Memphis G Ricky Tarrant swallowed blood while sinking game-winning free throws
Memphis guard Ricky Tarrant had ice in his veins -- and blood in his mouth -- as he connected on two free throws in the final second to lift the Tigers to a 67-65 win over Temple on Wednesday night.
Temple tied the game with a layup from Josh Brown after Memphis' Trashon Burrell, who was trying to save a ball from going out of bounds, threw a pass to Brown for an uncontested layup. The Tigers were quick to inbound the ball. As soon as Tarrant received the pass, he collided with Daniel Dingle, who was going for a steal. Dingle's head smashed right into Tarrant's mouth.
Geoff Calkins of the Commercial Appeal described how Tarrant was able to stay in the game.
"Ricky was full of blood," said Memphis coach Josh Pastner. "His teeth were all over the place, and he was bleeding like crazy."
"So then Ricky took a big gulp, drank all of his blood, licked his lips and said he's fine," said Pastner.
Tarrant ended with 13 points, six rebounds and four assists. Shaq Goodwin led all scorers with 22. Dedric Lawson recorded his sixth double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 boards.