Who are the most successful coaches in Memphis Tigers history? Closer look at Penny Hardaway’s stint 

Penny Hardaway has experienced remarkable success since taking over as coach of the Memphis Tigers men’s basketball team in 2018. Hardaway has an all-time coaching record of 116-52 (.690), including his team’s 5-0 start this season. This has left many fans wondering where he ranks among the most successful coaches in Tigers history.

Per Sports Reference, Hardaway’s 69.0% winning percentage ranks seventh all-time among Tigers coaches. In first place is John Calipari, who won 78.5% of his games (252-69) at Memphis.

Calipari is followed by Bob Vanatta at 76.2% (109-34) and Eugene Lambert at 75.5% (37-12) in the top three. Meanwhile, Dana Kirk ranks fourth at 73.1% (158-58), followed by Gene Bartow at 71.9% (82-32) and Josh Pastner at 69.6% (167-73).

It remains to be seen how much further Hardaway can climb up the list. However, partway through his sixth season, he already ranks among the top coaches in the program’s history.

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Penny Hardaway says 2023-24 Memphis Tigers basketball team is a “special group”

Memphis Tigers coach Penny Hardaway

Thursday’s 84-79 win over the No. 20 Arkansas Razorbacks (4-2) at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament marked Memphis’ fifth straight to start the 2023-24 season.

The Tigers were led by forward David Jones, who scored a career-high 36 points on 71.4% shooting. Jones added four rebounds, two assists, five steals and four 3-pointers.

Following Thursday’s victory, Hardaway spoke about the significance of the Tigers getting a win against the school’s former rival, tying their all-time series at 11-11:

“The city of Memphis understood what this game meant, and the entire state of Arkansas understood what this game meant, Memphis vs Arkansas,” Hardaway said.

The Tigers continue to impress, as they remain undefeated, including two wins since Hardaway’s return from suspension. After the Tigers’ 71-67 win over the Michigan Wolverines (3-2) on Wednesday, Hardaway spoke about how special Memphis is this season:

“I knew this group was special when we went to the Dominican earlier this summer,” Hardaway said.

“We had to play the Dominican national team and some other older teams. ... The way that we competed, we were down 20 points to those guys and got back to within one possession in a very hostile environment. I knew then that we had a special group.”

After knocking off Michigan and Arkansas, Memphis (5-0) advances to the tournament finals against the Villanova Wildcats (5-1) on Friday.

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