The struggle that was the UTEP game will only HELP the Tigers down the road. They made plays when they needed to make them in order to win. It is easy to lose when you play badly but winning when you play badly is a sign of a great, not good team.

I’ll give you the fact the we shoot FT’s poorly. But how many looked like they were going down only to rim out? It was frustrating to watch them shoot them today.

If anyone knows where I can get a pair of Memphis sweat pants, please let me know.
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Didn’t see that coming. I thought the Tigers would play better, but UTEP came in with a nice plan and the Tigers could not hit a thing. Forget about the free throws; 1-for-17 from the 3-point line will get you beat most of the time, especially with as many wide open shots as Memphis had. Several things to talk about from this game.

– To be in position to beat Memphis, you have to do a lot of things right. But even if you do everything right, it’s hard to account for the ability of CDR and Derrick Rose to score one-on-one when they have to. If you want to beat the Tigers, you better bury them because CDR and D-Rose are better than whoever else the other team has, and they’ll score when they have to.

– Stefon Jackson had a great game, but he choked in crunch time. He missed a couple layups late in the game, and he missed a free throw under a minute left that was huge.

– Tigers didn’t play with a lot of basketball IQ at times. End of the first half was a great example. Tigers have a five-point lead and are trying to hold for the last shot. They get no ball movement, and Andre Allen jacks up a terrible 3-pointer. Then, Joey Dorsey fouls trying to go for the rebound when there is no rebound to get because the clock is going to run out. So he gives UTEP a shot at free throws with .5 seconds left.

– Speaking of Allen, his play was representative of how much the bench struggled Saturday. Frankly, the only guy off the bench who really performed his role well was Jeff Robinson in the first half (even though he missed three free throws). I was surprised he didn’t get back in after that. Once again, Willie Kemp had a rash of errors in a short span of time and didn’t get much PT.

– As I talked about in the pregame blog, Ramalho is a hack. He was flopping around all day long, and it was disgraceful. Whatever he does, though, he sure makes Dorsey play poorly.

– Aside from Kevin Mathis, I had no idea who the other two officials were. That’s never a good thing. A lot of solid officials work Tiger games throughout the course of the season, but Saturday was a different story. The other two guys were definitely out of their depth.

– Tigers aren’t going to win by 20 or 30 every game. I found it quite refreshing to have some drama, and it was educational for the team to see how different players would react to it.

You know it’s a big game when Worldwide Wes is in the house. I’m sure Wes could have been in a number of places today so I was a little surprised to see him when I walked into the Forum today. But that obviously shows the level of friendship he has with John Calipari and Tony Barbee that he made the trip to Memphis for this game.

We’ll see how much UTEP tries to mess with Joey Dorsey today. They did it last year very successfully, and if you remmeber after the game, Tony Barbee pulled him aside and told him to grow up. I am pretty sure Ramalho will try to get under his skin again. The truth is, Ramalho is just a flat-out hack, probably the dirtiest player in the league.

Also worth watching is how much Randy Culpepper tries to shoot the ball. He isn’t shy about throwing it up there, and he’ll be fired up to try and score 30 points today. I don’t think the Tigers should have too much trouble with this one, unless they just don’t show up emotionally.

The incoming text message apologized for not getting back to me sooner, and said “call when works for you.” So I immediately picked up the phone Friday night and dialed up Pau Gasol. The 7-footer answered after just having landed in Los Angeles around midnight CST.

He sounded sad. He seemed dazed. Gasol actually was confused, too. He never saw this coming. Gasol never thought he’d be traded and had no inkling when the Griz informed him that he needed to board a plane because he’s a member of the Los Angeles Lakers.

“It’s not easy to digest,” Gasol said. “You leave something that you’ve been committed to for such a long time — all of a sudden you’re on a plane going to a different team. It’s pretty shocking.”

More from Gasol in the Sunday Commercial Appeal.

Meanwhile, here’s more fallout from the Gasol trade:

*** The Griz and Lakers have been talking for some time. One of their initial discussions involved a deal that would have included Mike Miller and Hakim Warrick, and Lamar Odom. The Lakers are said to have declined. The Griz also talked to Denver and Cleveland about Gasol.

*** Part of the motivation for the Gasol deal had to do with the discontent from fans. A large segment of the fan base (as fickle as they are) disliked Gasol, booed him and wanted the Griz to ship him at any cost. The team realized that, along with just 13 wins, having a franchise player (and highest paid player) that can’t draw at the ticket window would never work. People wouldn’t pay to see Gasol play. So part of the thinking is perhaps they can shop for one who can draw fans.

*** I’m hearing strong vibes that the Logo brokered this deal. No proof but where there is smoke, there’s a fire. Jerry West still has owner Mike Heisley and general manager Chris Wallace’s ears. Plus, West is very interested in having Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak succeed. Just my two cents.

*** After talking to several league executives, the Griz have pissed off the Western Conference with this deal. Elite West teams are said to be angry that the Griz just handed the Lakers an important piece in their quest to become a championship contender. Typically, All Stars are sent to the ‘other’ conference. Imagine how Atlanta and Chicago must feel right now. But those East teams weren’t offering cap room.

*** Don’t be surprised if Mike Miller is traded. Don’t be surprised if the great Kyle Lowry, not Javaris Crittenton, is eventually dealt to clear out the crowded point guard position.

*** Wishful thinking to those of you who think Heisley is stripping down the franchise to sell it. Would he dump the franchise if a buyer came along and paid his price? Sure. But Heisley, in a recent meeting with the local owners, said he’ll probably die with this team. He plans on owning it for a long time. He just doesn’t plan on suffering the losses he’s already endured during that span. One way to ensure that is to get the payroll in line.

Stay tuned.