Memphis features a Top 10 NBA prospect at center. Can Boise State handle him?
You don’t need to see Jalen Duren to know how big he is. You just need to hear his voice.
The 6-foot-11, 250-pound Memphis center spoke with a booming baritone during an NCAA Tournament press conference Wednesday morning at the Moda Center.
The Boise State men’s basketball team can only hope his bark is worse than his bite.
Duren and the ninth-seeded Tigers (21-10) face No. 8 Boise State (27-7) in the first round at 11:45 a.m. Mountain time Thursday. The game will be televised on TNT.
“He’s a very talented player, and he’s also an extremely good defender, one of the best shot blockers in the country,” Boise State’s Abu Kigab said of Duren. “He’s a really good player. You’ve got to be locked in on him, and I love the challenge, and my guys are going to embrace the challenge. That’s what basketball is about.”
The Broncos will have their hands full trying to slow down Duren, the American Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year who is considered a Top 10 prospect for the 2022 NBA Draft. At 18, Duren is among the youngest players at the tournament, and he’ll go against one of the oldest and most experienced in 24-year-old Boise State forward Mladen Armus.
“For me, I’ve been dealing (with) it all year. It’s nothing new to me,” Duren said. “I don’t look at no age, I don’t look at no size. That to me is basketball. I’ve got confidence in myself. I know what I bring to the table and I know what my teammates bring to the table.
“Honestly, I feel like no matter the age, size, whatever it is, I feel like we’re going to come out and do our thing.”
With a wingspan of more than 7 feet, 5 inches, Duren can dunk a basketball effortlessly. During open practice Wednesday, Duren tossed the basketball off the backboard, caught it in mid-air with one hand and slammed it home.
“He’s a great player,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “He’s one of the best big guys in the country. … This guy is special, but he’s not the only one on that team.”
Duren is averaging a team-leading 12.2 points and 8.1 rebounds per game for Memphis, which finished as the AAC Tournament runner-up behind No. 15 Houston. The Tigers have won 12 of their past 14 games to secure their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2014, and Duren has played a major part.
“Duren has emerged as a major force inside the paint on both ends of the floor — be it crashing the glass, protecting the rim or finishing ferociously and with incredible ease around the basket — giving him a ready-made role to step into early in his NBA career,” Jonathan Givony wrote in his latest mock draft for ESPN.
More than half of Duren’s rebounds have come on the offensive glass this season (77), and the Tigers rank 21st in the country with an average of 12.48 offensive rebounds per game. Managing Duren’s impact on the glass will be key to taming the Tigers.
But nothing about Duren says freshman to Rice.
“I don’t think they’re freshmen at this time of the year. That’s what we’ve always said,” Rice said. “When a guy is getting a lot of minutes and getting a lot of experience, they’re no longer freshmen when it comes to March.
“… They know the system. You look at the way he’s playing. His last month has been amazing. He certainly doesn’t physically look like a freshman, but now his game doesn’t resemble anything close to any freshman at this time of year.”
NO. 8 BOISE STATE VS. NO. 9 MEMPHIS
When: 11:45 a.m. MT Thursday
Where: Moda Center (19,980), Portland
TV: TNT (Andrew Catalon, Steve Lappas, Andy Katz)
Live stream: MarchMadness.com
Radio: KBOI 670 AM (Bob Behler, Abe Jackson)
Records: Boise State 27-7, Memphis 21-10
Series: Memphis 1-0
Last meeting: Memphis eliminated Boise State 59-56 in the quarterfinals of the 2021 NIT Tournament in Denton, Texas.
Vegas line: Memphis by 3 (Tigers opened as a 1.5-point favorite)
KenPom rating: Memphis 28, Boise State 29
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 2:57 PM.
