A thriller at FedExForum on Saturday had Memphis Tigers basketball fans feeling awfully good heading into tonight’s visit with No. 22 Vanderbilt in Nashville.

Frank Bonner II, Geoff Calkins and Tim Buckley all wrote about Memphis’ fight to the finish with VCU, a 1-point win secured by two Jayden Reid free throws with 5.7 seconds to go.

Bonner and Buckley both penned pieces published one day earlier on Reid, a transfer from Northwestern handling the point for coach Penny Hardaway’s Tigers this season.

Memphis, one spot shy of cracking the Associated Press Top 25, is back at FedExForum on Sunday to face No. 10 Louisville, while the Tigers football team has a Thursday night date with South Florida in Tampa with major American Conference title game implications following a bye week last week.

The can’t-miss work for the week came from Drew Hill, who, in addition to his usual Memphis Grizzlies duties, produced two intensely reported and well-written stories focused on the NIL world: one pulling back the curtain on what it’s like for high school athletes chasing big bucks these days and another centered on a Collierville man, Walker Jones, who makes things happen for the Ole Miss football program.

As for the Grizzlies, two Chris Herrington columns — one his 10 takes after 10 games, the other regarding NBA conference issues — also are well worth the read. Hill was in Toronto for Monday night’s win over the Raptors, Memphis’ fifth straight road victory.

The busy Grizzlies return to FedExForum to face the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, visit the New Orleans Pelicans for an NBA Cup game Friday night, play host to the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday night and travel to play the Washington Wizards on Monday night.

On the preps front, intern Ian Sparks reported on high school cross country state championship developments and John Varlas delivered news of a football coaching shakeup at MUS.

Here’s a look at some of the staff’s top work from the week: — Deputy sports editor Tim Buckley

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Jayden Reid's free throws lift Tigers to win over VCU By Frank Bonner II

Calkins: Penny Hardaway gets a thrilling win — and more evidence that this team might be the one he needs By Geoff Calkins

Buckley: Respect won't come easily for these Tigers. 2 wins are a good start. By Tim Buckley

Jayden Reid's father had a plan. It landed a point guard in Memphis when the Tigers needed one most. By Frank Bonner II

Buckley: Multiple schools. Online classes. 1 goal. Jayden Reid is a window to modern college basketball. By Tim Buckley

South Florida's film has Charles Huff's full attention By John Varlas

Hill: Local high school athletes are chasing NIL deals. Who’s protecting them? By Drew Hill

Hill: He's the guy Lane Kiffin called to make Ole Miss a football power. And he lives in Collierville. By Drew Hill

Herrington: 10 takes after 10 Grizzlies games By Chris Herrington

Herrington: The best argument for moving the Grizzlies east? Maybe not the one you think. By Chris Herrington

Grizzlies win fifth straight road game, beating Raptors in Toronto By Drew Hill

University High freshman wins state cross country championship By Ian Sparks

MUS parts ways with football coach By John Varlas

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