Will Barton scored 23 points as the No. 10 Memphis Tigers earned a 97-81 victory over the Belmont Bruins Tuesday. Wesley Witherspoon made all 11 shots he took from the floor on the way to 22 points, while Joe Jackson added 20 with seven assists for the Tigers.
J.J. Mann led the Bruins with 18 points and Ian Clark dropped in 16 in the loss.
After Belmont took an early 4-3 lead, Memphis erupted for a 13-0 run to jump out to a 12-point lead 5 1/2 minutes into the game. The Bruins battled back with an 8-0 run to get within four halfway through the first half and trailed by two points four different times before the break. But each time Memphis held them off, taking a 46-39 lead into halftime.
Mann opened the second half with a three-pointer to bring the Bruins within four before Memphis scored the next seven points to extend its lead to 11. The lead reached as high as 18 points at 70-52 with 12:18 left before Belmont battled back, picking up its offense as Memphis suddenly began to struggle. Mann's three-pointer started a 10-0 burst that saw four missed shots by Memphis, as Belmont cut its deficit to 73-66.
But the Bruins could not re-create Friday's performance, when they overcame a 16-point deficit before dropping a 77-76 decision to Duke, and Memphis pulled away for the win.
For more college basketball updates, keep an eye on SB Nation's 24-Hour Live Coverage StoryStream from the College Basketball Tip-Off Marathon.
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