Behind PJ Haggerty's 29-points, the Memphis Tigers improved to 2-0 after a 80-74 win over the UNLV Rebels. The Tigers fell behind early, trailing for 25:24, but were able to keep it close before they overtook the Rebels in the second half and closed the game out.

PJ Haggerty got off to an aggressive start for the Tigers, scoring 13-first half points. Haggerty hit a jumper to cut the lead to 1 at the 9:04 mark, before the Rebels went on a 12-1 run to make it 29-17. 7 of those 12-points from UNLV came from the foul line.

The Tigers answered with a 9-0 run that included 4-points from Haggerty to bring the deficit back to 2. Memphis trailed 30-34 going into halftime. The Tigers shot 1-11 from beyond the arc, and turned the ball over 8 times.

Nick Jourdain started off the second half with an emphatic slam and minutes later hit his first 3 of the season and tied the game at 38.

Tyrese Hunter also came to life in the second half. After a scoreless first half, Hunter scored 9 and hit a big 3 at the 11:06 mark to make it a 1-point game.

However, the Tigers did not lead in the second half until Dain Dainja and PJ Haggerty created a 6-0 run to push the Tigers up 65-63 with 6-minutes to play.

Dainja had a big responsibility to guard UNLV's big, Bear Cherry. Dainja finished with 9-points and 11-rebounds, while Cherry was held to 9 and 7.

After trailing by 1 with 3:01 to play, the Tigers went on a 7-0 run that was capped off by a Tyrese Hunter and-one layup. The following possession, the Rebels hit a 3, only for PJ Haggerty to convert his own and-one from a turnaround jumper.

Haggerty sunk his a pair of free throws with 15-seconds left to seal the game for Memphis.

Memphis played a much cleaner second half and only turned the ball over 5 times, and none in the remaining 3-minutes of the game.

Memphis finished the game shooting 51.8% from the field, 71.4% in the second half, and 35.3% from the perimeter. They out rebounded UNLV 39 to 33. Memphis turned the ball over 13 times and had a positive assist to turnover ratio with 17-assists. The ball moved well for the Tigers today.

Haggerty was the leading scorer for Memphis, finishing with 29-points. Colby Rogers found his shot today and scored 16 and grabbed 7-rebounds.

Another gritty win for Memphis. The Tigers showed willingness to play defense, even when their press wasn't working, Memphis still did not give up and allow the Rebels easy points. Offensive chemistry also looked like it improved, with Jourdain catching multiple lobs and guys making the extra pass.

Memphis will be back at FedEx Forum on Friday to face off against the Ohio Bobcats. Tip-off is set for 7.p.m. as the Tigers look to improve to 3-0.