As Penny Hardaway walked from the Farm Expo Building back toward the portable half-court that was set up at the Memphis Zoo, a family of five asked the Memphis basketball coach for a photo.
He didn’t hesitate, posing with three delighted kiddos who were among the 3,594 Tigers fans who turned out for Memphis Madness presents Zoo Hoops, this year’s incarnation of the men’s and women’s programs’ preseason pep rally.
“I’ve always been the guy to be out in the community to be able to be touched, to be talked to, to have those conversations,” the ninth-year coach, one of Memphis’ favorite sons, said. “At these events, it makes me happy to make other people happy. It seems like it brings joy to the fans to get an autograph or a picture.
“I’ll stay here all night to sign autographs because I know how important it is to our city. I just love us. I love 901. That’s what I’m all about.”
That sense of community was the prevailing theme of the 90-minute event. Part meet the Tigers, part skills challenge and part official signal that the new season is only weeks away, fans were treated to a 3-point exhibition that featured standouts from both teams. Luke Almodovar, a senior guard transfer from Southeast Missouri, knocked down 14 triples in 60 seconds to beat teammate Jayden Reid, who finished with 11. Memphis native Tierney Kelsey buried 13 deep balls in a head-to-head matchup with teammate Jordan Hunter, who finished with nine.
Almodovar narrowly edged Kelsey in the finals, sinking 15 to Kelsey’s 14.
The event was the first for first-year Memphis women’s coach Hana Haden, whose team was picked ninth in the American Conference’s preseason poll. She came away impressed but not surprised.
“Love to see all the energy out here,” Haden said. “I love hearing the excitement. I love that all our floor seats are sold out. I’d still like to sell a few more season tickets. I’m competitive so when I know we’re in a ballpark of a record, I want to go get that.
“Just love the excitement for our program.”
Hardaway’s Tigers landed in second in The American’s preseason coaches’ poll, something that he hopes will keep his team hungry.
“The biggest thing for me has always been us having to go prove ourselves,” he said. “That’s why we play against the non-conference schedule that we play. It’s always happened where we’ve been kind of under the radar and have to prove ourselves. Last year, we didn’t do so. The previous years, we have. We look forward to doing that this year. We want to start well, for a lot of reasons.”
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com, follow him @munzly on X.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Why Penny Hardaway, Hana Haden left Memphis Madness event encouraged