Tigers show speed, aggression -- and that might be enough

HOUSTON -- A loose ball, an athlete on a break, a monster dunk serving as an expletive to the doubters.

With about five minutes left in the first half, Memphis man-child Joey Dorsey scooped up the basketball near halfcourt, sped toward the basket and jammed in a powerful windmill dunk.

Does Memphis start well? Coach C says it's one the best halves he's ever seen. (Getty Images)

Talk about a massive, obscene mismatch. The final score was 92-74, which was wildly deceptive. If Memphis had kept its foot on the accelerator, it might have scored 120 against the Spartans.

Michigan State: plodding, slow and un-athletic.

Memphis: speedy, brutal and ruthless.

For a moment, wasn't sure if I was watching the Michigan State basketball team or five Spartans offensive linemen.

The Tigers built a 30-point halftime lead, 50-20. In doing so Memphis figured out a way to avoid its free throw misery: Run by your opponents like Carl Lewis so they don't even have a chance to foul.

The game, particularly the first half, became a dunk competition. The only thing missing were props and Charles Barkley holding up a scorecard.

"They defended us pretty well," said Spartans coach Tom Izzo. "They rebounded well. Nobody has done that to us all year."

If by "that" Izzo means getting trampled under the hooves of powerful stallions, then he's correct.

Memphis coach John Calipari called the first half one of the best he's ever taken part of as a head coach. He talked about the unselfishness and discipline of his team.

He's right, of course, but the poor quality of a shell-shocked opponent didn't hurt either.