The University of Memphis squad (0-0, 0-0 C-USA), ranked No. 19 in both preseason national polls, opens its 2010-11 regular season schedule tonight when it hosts Centenary (0-0, 0-0 Summit League). Game time is 8pm, pregame begins at 7pm.

Tonight's contest is the first for both Memphis and Centenary in the 2010 Global Sports Challenge. It is an exempt event in which all participating schools play four games against each other. The other three schools in the Global Sports Challenge are LSU, Northwestern State and Tennessee Martin.

Memphis, picked to reclaim the Conference USA crown in most preseason publications and websites, returns two starters and six letterwinners from last year's squad that won 24 games (24-10 record) and advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) second round. The Tigers finished second in the Conference USA regular season standings (13-3 league mark) and reached the quarterfinals of the C-USA Tournament.

The Tigers played two exhibition contests as warm-ups for the start of the 2010-11 campaign. Memphis defeated LeMoyne-Owen College 106-49 and Christian Brothers 75-49 in the two exhibitions.

Centenary College returns two starters and six letterwinners from the 2009-10 squad that posted an 8-21 overall record. The Gents did not play any exhibition contests prior to Friday's season opener.

SCOUTING THE GENTS
Centenary College returns two starters and six letterwinners from the 2009-10 squad that posted an 8-21 overall record and a 3-15 Summit League mark. The Gents did not play any exhibition contests prior to Friday's season opener.

Centenary returns only two of its seven leading scorers from a year ago in senior guard Roman Tubner and junior guard Maxx Nakwaasah. Tubner was the squad's fourth-leading scorer at 8.0 ppg last season, while Nakwaasah was sixth at 7.2 ppg. Nakwaasah is also the Gents' leading returning rebounder at 4.1 rpg (second on last year's team). Tubner is Centenary's returning leader in assists (66) and steals (41).

Last season, Centenary shot 41.6 percent from the floor, 35.2 percent from the arc and 73.3 percent from the charity stripe. Opponents shot 49 percent from the field and 37.5 percent from the arc against the Gents, and also out-rebounded Centenary by an average margin of +8.5 on the glass (38.6-30.1).

Adam Walsh is in his first year at the helm of the Gents program after serving as an assistant on the Centenary staff the previous three seasons.

MAKING THE MOVE
This past summer, Centenary College was approved for reclassification for NCAA Division III and will move from NCAA Division I competition in 2011-12. The Gents athletics program will still play in The Summit League for the 2010-11 academic year, and will move to the Division III American Southwest Conference in 2011-12.

The Tiger football team will travel to Huntington, W.Va., to face the Thundering Herd of Marshall in Conference USA action on Saturday. Kickoff is slated for 2pm, pregame begins at Noon.

Saturday's game is the sixth meeting in as many years between the Tigers and Thundering Herd. The series began when Marshall joined Conference USA in 2005, and the Thundering Herd holds a 3-2 edge. Last year, Marshall defeated Memphis 27-16 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. The game was the Conference USA opener for the Tigers. The Tigers' last victory in the series was an emotional 24-21 win over the Thundering Herd at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in the 2007 campaign.

Hey, We Know You!
For one member of the Memphis coaching staff, Saturday's game is a homecoming. Tiger cornerbacks coach Shannon Morrison returns to his alma mater, but on the opposing sideline. A 1995 Marshall graduate, Morrison was a four-year letterwinner for the Herd. As a senior in 1994, he earned All-America honorable mention and All-Southern Conference accolades. In his career, Morrison recorded 11 interceptions, which is still the sixth-most in Marshall history. He was also a member of the 1992 Herd team that won the NCAA I-AA national championship. Following his playing days, Morrison served as a graduate assistant on the Marshall staff for the 1995 and 1997 seasons.

First-Timers Day In Huntington
For the third and final time this season, the Tigers play a contest that features two first-year head coaches. Larry Porter (Memphis) and Doc Holliday (Marshall) are in their first seasons as collegiate head coaches at their respective schools. Earlier this year, Porter faced off against two other first-year head coaches when the Tigers played Ruffin McNeill's East Carolina squad (Sept. 11) and Charlie Strong's Louisville team (Oct. 9).

On This Date
The Tigers have a 6-4 record when playing on Nov. 13 in the program's history. The last time Memphis played on Nov. 13 was the 1999 campaign, and the Tigers defeated Army 14-10 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. The Tigers are on a current Nov. 13 win streak of five straight since 1965. Included in the Nov. 13 win streak are victories over North Texas State (1965, 1971), Louisville (1976), Southern Miss (1993) and Army (1999).

TIGERS TO HOST LEMOYNE-OWEN COLLEGE IN EXHIBITION TONIGHT
The University of Memphis squad (0-0, 0-0 C-USA), ranked No. 19 in both preseason national polls, opens its 2010-11 exhibition season with a home contest versus LeMoyne-Owen College (0-0, 0-0 SIAC) tonight. Game time is 7 p.m. at FedExForum. Pregame begins at 6 p.m.

Memphis, picked to reclaim the Conference USA crown in most preseason publications and websites, returns three starters and six letterwinners from last year's squad that won 24 games (24-10 record) and advanced to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT) second round. The Tigers finished second in the Conference USA regular season standings (13-3 league mark) and reached the quarterfinals of the C-USA Tournament.

Tonight's exhibition is LeMoyne-Owen's first of 2010-11. The Magicians travel to Fayetteville, Ark., this weekend for their second exhibition against the Razorbacks.

LeMoyne-Owen returns five players from last season's squad that posted a 15-13 overall record and a 13-11 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) mark. The Magicians lost in the SIAC Tournament's first round to Kentucky State.

SCOUTING THE MAGICIANS
LeMoyne-Owen College, a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), returns two starters and only five total players last season's 15-13 team. The Magicians posted a 15-12 regular season record, including a 13-11 SIAC mark (tied for sixth in regular season standings). Unlike the previous year (2008-09) when it got on a run and won the SIAC Tournament title, LeMoyne-Owen dropped a narrow 72-69 decision to Kentucky State in the conference tournament first round.

The Magicians were picked to finish in a tie for seventh place in the SIAC 2010-11 preseason poll.

Senior forward DeAndre Gant is the Magicians' leading returning scorer at 10.6 ppg. He is also the squad's leading returning rebounder at 5.6 rpg. Senior center Jeremy Wilson averaged 5.4 boards per game in 2009-10, which is second-best among the Magicians' returnees. Junior forward Calvin Stoudemire posted a 4.5 scoring average last year, the second-best among the team's returning players.

William Anderson is in his second year as head coach of the Magicians program. Anderson, who also serves as the school's athletics director, was hired as head coach on Apr. 9, 2009.