The Memphis women’s basketball team quietly made a short trip to Mississippi State for a closed preseason scrimmage on Oct. 7.
The Tigers, in their first action against another team under first-year coach Hana Haden, lost 69-60. But Haden said the Bulldogs weren’t the only team in the Tigers’ way.
“That was really good film for us to learn from when we realize how much of that was what Memphis did to Memphis,” she told The Commercial Appeal at American Conference media day in Tampa, Florida, on Oct. 12.
Hear her out. The Tigers committed 24 turnovers, and the Bulldogs converted those into 25 points for themselves. Memphis missed 14 free throws and shot just 32% from the field. Point guard Daejah Richmond scored 16 points in the first half but none
in the second half.
For Haden, it came down to a lack of discipline.
“Disciplined teams don’t beat themselves. We have to become a disciplined team,” she said. “Somebody else better do something to us.”
Here are three more of Haden’s biggest takeaways from the matchup with Mississippi State.
Hana Haden impressed with half-court offense
Big picture, Haden is looking for balance on offense. She wants to give her players the freedom to play fast and attack opposing defenses in transition. But she wants to offset that by being able to run an effective half-court offense.
In the early stages of summer workouts, Haden saw some things that made her think the Tigers may need to lean in to a run-and-gun style.
But what Haden saw against Mississippi State has inspired more confidence.
“We were really, really successful in the half-court,” she said. “And every time that we got to the second side of our offense, we got something really good. Like, we got the shot we wanted – and most of the time, we scored.
“So, just showing them that, like, ‘Hey, we can be a team that really executes in the half-court.’ (But) we have to have better discernment. Like, if it’s not a two-on-one, we need to run offense and we need to execute and move the ball.”
Memphis women's basketball shows off backcourt depth, versatility
Studying the film wasn’t just productive for the players.
Haden – who called it “eye-opening” for the coaching staff – said it solidified for her how much versatility there is in the Memphis backcourt.
“The four guards we’re really relying on, I think a huge advantage that we have, is that they’re all combo guards,” she said, nothing that Richmond, Tierney Kelsey, Jordan Hunter and AJ Richardson can all initiate the offense.
“We had a ton of success in that scrimmage when AJ Richardson initiated the offense,” said Haden. “(She) finished with 17. She had a really good second half, so that was really good to see.”
Having that flexibility creates several advantages for Memphis, said Haden.
“I’ve told Daejah, ‘Hey, sometimes, you need to get off the ball and let other people initiate the offense.’ That can conserve her a little bit, but it also, I think it puts other teams in predicaments when you can’t really predict the point guard,” she said.
Tigers need to be better decision-makers
Haden believes the Tigers have the talent to average 72 points per game, shoot 45% from the floor and hit 70% of their free throws over the course of the season.
But that’s enough to pull off what Haden calls “winning basketball.” To achieve that, the mental aspect needs to be there, too. And that’s something the team struggled with against Mississippi State.
Down by just four points at halftime, the Tigers struggled when the Bulldogs switched to a 1-2-2 zone defense to start the second half.
“We want to be aggressive against it, but then you have to have discernment – like, ‘Do we have numbers or not?’ “ said Haden. “They were leaving their 6-4 (center) at the rim, and we’re going and challenging her, and then (center) Destiny (Thomas) is just getting over half-court, and now they’re grabbing the rebound and going the other way.
“So, not even the points off turnovers, but the transition points. Where, again, if we have two guards, we don’t have an advantage going two against their three. And then we have a post just crossing half-court, they get the rebound, and we’re screwed.”
Memphis Tigers women's basketball schedule 2026-27
- Nov. 2: host LeMoyne-Owen
- Nov. 6: host Middle Tennessee
- Nov. 9: host Little Rock
- Nov. 12: host Alabama
- Nov. 19: host South Alabama
- Nov. 23: vs. Old Dominion at Hoopfest Basketball Women's Challenge (Comerica Center, Frisco, Texas)
- Nov. 25: vs. SMU at Hoopfest Basketball Women's Challenge (Comerica Center, Frisco, Texas)
- Nov. 29: at Ole Miss
- Dec. 3: host TCU
- Dec. 7: at Louisiana Tech
- Dec. 13: at Bradley
- Dec. 16: host Mississippi Valley State
- Dec. 20: host Fisk University
- Dec. 31: at Tulsa
- Jan. 7: host Temple
- Jan. 10: host Charlotte
- Jan. 13: host FAU
- Jan. 16: at UAB
- Jan. 20: host Tulane
- Jan. 23: at Charlotte
- Jan. 26: at East Carolina
- Jan. 30: host North Texas
- Feb. 3: at Wichita State
- Feb. 6: at Rice
- Feb. 10: host UTSA
- Feb. 13: at Tulane
- Feb. 20: host Tulsa
- Feb. 24: host Wichita State
- Feb. 27: at FAU
- March 2: at South Florida
- March 6: host UAB
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com, follow him @munzly on X.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: How Memphis women's basketball looked in first scrimmage under Hana Haden | Exclusive
