During the 2011 – 12 season , the Tigers announced they were leaving Conference USA to join the Big East Conference starting in 2013 ( later renamed the American Athletic Conference ) . They began the season strong , moving as high to No. 13 in the country before falling out of the rankings ( a phenomenon which would become a recurrent theme of the Pastner era ) . In the last game of the season , Josh Pastner 's victory over Tulsa gave him 72 career victories , the most by a Memphis head coach over his first three seasons . Memphis made its second straight NCAA Tournament after winning the Conference USA tournament . An 8-seed , the Tigers lost in the first round to 9-seeded Saint Louis . After the season , sophomore star Will Barton left for the NBA
Big East Conference
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
Memphis Tigers men's basketball