East Hillsborough News

He's as Memphis as Graceland, dry-rub barbecue or the coolest jazz and blues clubs you've ever experienced.

So when USF senior point guard Tyler Harris approaches Thursday night's homecoming game at the FedEx Forum, when the red-hot USF Bulls (7-6) face the powerful Memphis Tigers (10-3) in the American Athletic Conference opener, you can expect a combination of excitement, nerves, adrenaline and urgency.

Harris, one of the top high-school basketball players in Memphis history, was a favored Tiger for three seasons, a local kid who helped the Tigers to an NCAA Tournament bid. Now he's an opponent.

Bulls coach Brian Gregory said he expects Harris to control his emotions and play his normal game. That will be enough. But everyone knows it's naive to suggest it's just another game for Harris, the 5-foot-9 backcourt dynamo who has given life to the Bulls, winners of seven of their last eight games.

"Tyler just needs to play his game,'' Gregory said. "You know it's going to be emotional. Of course, it's going to be emotional. There's no doubt about it. But Tyler just has to stay in control while playing his game — and our game.

"I'll probably say something to him, but not much. You don't want to overdo it. You want him flowing with the energy that a game like this is going to naturally bring. He has played a lot of big ballgames in his life. He's going to love being out there.''

But how did Harris get here — playing for USF, an AAC rival — after being so ingrained into the fabric of his hometown team?

Through four college seasons, including the 2020-21 campaign at Iowa State, Harris had scored 1,133 career points. At Memphis, particularly in his return season after transferring back from the Big 12 Conference's Cyclones, Harris was a cog on a deep roster, averaging just 18.9 minutes of playing time per game.

He wanted more for his final season of eligibility.

"When I got in the transfer portal, I was recruited heavily by Coach BG (Gregory) and I liked what I heard,'' Harris said. "I had played against USF before. I knew how he coached his guards. They were a bunch of hard-nosed guys, a bunch of all-out dogs.

"That's how I saw myself. He said I could be the leader, a guy with a much bigger role than I had at Memphis. I knew that had to happen for me to get to the next level and make some money. So, I saw USF as the place where I could really expand my game and reach my full potential.''

So far, it has worked beautifully. Harris is USF's scoring leader (15.5 points per game), while shooting 37.1 percent from 3-point range and 76.5 percent from the free-throw line. He has collected 40 assists against 26 turnovers.

"I think you're seeing his growth as a point guard and a floor general who can run the team,'' Gregory said. "He has dramatically improved. The mistakes are lessening. He has embraced the idea of what we're asking him to do. These things had never been asked of him before. So we're counting on him to score, we're counting on him to lead the team … and he's dramatically improving with each game.''

Harris could not have had a more difficult start at USF.

He missed his first 15 attempts from 3-point range. But since that 0-for-15 streak, the longest long-range drought of his career, Harris has shot 42.9 percent (36-for-84) from beyond the arc.

"I just had to be tough and not get down on myself,'' Harris said. "I knew the shots would start falling. But it was a test on my mind. I had to keep working and keep the faith.''

Over the last month, Harris has displayed his trademark swagger and confidence. That was typified by his performance on Dec. 12 at Northern Iowa, when he delivered a buzzer-beating 3-pointer to cap USF's dramatic 72-69 triumph.

"Any time you make a shot like that, it solidifies your status,'' Gregory said. "I don't want to say 'go-to guy,' but we certainly brought Tyler here to make an impact on our program and make those kinds of shots. So, he showed everyone that he's definitely that guy.''

At Cordova High School, Harris had 2,647 career points, making him the 12th all-time leading scorer in Tennessee prep basketball. He was a four-star recruit and one of the nation's top 150-ranked players as a senior. He chose hometown Memphis over Baylor.

He had 50 double-figure scoring games for the Tigers, including 13 against Gonzaga in last season's NCAA Tournament. Now he has 11 straight double-figure scoring game against the Bulls, including 22 last Thursday against NJIT to tie a season high, including 6-for-9 from 3-point range, which landed him on the American's Weekly Honor Roll.

He has gotten hot at the perfect time — leading into his Memphis homecoming.

"A lot of my game has always been based on attitude because I'm a small guy,'' Harris said. "I always feel like I have something to prove. I don't want to be just another guy out there. I want to be known as one of the best players on the court in every game I have.

"My non-negotiable has always been working hard. We weren't preseason top-five or top-10. We were preseason top-nothing. So there's no reason for us not to work hard — every single day. Now I get to play against my old team, the team I watched my whole life. I know them. They know me. It's just basketball. It's just business.

"I think I'll always be good to people in Memphis. They know my true heart. I'll be my normal self. All-out. I want to win. I always want to win.''

Original source can be found here.