NCAAM 2021.03.28 NIT Championship - Mississippi State vs Memphis

who's ready to crown a champion welcome to the 2021 nit championship game it's got mississippi state taking on memphis the tigers versus the bulldogs the concentration focus semifinals they were determined to finish their season strong and now they are here in the championship game what a wild season it's been but we started with 16 teams in this nit and we are down to two top seeded memphis taking on the four seed mississippi state and with the way they played in that semi-final oh buddy this should be a good one what's up everybody john tripp and alongside my partner fran furschella chris button will join us momentarily i mean the good thing for us as fans fran is that both of these teams are playing their best basketball right now so this should be an outstanding championship game oh it will be john and there's ingredients involved first it's enthusiasm watching these guys warm up today they are celebrating what has been a difficult season with a chance to win a championship but let's take a look at a couple of other ingredients yesterday both of these teams shot the lights out mississippi state behind d.j stewart and iverson mullinar they knocked down 10 threes in 20 attempts but memphis oh are they on fire 13 of 27 behind the arc de'andre williams and lester quinones leaving the way and this was some pretty good string music that they forged yesterday but go to the other end it was a defense as well you will love this kid junior lofton from louisiana tech in the next game but he had to work for all 20 of his points yesterday and then memphis well there's a reason they've won 11 out of 13 down a stretch relentless pressure and defensive connectivity watch all five they're in a stance they know the play they read it now shot goes up watch this challenge every shot taken seemingly against this defense is challenged and one last ingredient how about these coaches the wily veteran on the left and now yeah you know him as a player but he's trying to win for the third time in his career three straight 20-win seasons penny hardaway we are underway here at the comerica center memphis has won the tip our officials today tommy morrissey edwin young john floyd a very experienced officiating crew tigers coming out in the home white [Applause] deandre williams had such a great game yesterday kick into the on the wing for a three off the mark is nollie there is williams [Applause] deandre williams has lined yesterday 21 points nine rebounds six assists there's an assist to start off this game buddy let's go musa with the jam great possession by memphis i almost said memphis state because look at those jerseys a homage to the old school larry keane and ronnie robinson larry finch fountain in trouble turnover williams ahead of the pack lays it in for two did you say stat cheat stuffer this guy's got an assist and a hoop already he might go for a triple double today we got a couple guys out there capable of doing that quinones as well hard screen there abdullah do what watch this pressure now [Applause] [Music] fountain 4-3 [Applause] memphis we know about their defense but what surprised everybody yesterday their offense look at the starting five lo nolly ellis quinones who has just been so dependable williams and cece the big man in the middle john this team it's only two losses in the last 13 to houston by five points think about that look at this guy more string music wow you think memphis is ready i think they're ready 7-0 start this is the championship game in the nit let's crown a champ welcome back to frisco texas john tripp alongside fran for schiller chris budden memphis man they are just on another level right well john this was this was this team before the game now you want to know why they're confident the houston cougars are in the elite eight with a chance to go to the final four and i mentioned earlier this team went toe-to-toe for 80 minutes with that team only two losses in the last 13. highly confident right now look at that swarming defense kenyonis comes away with the steal not just two losses one of those lost in the regular season was at the buzzer in the conference tournament only lost by two yes and missed a ton of free throws in each of those games williams tough shot in the lane fights for the rebound a duke keeps it alive rebound goes to fountain now what memphis is going to do today is shadow stewart and molinar a lot of attention and they'll use a lot of depth to wear them down d.j stewart from three off the mark can't get the rebound stewart is a guy i love i mean he has been fun to watch they need him to get going yes they do but he's going up against a defense that will lock in on him nollie pump fake kicking the corner williams thought about it now he pulls the trigger a little hesitation there [Music] i love the sound of being in a gym oh yeah and how about the sight of boogie ellis coast to coast defenders inside the arc and derrick fountain picked up that foul and uh luke matthews is out there as well from memphis state these two kids know a lot about memphis john derrick fountain was recruited by them luke matthews played with dj jeffries these memphis kids are locked in on a chance to beat an sec team today boogie ellis completes the three-point play a 10-0 start by the tigers just watch this pressure this is great pressure defense so subs coming in the game for mississippi state to try to get something going davon smith went to the hole there we're looking at the number one defensive team in the country not in the nit in the country in memphis what i love is just watch the stances this is their guy that want the ball in their hands [Music] 10 on the shot clock for the bulldogs smith finds stewart stewart goes over the screen got to get it up it's at two to the bucket wild shot look at that defense on that play john five different tigers switched on to him you talk about connectivity everybody had a piece of him as he came off the screen look switch out by the big man and this is the end of the play there's another guy it's great that's what you call connectivity right there and they did that with the intensity and not fouling yep good defense by smith to poke that one away [Applause] now you talked about this defense in the semi-final memphis did not allow colorado state to get their first field goal until the 1538 mark in the first half we're heading that way we're closing in on that [Applause] four minutes into this championship game here in the nit memphis up 10-0 mississippi state where's the offense going to come from [Music] i know where the i know where the uh what meant where memphis thinks he's coming from it's those two guards talk shot by smith they are not letting molinar and stewart get started unlike yesterday look at the ball movement kionis lines up a three a do so tough underneath he gets that rebound and draws the foul coming up it's been quite the journey for memphis head coach penny hardaway let's talk about just how he got here to memphis coming up after the break welcome back to frisco texas memphis with a 10-0 early lead it's time now to welcome in the third member of our crew chris budden who has more on the tigers leader penny hardaway thanks john yeah we're all familiar with penny hardaway's first act as an nba player but now he's well into his second act this time as coach hardaway but it was quite a unique journey it started as a middle school assistant coach then into high school it is because a close childhood friend desmond meriwether was battling colon cancer and needed assistance on his bench so he joined him meriwether ended up passing away in 2015 and that is when penny took over as the east high school coach in memphis he then went on obviously to continue his roots in his old stomping ground at the university of memphis but i asked him today about thinking about his friend desmond merriweather he was with him when he took his final breaths and he told me i think about that every day but especially on big days like this because desmond always preached play with a championship heart and that's what we're out here to do today days like this are when i think about how we can honor him with the kind of play that we show today well it's interesting chris he doesn't need the money he's doing this because of his love of his city the love of his university and the love of those kids that he probably looks in their eyes and sees a kid that was that he was 30 years ago it's cool and they are well coached make no mistake about it their defense is elite john you said it a couple times this weekend they could still be playing in the ncaa tournament oh there's no doubt about it mississippi state trying to get on the board that one goes off the mark ellis coming out of the pack and down is damien ball behind the play did pop back up that's the good news for memphis you know if it wasn't for that close loss in the semifinals the two-point loss to houston it's very possible and this is not melodramatic here that they would be playing today or tomorrow or tuesday in the elite eight that's how well they've played since late january and let's not forget they're also doing this without their heart and soul this team alex lomax point this could be the ninth game in a row that he's gonna miss with an ankle injury now he did warm up he is dressed he has his warm-ups on he has his jersey underneath his warm-ups but we don't expect him to play today these these other sophomores and he's a junior have all grown up in the absence of alex lomax because they had to [Applause] this young man right there he's known penny hardaway since middle school all he did was be the mvp of the tennessee state championship twice originally signed with wichita and when penny hardaway became the coach wichita good job they let him out of his scholarship letter he came to memphis and he's reunited with penny he's a father figure to this kid but this young man to your point john great team leader yeah from what penny hardaway told me if he was just your everyday player he'd be out there on the court but he said you know for alex he can really only give 40 if he was anyone else he'd probably be at 80 that's just the kind of intensity that he plays with he's also really fun to watch on the bench and watch him coach his other players you saw him in warm-ups and he looked good but out to your point not healthy enough to go tonight unfortunately i watched them closely john and i will be surprised you know just to have him out there warming up is i think good for the morale of the team but uh and i also don't think penny's gonna take any chances with him being re-injured now let's also not forget for mississippi state they're also short-handed today they're without their big man in the middle tolu smith now the official word from the school is that smith is unavailable from this game but after the game last night head coach ben howland said that he's caught up in covet protocol he's been tested negative four times in a row so it's just an unfortunate situation from the bulldogs that they're gonna be without smith once again and they they'll they're missing him because he's he's one of the best low post scorers in the sec look at this defense now i know it's i know if you're listening at home you think it's a memphis commercial and mississippi state will will rebound but this has been overwhelming in the start of this game for memphis ben howen's done a great job with this team in the nit they're excited to be here i think an underrated reason why this start is so good for memphis is they know these mississippi state kids number of these guys were recruited and playing with a little bit extra intensity i think [Applause] how about that davon smith gets mississippi state on the board under 13 minutes here to play in this first half [Applause] ben howan loves this kid he's a bulldog and a quarterback quinones underneath he is bumped and will go to the line for two [Applause] i don't know if they agree with me at the brookhaven pub today the memphis watch party but i think this kid is the most valuable player on this team lester quinones here he gets great job of using that pump fake when he came to memphis john he was known as one thing and one thing only shooter he's now a great defender rebounder still shoots it playmaker and what i like about him is he plays with great toughness shout out to the watch party in memphis tennessee it's a big moment for memphis who's trying to bring home a championship to the city also shout out starfield mississippi they got this game on right now at the ballpark mississippi state number three ranked baseball team in the country getting ready to take on arkansas number two later today so that's a big game in starkville so shout out to everyone watching the game in the ball park yep huge game that sec no joke this year in baseball no question about it number of teams can get to the college world series a tough start for the bulldogs they just have to kind of regain their composure jeffrey tough shot williams flies in for the rebound getting dead out of here abdullah do with the block [Applause] and is that what mississippi state needs to get going off of the block iverson molinar knocks down the three yeah scramble situation that did not come out of their half court offense obviously but molinar we've seen him really get hot that shooting has improved dramatically as a sophomore the energy in the building all of a sudden just shifted mississippi state bench is on their feet in and out rebound the fountain look at the two big guys fighting in the post a do against sise loses the handle and a loose ball that's going to be a foul on fountain [Music] get it out of here goodbye espn's exclusive presentation of the nit is brought to you by liberty mutual insurance only pay for what you need what a run it has been for the memphis tigers opening round win over dayton then they knocked off boise state by three and in the semifinals against colorado state it was one of the best games they have played from start to finish all season long colorado state was one of those teams that was also one win away from an ncaa tournament berth and you know they took apart a good colorado state team anxious to see how they bounced back today in the third place game but you're right john this team is they're connected defensively and i love the way they're playing offensively they don't have an ego individually the ball moves fairly well kenyon is tough spin move in the lane he will draw foul for more information go to ncaa.com your official online home for all 90 ncaa championships memphis had a really hot start to this game clearly they started 4-7 from the field but since just one of 11. this young man boogie ellis playing the best basketball in his career without alex lomax the young man had originally committed to duke and mike had a change of heart and he's amongst a group john of some really good sophomores if this team stays together it'll be a top 25 team pre-season going into next year 10-point lead for memphis under 11 minutes to play in this first half they won't even guard matthews out there seriously he's going to be a man on an island mullen arn smith the only guys who scored from mississippi state there's molinar again for two well has he got a great feel for offense and score in a variety of ways he's hard to take out of a game because he has such versatility oh he can get to the rack he can also shoot from deep tough matchup contacting close ellis will not be denied he's going back to the line [Music] good possession there until that foul at the end forced a tough shot but as we listened to these guys today we can hear about everything you just love the communication on the court coaches calling out plays from the sidelines scouting reports trying to be implemented you know i love what coach hardaway did with boogie ellis early in the season ellis was starting wasn't having the best start to his season and because he was struggling he was putting a lot of pressure on himself and coach hardaway saw that so he decided to take him out of the starting lineup bring him off the bench it helped calm him down he inserted him back into the starting lineup and ever since this memphis team just took off you remember that 2070 hat against houston in the uh in the semifinals of america american conference i thought that was like the culmination of what exactly you just talked about mullin are going hard he is fouled you know how hard it is to get 27 against houston [Applause] shooting numbers for mississippi state picking it up from that slow start [Music] memphis brought the energy but i really feel like off that abdullah do block it kind of woke this mississippi state team up yeah and they've got a chance to get back in this game i always feel in a 40-minute game you know again i equate it to a boxing match it's the second or third and now fourth round and they'll make a run here [Applause] well molenaar is trying to do it he just got fouled shooting at three so he's got three free throws coming up he's coming off a monster game yesterday career high 25 5 of 7 from three and john the 26th time this year he's been in double figures [Applause] so this was that big block by ado that brought the energy for mississippi state and seemed like the game started to change a little bit first free throws of the day for mississippi state this i want you to watch this form at the foul line john we talked about it yesterday he had a moving guide hand last year it's it's quieter see all great shooters shoot at one handed watch the left hand and tries to keep it quiet and just shoot through it there you go nice and quiet missed that one but he's he's in the high 80s and shooting 44 from three this year [Applause] memphis has not scored a field goal in the last four and a half minutes he is fouled out the ram good contest by matthews to deny the dunk great vision by quinones as soon as he came off the ball screen he he eliminated his defender now he needed a solution for the big man watch this watch his eyes up the whole time right there great finish you know pick and roll is three levels you have to uh eliminate your man find a solution for the coverage and then you must attack the help and that was really well done he got to the third level perfectly dropping that pass on seasick how about his form i know we've talked about trying to get his offensive game going he's a young man they're trying to develop him but look at this soft touch the free-throw line he's got well listen this is an aberration to be honest let's hope he makes a second one that's so good 30 on the season and so to see that young man step up and the guys cheer him benches benches up coaches is a great thing he's a work in progress john great athlete [Applause] this connection between stuart and smith did it was it tipped they're saying yes it was they can't review this from where we are we have a great vantage point i did not see a tip i'd love to see if we can get another look here's the replay on that did anyone touch them maybe yeah ellis might have touched that so that's a good call to stay yeah yeah yeah these guys oh man they get 95 on the it's the only profession where you got to start out perfect and then you got to improve from there good dish that one is thrown off the leg of memphis out of bounds i mean there's a reason why tommy morrissey edwin young and john floyd are officiating the championship game of the nit okay what they're doing occasionally on more occasion more than occasionally i get grief on twitter about the officiating and i go put a whistle on go down to your ymca and referee for two or three games see how easy it is [Music] now remember after this championship game immediately following the third place game will take place between louisiana tech and colorado state their season are not done yet we haven't had a third place game in nit since 2003 and the idea behind it is let's give the kids one more game and john we saw it yesterday both of those teams that we'll see later will certainly looking to be looking for redemption [Applause] and we get to see junior often one more time that's right the outstanding young big man from louisiana tech the round round to rebound quinones and ellis go to the bench jeffreys and ball come back into the game for memphis [Music] we had uh oh nice look inside get out of here undo with another block and ben howland calling for the foul he got the whistle from the officials [Applause] watch this right here that's always a great play when you lob it when the defender's not looking but ado erases matthew's mistake de'andre williams started he had a layup and a deuce said nope and remember all sec defensive team second personal foul on williams as he takes a seat on the bench memphis oh for their last 10 from the floor [Applause] so mississippi state has been getting it done defensively can they start knocking down shots and there's davon smith great screen by abdullah do as well to free devon smith i really like davon smith these freshmen for ben howard have given them good minutes in this tournament cece battling inside a lot of hands swiping at that ball and molinar is going to be called for the reach in let's watch john this is a perfect screen look at that textbook screen there by abdullah duke you know what you you know we mentioned it yesterday he was in ben howard's first recruiting class abdullah do is not a great scorer he's the epitome of taking a big man with energy and intelligence working with him for five years and developing into a guy that can win sec games that's the second personal foul on molinar as ben howland gives him a little lesson as he goes to the bench sise to the line rebound matthews [Applause] what a screen by ado and davon smith has been the offensive answer mississippi state has been looking for no communication that time because boogie ellis ran into a wall by the name of abdullah dude smith three or four from the field he has eight points to lead mississippi state ball kickout pass to jeffries pull up jumper and memphis is cold on this end of the floor another rebound by the 50-year senior from lagos nigeria a college graduate and an all sec defensive team smith can he stay hot tigers got to get back on track offensively they're not making shots good contest so mississippi state with a timeout on the floor coming back we will look at the incredible journey of a duel ado welcome back abduladu making a defensive spark for the bulldogs here quite a story his journey to get to the states even in basketball i asked him about the first time he played hoops and he said i was 14 years old i never played before we're at pe in school and the older kids saw my size and said hey come play on my team i didn't know what i was doing because i didn't even have shoes on i played in socks but i loved it so much that i stuck with it from there he moved to the states in 2013 didn't see his family again until 2019 and then hasn't seen him since he's the first in his family to graduate from college he told me his mom doesn't get to watch very much because you know she has to go to bed with the time change but he did say i hope we can play in the championship game so she can stay awake and watch this one chris thank you so much there is a do with the ball in his hands working up against sise spin move corrals it again there are so many hands collapsing on him alley-oop throw it down jeffries good job by dj jeffries right off that steal he took off for the basket and boogie ellis connected with him but to your point john i thought ado had a chance to score that there was just too many active hands it seems to me that time out has kind of woken memphis up oh bank shot mook matthews they back off him on purpose and that's why he just banked in a three did he call that he did not [Applause] that's a young man that knows this memphis program well as a former high school teammate at dj jeffries nolly off the mark matthews with the board [Applause] shoot that again same spot i do [Applause] do a deuce said block this sise nice pass by matthews largest lead of the ball game for memphis was 13. it is down to six [Applause] fountain with the strip stewart just has not been able to get on track tonight he is 0 for 3 from the floor and just turn that one over nice not a shot i would take right there their offense is stagnated nollie pump fake man in the air great d by matthews because nollie wanted the contact and jumped into matthews and matthews avoided committing a foul right there really nicely done for a freshman fountain with a deep three ellis slaps down that board [Applause] to the rack he started to build momentum at midcourt penny hardaway was saying push it and nobody really built their defense for mississippi state another turnover for stuart as ball with a great pressure defense watch this right here good pass by matthews and ado has really helped turn this game around what's his verticality right here this is a guy that rarely fouls out of games maybe five in his whole career and he learns how to play big long and vertical is he the best shot blocker in college basketball right now probably not but he's in he's certainly among the best in the sec he's not a he's not an elite leaper john but he's a smart defender [Applause] the pass a do inside quinones with the active hands and another strip by memphis and in transition matthews commits the [Applause] foul this guy right here quinones to me i think he's almost becoming without ma lomax almost the extension of penny on the court you can see that conversation right now he is relaying information not to quinones for himself but for his teammates that was a long discussion with the guy that i think penny has come to really trust penny believes he's a walking triple double [Applause] matthews with a quick three quinones with the board what do you think that conversation was about hey get your teammates organized we're rushing a little bit let's get back to the way we played early and and here right here you you see there's a little bit more of a patience and pace [Applause] jeffrey's working up against seduce scoop shot doesn't go trying to stay with it and a do corrals the rebound mississippi state looking to run matthews can't jam it home but a foul is called on nollie espn's exclusive presentation of the nit is brought to you by playstation 5. play has no limits [Music] all right kevin guys thank you so much a lot of credits got to be given to mississippi state because they took a huge shot early on from memphis but there was a stretch of over seven minutes that this defense by the bulldogs held the tigers without a field goal yeah and i think john the one achilles heel for memphis all season long has never been on the defensive end it's been their ability to have games like they did yesterday but this guy abdullah do you just love to see guys improve every year i remember in 2018 he was a freshman on an nit team that went to new york and you like to see progress you like to see a guy come in a little bit under the radar from nigeria prep school and develop into the kind of player he is now obviously he has to give him a lot of that credit credit because of his work ethic but also ben halland well ben howard's a great coach and he's a great defensive coach as well look at that defense just walled up went straight up in the yaris i do did you notice he got nowhere near the body of the driver that that's technique hey by the way ben allen's only put he's only recruited guys that have played in 14 nba all-star games okay can stewart get on track pump fake in the lane off the rim still scoreless today quinones with the quick answer from downtown stringing the guitar if you're watching at home this is shot blocking 101 or or low post defense watch him leave his feet look how vertical he is he's nowhere near the ball and a chance to foul quinones that's what you call perfect technique and you notice john i made this point earlier he's not a high-flying leaper he's just a technique guy dependable exactly it's a great word for him [Applause] davon smith he's been dependable early on for this team and there's a dude rolls in for the two the difference between cece who's a better athlete and a dude is just experience oh there's a rack attack by ball and he is fouled and ado is saying the same thing i know what he's thinking he's thinking that might have looked like a foul it could have been edwin young a good official but adu did not agree with that call and i'm just wondering whether he was right or not i think he got a whole ball what about what about below the weight well i think i think at the end that's always a factor with officials is that is that contact late and as i've said before having studied officiating not that i'm an expert but you don't mind an official who who blows it late there is contact that is a foul up top queen below definitely the body here now that's big because for a dude that is his second foul so he's going to have to now go to the bench with 216 to play in this first half [Applause] you know here we are trying to figure out what a foul call is and we have to replay four or five different looks these guys are doing it in real time [Applause] how impressed are you with the play of davon smith i mean really when they didn't have any kind of offensive identity earlier he was the guy that stepped up for this time i totally agree and ben howell said it about yes his performance yesterday i think he had four and four yesterday but steady really steady i think he's got a bright future and i think he takes the heat off mullen or stewart as well matthew's wide open from downtown kansas they are giving him that shot for a reason they know mook matthews they're allowing him to shoot it now the bank was open earlier but that one looked pretty smooth fran it's just a five-point ball game the ncaa men's basketball championship sweet 16 continues today on cbs and tbs or you can stream games on the march madness live app from anywhere for more information on game times and networks go to ncaa.com speaking of a guy that knows something about the ncaa tournament that guy's been to 11 as a coach two final fours this is his fourth nit appearance jeffrey's with a block matthews will not be denied about that he says yeah i grew up a few miles from downtown memphis i could be playing for you guys but you know what i'm going to show you some work today high school teammate at dj jeffries over knowledge of branch [Applause] with the pieces ben howland has here at mississippi state with the youth the backcourt the guards are so good yeah would you be surprised if they didn't make the ncaa tournament next season i think they're going to be an upper level sec team but the thing that i always think about when i think about how good these guys are is there's some good teams in that league so you know what i mean they're going to they're going to certainly improve if they all stay together which in the era of free transfers is going to be very interesting ellis with a kick out nollie from downtown off the mark battle inside quinones tries to put back no oh this is bodies on the floor this is the nit championship you gotta love it [Applause] it is late march john take a look this is great they're just competing they don't know a championship's on the line they're bowling they just want to play and keep playing and why not try to win [Music] can we talk about these sacrifices that these student athletes have made all season long in the crazy coveted year that we have had we are thankful that we even have basketball right now all the sacrifices they've done for everyone our enjoyment it's amazing the social distancing the seating charts on buses pre-packaged meals can't hang out with your friends back in the apartments or the dorms positive tests false positive tests test every day twice a day sometimes it's been amazing what these student athletes have endured the one thing that i came away from this season with talking to these young people is we coach we just want to play we know the sacrifices we're making we'll worry about the nil later but right now we just want to play basketball give us a chance to compete and in the ncaa tournament and in the nit that's what they're doing mississippi state with one timeout remaining down by two with one minute to play here in this first half friend let's also remember in an age of social media they're seeing their friends probably doing fun things as this pandemic is starting to wind down and they're staying focused well they've had to make sacrifices there's no question it's been a year like no other in the history of our country and in the sports world the playground of life they've endured and done well look at the passing around the corner ellis off the mark jeffreys is there on the spot that was a picture-perfect possession of ball movement right there but mr schriffen we're gonna have a game in the second half shot clock is turned off 20 seconds to play in this first half for mississippi state they do have a timeout if they want it fountain into the lane a lot of contact he is fouled by jeffries well ben howen managed to get his team out of a big hole early so we're not surprised he's done it for so many years but the guy on the other end he got his team out quickly they play hard and i think we're going to have a fun second half it was a 13-point lead at one point for memphis in this first half and the heart of the bulldogs to battle back john as a coach when you get down early your mind's not thinking great start bad start you're just trying to figure out how to get the next stop the next basket help your team out and 40 minutes is a long time to overcome that early deficit and the bulldogs have done a nice job of getting back in this game here's a young man at the foul line derek fountain what a great story 14 did not plays in his first 17 games of his freshman year was thrown into the lineup almost by accident right and he's contributed career high 20 against lsu i think it was 14 yesterday fun to watch him grow up in the nit two-point game five seconds to play in this first half there's a steal by garcia two on one for mississippi state and the lay-in at the horn do you believe this fran we've got a tie ball game going into the locker room wow i can't wait for the second half how about a kid that just got into the game a freshman anderson garcia from the dominican republic watch this ben allen just six put him in the lineup whoa sweet finger roll george gervais style mississippi state ends on a 19-8 run now here's kevin connors and seth greenberg and john crispin in the studio take it away guys john are getting ready to crown a champion the 2021 nit championship game mississippi state memphis we are all tied up at the half you see the concentration you see the focus who's gonna get crowned the champ tonight welcome back we are at the half all tied up john tripp alongside my partner fran priscilla chris button will join us momentarily all right wherever you're watching this game get comfortable because we are in store for one heck of a second half both of these teams are basically mirror images of each other memphis came out hot mississippi state they took their best punch and they came back to tie it up fran no doubt john we talked about the defense of both teams and we saw it early memphis swarming just made it really hard for the bulldogs to get anything easy full court and half court pressure disruptive no second shots and when you got one it was bodies at the rim that was the early part of this game as memphis took a comfortable lead but mississippi state led by abdul adu the 5th year senior shut down anything at the rim and they got back into this game with great energy and effort and of course the defense and how about a guy that hardly played this year 22 dnps did not plays anderson garcia with the steal at the end and ben howland has gone deep in his bench to get back into this game mississippi state will start with the ball here in the second half the largest lead in the first half for memphis was 13. interesting deandre williams who's back in the lineup and that was a big reason why they lost this lead he started out guarding smith the point guard that's the 10th turnover of the ball game from mississippi state now one of the big turning points as well in that first half deandre williams about the nine-minute mark picked up his second foul and had to sit on the bench the rest of the way he has been the heart and soul of this team tried to find them there and matthews with the steal yeah he's so versatile on both ends of the floor we've we saw it yesterday adu going up against sise sise won that battle how about davon smith though at the point getting the start in the second half yep well he's he's been terrific over the last couple days he takes a lot of heat off mullinar and stewart nollie using that body to perfection gets the two to go chance of defense from the tigers bench that's how they get things done molinar to the rack that is pinned against the board by sise wow what a block what a drive first ellis kick out three ball nollie count it remember how hot he was yesterday landers nollie getting it started early second half ben howen can't like that [Applause] watch this block right now as long as that ball doesn't hit the backboard that was close but what a great job if that ball hits that board can't touch it that was too close to call great effort by cece we've got two outstanding big men athletic who can block it protect the rim in this ball game cece and ado this has been a treat to watch [Applause] smith working up against ellis now here comes the double from williams [Applause] matthews hanging finishes amongst cece that's a tough finish and remember williams at the last minute backed off of matthews because he didn't want to pick up the third foul matthews should know that he should go at williams to get that third foul on him because he's so important to this memphis team and its offense a rough start to the first half for mississippi state they were oh of 10 cents 11 of 20. they really started to pick things up when devon smith came on the floor [Applause] nollie to williams creates some space floater doesn't go cece bats it around it is mississippi state ball let's check in with chris well spoke of ben howlan at half and he told me he was incredibly crowd proud of his team for their composure their ability to fight back in the first half he said the biggest thing for my guys is that we have to be able to pull down more offensive boards only two in the first half and we can't get up to the horrible start like we did at the opening of the game chris thank you so much that's huge that is the third personal foul on williams off the push off got the chicken wing extended yep and then both officials had a good look at it and that is a big play we can't understate how important deandre williams is to this offense penny hardaway is going to let him play with three right now if i'm ben howen i go right at him [Applause] i just go right at deandre williams right now with those three fouls williams is guarding matthews here's matthew take the ball take him taking him to the rack left cece denied i like it take him 38-35 under 17 minutes play in the second half championship game here in the nit lob up to si se throws it down good look by boogie ellis si se got behind the defense i do keep setting those screens at midford i love it smith off the rim that doesn't fit cece tries to block a do but cece will be called with the [Applause] foul for say that's just his first third team foul on memphis let's watch go back and watch that third foul now by williams just watch his left arm on the drive little put is a little push off matthew sold it well fell back a little bit and they gave him the call he didn't extend his arm as much as i thought he did it was it was close these are all close calls which is why people don't like officials because if you're a fan of one team you hate you hate to call if you're a fan of mississippi state you go yay pushed off here's what i will say yeah they've been calling it tight both ways so you can't be mad of course not listen most people who have a problem with officials are fans okay if you understand we said it yesterday there's three teams out here miss mississippi state memphis and the three officials and they were all integral to the game it's just how it works and when i was coaching i didn't like officials when i put a whistle on one summer went to the big 12 officials camp i realized this is a hard job it's the way it is trust me there's fans at home right now hating what i just said because they're fans big moment here as williams and cece from memphis are on the bench malcolm dandridge comes into the game as well as dj dj jeffries penny hardaway told us earlier in the week i'm comfortable with 10 guys [Applause] so the third personal foul on molinar from mississippi state as he'll now have to take a seat on the bench dandridge against a dew they are banging kick out to ellis [Applause] under 10 on the shot clock for the tigers ellis will pull it got it sweet that's a great dribble handoff that's i love the fact that he threw it back to his big ran right behind the screen no hesitation by boogie hellish you got to catch that ball with two hands young man so a turnover for mississippi state memphis another good start for the second half they have a six-point lead championship game here at the n.i.t there have been some playmakers who have made a name for themselves in the nit ed mccauley todd mcmillan tom gola the list keeps going fran oh yeah when he wilkins great point guard from providence college great nba coach ralph sampson was an mvp dean memager new york knicks tractor trailer the late tractor trailer michigan wolverines [Applause] john shrippen fran for schiller chris budden on the call for this nit championship game here in frisco texas boogie alex with a hand in his face what a tough shot frank and a great play drawn up by penny hardaway out of the timeout lot of false movement but what they did was they finally got a great screen down for boogie ellis they feel like he's gotten hot so they ran a plate to him that's really well done look how they're guarding matthews again they don't care that he's made a three all right we got to listen in because penny hardaway just asked his bench to get loud listen to this court [Applause] man [Applause] you gotta love this atmosphere here at the comerica center in frisco texas 25 capacity so limited attendance for the fans but with the fans we've got the players they want this game we've got a nice atmosphere fran oh yeah matthew's in the corner three counting crazy that was the game plan today let him shoot the three and he is making them pay they know luke matthews game well but he is making them paid today three of four from downtown matthews has 16 points now ellis is tied up picks up his dribble to the bucket of dandridge a lot of contact quinones he has been so impressive this season always finding a way to get to the ball john i want to go back to luke matthews he came into this this week four for 18 from three he only had four threes made the whole season the game plan this is what you love about the chess match going on game plan was hey let him let him shoot and if he makes the first one let him shoot the second one now all of a sudden he's got three threes and now he's got to sit down look at that 19 on the season just picked up his third foul though so he's going to get a breather molinar will come back into the game for mississippi state he's got three fouls there's a little extra motivation for him because he's playing against a team he knows well williams also back into the game from memphis he has three fouls ball finishes at the rim says the defender's just too little yep be careful though no because dave allen smith can make you pay at the other end i watched damien ball last year in the bahamas when they were on their foreign tour i thought he had nba potential he has not lived up to that offensively he has some improvement but defensively he's given them a big lift in this tournament how about dj stewart how concerned you that stewart has not scored tonight downtown off the mark is smith it's a concern no question because not only over five but uh four turnovers as well tough pass not on target [Applause] it is a concern if you're ben howland you got to figure out ways to get him going memphis has done a really good job of throwing bodies at him and switching as he's come off screens jeffreys breaks down his man nice play to the hoop how about penny hardaway now figuring out he's got his guy jeffries who is a forward a power forward with the mobility to go to the basket now stewart had scored 20 points in 20 or more points in three straight nit games he have the game-winner thursday night as they beat richmond he just torched louisiana tech last night for 23 points who's guarding him right now [Applause] remember what we said but davon smith continues his hot shooting too little take that i told you he'll come right back at you trying to trying to go look at that they're using dj now as a playmaker tough pass pick and roll can't convert mississippi state has numbers there's stewart poked away by jeffries oh he's legal he doesn't know the rule he's allowed to come back on the court he saved it came back in and if you if your momentum takes you back on the court you're allowed to pick it up watch this this is a this is a rule now watch the steal the ball still in bounds dj just get back in you're good got gotta know the rule it's hard to believe that kid is a freshman he is a match-up problem and he can play and i have a lot of respect for his game so if they if they could beat a good mississippi state team and make it to the championship we'll have our hands full either way but he's he's a monster he is so tough he is so good he is such a joy to watch play because he's like you can see he played guard as a little kid because he got all the skill level of a guard high praise from two incredible coaches talking about this young man kenneth lofton jr he is coming up next in our third place game as louisiana tech takes on colorado state he's been fun and i it's crazy he's played the entire season as an 18 year old he doesn't turn 19 junior until august i do look at those pump fakes getting men in the air but can't convert [Applause] jeffrey's taking over this game right now quinones he has just skied in getting all these offensive board ellis from deep look he's done this before and remember boogie's grown up because he's played a lot more minutes due to the injury to alex lomax 11 point lead for memphis as we approach 11 minutes to play in the second half and stuart get on track here still scoreless for mississippi state i do that's a soft touch yeah really nice job he was spooked i thought on that last possession with all those bodies that time he took his time [Applause] [Applause] deep shot by ellis off the mark miss excuse me memphis able to keep it alive they will keep the ball as stewart goes to the bench coming back into the game for the bulldogs is davon smith williams pushes off gets the inbound pass kept his pivot foot down and then he traveled as he went to the floor might have been nudged a little bit but no call calls to travel and in foul trouble today hasn't had the impact deandre williams as he had yesterday as he's holding his mouth right now [Music] for more information go to ncaa.com your official online home for all 90 ncaa [Applause] championships look at i'm watching canones keep smith from getting the ball it's great look at look at the pressure by kenobi look how far he is coming out to defend him good challenge matthews into the lane quinones goes down and he will be called for a block yeah i thought that should have been a flop and not a block because there was very little contact the official came from across the court to make this play but watch this defense when you talk to memphis people who know the game they compare lester quinones to antonio anderson who played on those great john calipari teams and again it's remarkable that he's gone from a shooter to a guy that is just an all-around solid player watch the defense right here stays with him yeah and i i i thought that should have been more of a flop but he was in good position he just didn't need to go down exactly and then it wouldn't have been a call yeah [Applause] memphis has got their mojo back offensively jeffrey's now running the point for memphis going up against fountain sweeping left oh quinones can't jam at home matthew is at the breakout he's got smith if he wants help but they can't connect off of smith's leg memphis ball that's a bounce pass when you've got a two on one like that the bounce pass softens the momentum of the ball it's a hard catch in transition to foul fat watch this bounce pass instead you know that's a hard pass to catch it's a little bit behind him but that's just junior high fundamental basketball that you have to work on what's that rule on the fast break if you get below the free throw line it's almost too late for that pass yeah i i think what you have to do there is you have to make the in a two on one you don't pass it until the defense commits to you and then bounce pass soft catch layup it's really basic deandre williams back to the basket jeffreys oh but he traveled first he got a really excited about that lane opening up [Applause] he knows [Applause] nine point gain with under nine to play n.i.t championship game are we matching up here in a little zone looks like we are switching that's why you see biggs on riddles again matthews has been the man for mississippi state off the mark four threes all season but three today from luke matthews he's now three of five from downtown pretty good odds ellis gets in too deep and mississippi state is forced to foul this was a ballyhooed recruiting class led by james wiseman james only played those three games because of the ncaa investigation he took off but those freshmen are sophomores and we're watching them kind of grow up at the end of the year how about the evolution of penny hardaway as a coach everyone has talked about how great of a recruiter he is he's connected to the grassroots efforts in memphis but now we're seeing him evolve in terms of coaching his strategy and the game plan he put out tonight it is pretty impressive what he's done to bottle up some of the leading scorers molinar has six stewart has not scored yet yes they they have a we mentioned yesterday tony madlock you know cody topper is in the nba they we watched practice a couple days ago they have a game plan that's a d an nba style game plan as far as taking away people's strengths the one thing about penny his his teams always play hard always play hard and then when you add the ability to take away key scoring opportunities it's fun so a little confusion on the call they're gonna switch the call to now say mississippi state ball so shot clock at 17. stewart tried to get position they couldn't find him [Applause] mullin are calling for the screen from a dew going up against williams loses control he's on the ground looking for help and he's forced to call a timeout you just saw why they've bottled up stuart and molinar today because on that ball screen 6-9 deandre williams switched on to molinar and did a great job of not picking up a foul every every time they've come off those screens they've had a game plan for the scorers [Music] that we are eight minutes to play here in the second half the nit championship game memphis with a 57-46 lead over mississippi state smith inbounds to stuart stewart just cannot buy a bucket today and you to your point ben howland trying to get him going ran an easy lot not easy to execute but tried to get him an easy basket on the law play to get him going and they couldn't now important to note mississippi state they just called their final time out so with under eight minutes to play they have no timeouts left that's the ben howard way he does not save his timeouts [Applause] williams with a drive to the bucket he's gonna be fouled coming back we'll honor the memphis eight and what it means to this memphis basketball team welcome back to the nit john tripp and fran for schiller chris button all right going to break we we've teased it the memphis state eight this team is playing for something bigger than themselves they have a patch here dignity respect and equality and it's surrounded by eight stars which is in honor of the memphis state eight now if you're not familiar with that back in 1959 eight african-american students were trailblazers and helped integrate the memphis state school system they they're honoring those memphis eight memphis state aid because of their courage their strength and this nit championship is for the city of memphis and in a year where so many players are having their voices heard talking about social justice reform this is a big move for this squad well the city of memphis loves its basketball uh herb hilliard was the first black player to play at the university of memphis shortly after in 1965. but i'll tell you what really galvanized the city 1973 ronnie robinson and larry finch two homegrown kids from melrose high school from orange mound in the city of memphis they not only united people through all colors races creeds they won the missouri valley title senior night there they tell me was unbelievable and that team went to the final game of the 1973 ncaa championship losing to a great ucla team basketball in that city memphis state basketball has always been part of the fabric and has brought people together and they honor it with those throwback jerseys that they've worn recently you may uh remember they wore them yesterday they've worn them a lot recently actually in the american tournament the first time all season they warned them penny hardaway once a player always a player so superstitious he said we're winning in them we ain't taking them off we see different colors of them but uh memphis state throwback's here to stay yeah those are some hot unis but they just got called for a goaltending as davon smith keeps attacking for mississippi state [Applause] so a 10-point game under seven minutes to play for the championship here in the n.i.t [Applause] what i like about this lineup right now for the tigers they got four playmakers out on the floor williams ellis certainly jeffries oh ellis saw they tried to connect for the lob three-on-one breakout mississippi state smith is blocked out of bounds stripped by jeffrey we keep talking about that two on one and that time smith's got to get that ball in the outside hip when you come down on that two on one with one defender in the middle don't show him the ball get it to your outside hip or yeah watch this go to your outside hip there and he leaves the ball out there for uh dj jeffries to poke it free it's all about basics stewart still cannot get any points on the board he's now oh of eight from the floor i love dj jeffries he's a point forward today right now he's really a point center it's been about five minutes since memphis has scored a field goal and still lead by 10. and you can see they're winding down the shot clock shot clock at 10 as jeffrey starts to go slips nice fake nollie gets his man in the air off glass that's nice how about the backboard basic basketball right there shot fake take it to the angle of the backboard i bet that hit the top corner of the square matthews runs over quinones and quinones gets the char there's that andy antonio anderson style that we've been talking about doing the little things watch quinones he's been in a stance all day long good job right there watch this ball fake right here shot fake couple dribbles top corner of the square it's always money as a former coach how much would you have loved to have a player like quinones who does all the little things well that's how you win games williams to the rack and that's what we talked about they've got four playmakers out there right now and listen we set it early this team has won 11 out of 13. the only two losses are a team that could get to the final four the houston cougars this is a ncaa sweet 16 level team we're watching smith pull a jumper tough shot over williams that's off williams on the breakout throws up the lob and smith back to break it up coming up on abc the ncaa women's championship sweet 16 continues with fifth seeded missouri state taking on number one seeded stanford then on espn we'll have a couple of six and two seeds squaring off starts at 7 eastern 4 pacific we'll have oregon against louisville followed by texas and maryland you can always watch every game live on the espn app williams tough move look at him flexing on mississippi state well that they're hard to guard right now because they got multiple guys who can crush you individually molinar goes down hard he draws the foul it's a 9-2 run for memphis right now how do the bulldogs stop this run it's hard to tell because they're not getting the points from mullinar and stuart so they they're they're in trouble right now they have to find ways to score the issue for them today has been a great defensive game plan by memphis john because they can literally switch any one of four other players onto stewart and mullin most teams can't do that [Applause] here's stuart curling gets so much attention they have to get an outlet to ado both of those guys came off a ball a screen right there neither one of them was open molinar pull-up jumper ado keeps it alive matthew spin move into the paint and one matthews has been the best offensive player for the bulldogs he's got 18 with a chance to finish off the three-point play the freshman has really produced today remember he's playing with a little edge because he played his high school basketball with dj jeffries and he knows everybody on that memphis team trust me love the fact that he's come to compete today oh yeah and they needed him that's a big boy right here he's made some threes he's finished inside really impressed with him today mook matthews full court pressure by mississippi state quinones easily breaks the press see that under control they've got they've got the lead easily it would have been easy for dj jeffries to jack one pull it out and they're running offense this is a well-coached tiger squad jeffrey's from downtown it's all working for memphis right now well what he's done is right he's taking the do away from the basket as the as the small ball five man mississippi state's got to hurry up now fountain he will answer with the three derrick fountain must have visited memphis and watched them play at least 10 times last year but wasn't offered a scholarship they wanted him to go to prep school but he's had a good day today good looking shot by quinones in and out smith with the board he's going to try and push the pace here crossover that is filthy into the paint this little got him play [Applause] well they're competing john and there's a lot at stake a championship but these guys dapping each other up nali says good job man but we're up don't forget coming up after this championship game we've got the third place game you see louisiana tech waiting in the wings and it's going to be a great game because we've seen this before ncaa tournament last had the third place game in 1981 uva took on lsu the nit last had the third place game back in 2003 i love it particularly this year because of all the craziness all the coveted starts and stops that we've had it gives these young teams an opportunity to keep their season going and prove something yeah and more gay just more games you know some years you want the season to be over but this year these kids want to play one more game williams tough yes finish and one flexing pounds the floor you can tell how bad memphis wants this he has only played 23 minutes today because of foul trouble he's now a plus 19. take a look right here the drive and right now what you're watching from memphis is the incredible versatility of having three and sometimes four playmakers out there you don't think this memphis squad with the way they're playing right now couldn't still be playing in the ncaa tournament better think again they can play with anybody in the country well they proved it the way they handled houston twice in terms of two incredibly close games [Applause] stewart will get fouled as he goes to the hole in the second half memphis is shooting 64 from the floor i mean yesterday their offense exploded they've continued that today yeah john defensively is never an issue with this team they bring it they're connected they're high iq defense but offensively when they're on like we've seen them they're so hard to guard this guy at the foul line today is going to see white jerseys in his sleep because memphis versatility has been able to throw five bodies at him on every possession where it's necessary that was stewart's first point of the ball game no they had a game plan to slow down molinar and stewart and they did it because they are they they're screen users and memphis eliminated the screens today by switching look at the handles of jeffries he is fouled as he goes to the hole but just the versatility of a player like jeffries he can use him so many places in this lineup right now he's their center and he's going against a high school teammate he's probably gone by mook matthews a few hundred times playing one on one [Applause] and for matthews that is going to be the end of his day 19 points six rebounds an incredible effort when they didn't know where the scoring was going to come from matthews was the guy that stepped up and this is a good sign for this mississippi state program because when the other team is keying in on your young guards you now have another offensive weapon to go to cameron matthews came into the nit this week averaging two points a game he got 19 today against a team that he's probably grown up watching olive branch about 25 miles south of downtown memphis give this young man credit a great performance today those freshmen fountain smith and matthews have all acquitted themselves well john in this tournament now even though this game is not going the way mississippi state fans would have hoped the growth you're seeing from this team you've got to be encouraged heading into next season no question you know that league is a tough league so these guys are going to have to continue to get better but it's definitely this run has helped them stewart off the glass his first field goal of the ball game comes at 2 30 to play in the second [Applause] whoops errant pass and mississippi state not done yet it'll be bulldogs basketball the ncaa women's championship continues tomorrow with two elite eight matchups right here on espn baylor takes on number one seeded yukon oh that's a good one seven eastern sixth central then indiana and arizona pulled off big upsets in the sweet 16. they square off in the first ever elite eight for both teams spots in the final four on the line smith from downtown in and out for lester quinones that is his 15th rebound that ties a career high love his game he is the glue guy and he'll be a really key factor going forward as to why kenny penny hardaway takes a team to the ncaa tournament next year 71-58 memphis on top jeffries deep three off the glass hit in that bank's been open all day long he didn't even need to take the atm card out he went right into the bank and that's the kind of day memphis has been having [Applause] shot is blocked by mo molinar's off jeffries run out wow oh nice williams in traffic finishes good pivot foot right there i thought he was gonna jump mom likes it hey john as we wind this down man this has been fun we got another game left third place game we'll we'll have some excitement but how about the effort the celebration of basketball in the nit kids competing fans in the stands it's not exactly what we were used to used to in the old days but watch this and enjoy a celebration listen to this crowd here at the comerica center in frisco texas they're going into the bench for memphis and they're gonna salute an incredible effort i'm sure watch parties in memphis are going crazy right now oh brookhaven pub they're going they're dapping they're high fiving some of those people have their mass off put those masks back on couple more months get your shots under a minute to play memphis up by 17. and ellis will foul so we can get a substitute and how about this amazing to see alex lomax hasn't played in the last eight games from memphis he gets in the game and listen to this ovation yep he's a coach figure in that city memphis east high school university of memphis great to see a willis reed moment that's history right there it really is i mean obviously growing up in new york city i know all about that lomax the heart and soul of this team no doubt all season long whenever they went into any kind of a scoring drought lomax was the guy who would get him a bucket or a key assist so to see him be able to come out on the floor after he hurt his ankle that's cool it is this is this is a nice moment for memphis he's known penny since middle school and as we mentioned penny's like a father figure to him [Applause] smith poked away but he will be fouled john i did a game last year in brooklyn when memphis beat nc state and a lot of people will pooh-pooh the idea of hiring a former nba player and be to be your coach now he's iconic in that city but the thing that i noticed last year is his teams are organized they play hard they play for him and he doesn't have the same coaching experience of juwan howard or patrick ewing who spent years as assistants in the nba but going back to the middle school level going to east high school and having this love of his city and his knowledge of the game it's fun to watch a really well-coached team play with the effort they play with they play as hard as anybody i've seen this season i've loved the effort of devon smith 17 points for mississippi state another off with offensive weapon that has emerged when they shut down their top two scorers he really picked them up when they needed it the crowd is asking glennon to shoot it no the clock winds down a dominant performance in the semifinals and a dominant performance in the final game memphis tigers your 2021 nit champions [Applause] [Music] there's the buzzer congratulations to memphis our final score 77-64 over mississippi state stay tuned for more nit the third place game action between louisiana tech and colorado state is coming up after college basketball live let's take a look at the bracket and this run from memphis fran the last two days it's been dominant well they've really been a dominant team over the last what would you say 14 or 15 games only two losses both coming to a team that could win the national title houston good basketball team in fact no a really good basketball team a great basketball team that could still be playing in march madness right now for chris button fran for schilla our entire incredible espn crew i'm john trippen we'll go to the studio coming up after the break memphis your 2021 nit champs there's dancing and enjoying this victory we've already cut down the nets and we are going to get you to our pa announcer with today's trophy presentation [Music] ladies and gentlemen please direct your attention to center court where nit committee chair judy rose is with us to begin today's trophy presentation i want to first on behalf of the nit committee i would like to thank all teams that participated in this year's tournament a special thank you is extended to judy macleod and conference usa and wren baker in north texas for hosting this event couldn't have taken place without them round of applause for them and now it is my great pleasure to congratulate the 2021 nit champions university of memphis now let's present the team and individual awards for the 2021 national invitation tournament the all-tournament selections are as follows kenneth lofton jr of louisiana tech dj stewart jr of mississippi state iverson molinar of mississippi state and lester quinones of memphis [Music] and now the 2021 most outstanding player is landers nollie the second of memphis and now let's recognize the 2021 national invitation tournament champions congratulations to the tigers of memphis [Applause] [Music] [Applause] thank you rob dalton for our presentation congratulations to the memphis tigers for winning the nit championship here in frisco texas as we get ready for another one after this but we'll let the tigers celebrate their trophies also what a moment for the city of memphis i spoke with penny hardaway after the game told me it's been a long time since there was a championship brought back to this city but it's meant a lot for them it's meant a lot for this team it's been a long road this year with covet they started with some losses in south dakota it took a team buying in and they did to get here to frisco as they celebrate that hardware enjoy it fellas let's talk to back to the guys in bristol thanks guys

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Keywords: 2021 NIT Championship, Mississippi State, Memphis

Id: HKZ-RZfDE_c

Length: 90min 0sec (5400 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 28 2021