SMU (21-7, 12-4 American) vs Tulane (13-13, 10-7 American)
Moody Coliseum – Dallas, Texas
March 6, 2022 – 2 p.m. CT
Gameday Central | Ticket Info
DALLAS – SMU men's basketball coach Tim Jankovich didn't hesitate when answering the question.
Following the team's win over Cincinnati on Thursday, the sixth-year head coach was asked who would be more emotional during Sunday's regular season finale and Senior Day celebrations – himself or his players?
"I hope me, because if they're going to be like me it's going to be a little scary," Jankovich said. "Senior Day is always rough on me. I'm sentimental. Got it from my mom and I just can't help it.
"We talked about it after the game. I told them we can't let you down. The guys that aren't seniors can't let these guys down. We've got to do every single thing we can to get them off on a good note."
For Kendric Davis, Emmanuel Bandoumel, Isiah Jasey, Michael Weathers, Tristan Clark and Marcus Weathers, Sunday's 2 p.m. tip-off against Tulane (13-13, 10-7 AAC) will hopefully be a homecourt swansong of sorts, as the Mustangs (21-7, 12-4 AAC) close out what has been a truly magical season at Moody Coliseum.
SMU enters the game as one of just 16 NCAA Division I programs with a perfect home record going into the final days of the 2021-22 regular season. With a win, the Mustangs, 15-0 inside Moody, would earn their sixth all-time unblemished home record. It would also make Jankovich the second coach in school history with two unbeaten home schedules. He went 18-0 during the 2016-17 campaign for the program's last perfect home mark, while Doc Hayes was a combined 19-0 at home between the 1954-55 and 1955-56 seasons.
SMU's 17 straight wins at home is tied for the sixth-longest current streak in the country. Since the 2019-20 campaign, the team is 36-4 at home.
"We've got to finish Moody Magic off the right way. That's just our biggest emphasis right now, protect the home court," Michael Weathers said. "Not a lot of teams have gone undefeated at their home court, so we want to be one of those teams that if you come in here, you know you're going to have to scrap to beat us."
The importance of one final win is not lost on anyone. While SMU has already clinched a first-round bye in the upcoming AAC Tournament, momentum is crucial this time of year, especially with a bid to the NCAA Tournament hanging in the balance. After a midseason stretch of 13 wins in 14 games, the Mustangs have battled through the last month and a half to get five wins in eight contests, with two of those losses coming on the road without some key players. At Temple, SMU was without Davis, while Zhuric Phelps was unavailable for the loss at Houston.
"They deserve to go to the NCAA Tournament, 100 percent, in my heart, they deserve to go," Jankovich said.
While Jankovich might get a little teary-eyed on Sunday, his players are focused on putting the emotions of Senior Day aside.
It might be the regular season finale and a chance to add more lore to Moody Magic, but the Mustangs are locked-in on what's beyond that.
"We don't want to be too high or too low, because we have a bigger picture for us coming," Bandoumel said.
