Sources: The Tigers began the season ranked in the top 15 of the AP and Coaches polls and the consensus pre-season favorite to win the Conference USA championship.

[1] The Tigers, with a roster dominated by a large sophomore class and freshman blue chip recruit Adonis Thomas, struggled somewhat with their difficult out of conference schedule.

Despite not taking any bad losses prior to the start of conference play, the Tigers did not defeat a ranked opponent during their non-conference slate.

On January 16, 2012, the Commercial Appeal reported that talented freshman Adonis Thomas would miss the remainder of the regular season due to ankle surgery.

In the CUSA tournament, the Tigers defeated their three opponents by an average of 25 points and ultimately won the championship over Marshall on March 10 in Memphis.