OAKLAND REGIONAL Carney is unlikely star for Memphis

The Tigers expect a tough battle from 13 seed Bradley tonight.
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) -- As soon as John Calipari arrived at Memphis six years ago, he earned a reputation for recruiting some of the best prep players in the country.
Amare Stoudemire. Qyntel Woods. Dajuan Wagner.
Stoudemire and Woods never set foot on the court for the Tigers, and Wagner played one season before bolting to the NBA.
Then there's Rodney Carney, the unheralded forward Calipari has groomed into a likely lottery pick in the NBA draft. Now, as a senior, Carney is determined to end his career at the Final Four in his hometown of Indianapolis.
The top-seeded Tigers will try to move one step closer to that goal when they take on No. 13-seed Bradley in the Oakland Regional semifinals tonight.
"If Amare Stoudemire came, we wouldn't have gotten Rodney," Calipari said Wednesday. "Rodney has really developed as a player and a person. He's matured -- his self-confidence, his self-esteem, his skill on the basketball court, his poise. His personality has blossomed. He's primed to be a lottery pick and no one knew who he was coming out of high school."
Unknown Bradley
Speaking of being unknown, Bradley's players are getting used to answering questions about where they play. And they're loving the attention.
"Peoria, Illinois," they answer politely.
While this may seem like a lopsided matchup between the favored Tigers and upstart Braves, everybody involved refuses to look at it that way.
"They're a top, elite team," Memphis forward Shawne Williams said. "They accomplished something great, too."
Memphis (32-3), an NIT team a year ago, has won 21 of its last 22 games and is riding a six-game winning streak. The Tigers won the Conference USA regular season and tournament crowns, then beat Oral Roberts and Bucknell for their first appearance in the regional semifinals since 1995.
The 6-foot-7 Carney leads the Tigers at 17.4 points per game and helped the team to a top seed for the first time.
Tigers are young team
Calipari, who regularly plays four freshmen and three sophomores, pointed to the fact many top players in Carney's position would choose to use the NCAA tournament forum to further boost their status.
"If you were a player and you knew you were in the top 10 right now in the draft, would you not play to get to the top five, in other words shoot every ball, try to score 30? Say, 'OK, you think [Gonzaga's Adam] Morrison is good, watch me,' " Calipari said. "He's not doing that. He only took 10 shots last game. He's trying to defend and rebound. He wants his team to win. How unique is that?"