MEMPHIS — One of the best performances by a Tiger duo in Memphis hoops history.

DeAndre Williams and Kendric Davis combined to score 68 of the U of M’s 81 points in the Tigers 81-76 win over UCF in the AAC Tournament quarterfinals from Dickie’s Arena in Fort Worth, Texas.

Williams and Davis were even better in the second half.

After Malcolm Dandridge hit a free throw at the 15:49 mark, Williams and Davis combined to score 38 straight points for the Tigers, holding off a Knights team that wouldn’t go away. 38 of Memphis’ 41 second half points.

“I feel like I’m the best in the country because I work hard at it,” Davis said. “But I mean, like, Penny, always tell me, you got have that swagger. Penny, you know, he got that swagger. So I came here to get this swagger.”

“We knew we had to go out there and perform for the team to win and we had that mindset all game and we made big plays throughout the whole game,” Williams said. “We want to continue to play like this all tournament.”

Let’s just say their head coach left very impressed.

“These guys are killers, man. I keep saying the same thing. That’s what they’re built for. They’re built for moments like this. They’re closers, and they both closed today,” said Tigers coach Penny Hardaway. “I’m proud of both of them because they understand with the magnitude of what all of this is. KD’s never made the NCAA tournament so he’s showing his hunger like, I’m not ready to go home.”>

Williams finishing with 35 points and 13 rebounds. Davis 33 to go along with 7 assists as the Tigers take their first step toward the program’s first tournament title since 2013.