Behind another 20-plus point performance from Tyrese Hunter(23), the Tigers defeated the Michigan State Spartans 71-63 and improved to 6-0 to advance to the finals of the Maui Invitational.

Following the most impressive win of the Hardaway era at the University of Memphis with another victory over a Hall of Fame coach in Tom Izzo goes to show the potential of this year's team and staff.

Memphis trailed for just 2:13 in this game and got off to another strong start. After 2 Tyrese Hunter threes and a Moussa Cisse dunk, the Tigers held a 5-point lead over the Spartans, and would not give it up.

Despite leading by 9 with 3:49 remaining in the half, the Tigers allowed the Spartans to cut the lead to just 3 going into the locker room.

Tyrese Hunter finished with 11 first half points, and the Tigers only turned the ball over 5 times.

After early half turnovers and a slow offensive start for both squads, Tyrese Hunter sunk a long two, foot on the 3-point line, and then a fast break 3 to give the Tigers a 8-point lead with 14:13 to play.

It was only minutes later that Memphis would go on an 11-0 run that spanned just 2 minutes. This extended the Tiger's lead to 15 with 10:50 to play.

Dain Dainja fouled out at the 6:33 mark and finished with 7 points and 2 rebounds. The stat sheet does not do Dainja's night justice, as he was vital in this win for the Tigers.

Tyrese Hunter hit his 5th three of the night, a converted and-one, and extended the advantage to 66-55.

Memphis would not score a field goal for the remainder of the game, 4:33.

Moussa Cisse fouled out with 2:52 to play, and left Memphis with Nick Jourdain to play the 5. Cisse finished with 9 points and 7 rebounds, and similar to Dainja, impacted the game in way the stat sheet can't show.

The remaining minutes saw Memphis slow the game down to burn clock and make their free throws to seal the game at 71-63.

The Tigers finished shooting 26-55( 47.3%) from the field and 8-23(34.8%) from beyond the arc. Memphis was out rebounded 28-36.Although, the Tigers only turned the ball over 9 times compared to the 13 from the Spartans.

The MVP for Memphis belongs to Tyrese Hunter. Hunter finished with 23 and made big shot after big shot, including 5 threes. Haggerty finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds.

Memphis only blocked 2 shots and created just 4 steals, but they played suffocating defense all night and allowed only 22-points in the paint. The presses and defensive sets for the Tigers continue to get better and better.

Memphis will play the winner of Auburn vs North Carolina in the championship round of the Maui invitational tomorrow at 4.p.m. There is a chance for a Memphis UNC rematch after the two faced off in the St.Jude Tip Off Classic where the Tar Heels won 84-76.