left when he went to the locker room with an injury, and the Tigers trailing 51-49. Tyrese Hunter connected on a 3-pointer 26 seconds later to give Memphis a 52-51 lead. Memphis went on a 12-0 run, and Hunter had two steals in the outburst.
Key stat
Xavier Bell, Wichita State's leading scorer averaging 14.8 points, was held scoreless, missing all four of his shots. Four fouls limited his time on the floor.
Up next
Both teams play Sunday. Wichita State is at Tulsa. Memphis hosts UAB.
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