*First, before we do anything else, I want to pat myself on the back. You're not going to be able to accuse me of giving up on this one. Here's what I typed at 53-49 with 1:33 to go:
Down four. You almost can't let Bradley score again. It's 53-49. I think Missouri can get to 55 in regulation, but I'm not sure they can get much more.
Pretty, pretty prophetic. That's exactly what happened.
*In all seriousness, Cuonzo said after the game Missouri has the pieces to be an elite defensive team, but it isn't an elite defensive team. He said so far this year, when they've really had to have stops, they've buckled down and gotten them. And that's good. You want that. He said the next step is to act like they have to have them all the time. This team's defense hasn't had to be quite as good as his past teams because it's able to score. But it's in there for them to be really good. They just have to work as hard on that end of the floor. Do that and the sky's the limit.
*I know you guys get frustrated with Jeremiah Tilmon. But when he's locked in, man, he's a difference maker. He took over the second half. 11 points and 7 boards. He said Martin "made it obvious I wasn't playing as hard as I need to" at halftime. He chose not to get more specific when I asked him to. But Martin knows how important he is. I also think he's vastly underrated as an offensive player. That was a TOUGH shot he made through contact. The kid's got some legitimate skill offensively. Sure, you want to see that kind of effort all the time, but better late than never.
*Last year, Missouri shot 29.7% from three point range. It was the worst three point shooting team in school history and 330-something in the country. This year, Missouri is shooting 28.4% from three-point range. I was actually impressed for a long stretch in the second half, the Tigers were noticeably passing up three-point shots. Even open ones. That's good. Drive, score or get fouled. That's what this team is good at. Shooting from more than 20 feet? Not so good. And they managed to not do that much...until Mark Smith took the worst shot of the night that should have beaten Missouri with 10 seconds left. It didn't beat them only because Missouri played such good free throw defense and Pinson and Tilmon came to the rescue.
*Here's what should most excite you about this team: They're 6-0 and they haven't put together a full game yet. They played pretty well against Oral Roberts, but that wasn't a real test. They played 25-30 good minutes against Oregon, probably 20-25 against Wichita, 10 against Liberty, 30 against Illinois and about six tonight. But they haven't played 40. I don't know if they'll have to play 40 to beat Tennessee next week, but I bet they'll have to come close. Good early litmus test in the league. This team can win the SEC. I won't pick them to do it yet, but I think they're a top three team (I'd put UT and Arkansas in that boat too). A win next week might make me rethink that.
*Video and a full notebook on the front page. I'll write the mailbag in the morning then we'll preload some stuff for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Mizzou's unbeaten and matters again in basketball. Enjoy it. It's been a while.
Down four. You almost can't let Bradley score again. It's 53-49. I think Missouri can get to 55 in regulation, but I'm not sure they can get much more.
Pretty, pretty prophetic. That's exactly what happened.
*In all seriousness, Cuonzo said after the game Missouri has the pieces to be an elite defensive team, but it isn't an elite defensive team. He said so far this year, when they've really had to have stops, they've buckled down and gotten them. And that's good. You want that. He said the next step is to act like they have to have them all the time. This team's defense hasn't had to be quite as good as his past teams because it's able to score. But it's in there for them to be really good. They just have to work as hard on that end of the floor. Do that and the sky's the limit.
*I know you guys get frustrated with Jeremiah Tilmon. But when he's locked in, man, he's a difference maker. He took over the second half. 11 points and 7 boards. He said Martin "made it obvious I wasn't playing as hard as I need to" at halftime. He chose not to get more specific when I asked him to. But Martin knows how important he is. I also think he's vastly underrated as an offensive player. That was a TOUGH shot he made through contact. The kid's got some legitimate skill offensively. Sure, you want to see that kind of effort all the time, but better late than never.
*Last year, Missouri shot 29.7% from three point range. It was the worst three point shooting team in school history and 330-something in the country. This year, Missouri is shooting 28.4% from three-point range. I was actually impressed for a long stretch in the second half, the Tigers were noticeably passing up three-point shots. Even open ones. That's good. Drive, score or get fouled. That's what this team is good at. Shooting from more than 20 feet? Not so good. And they managed to not do that much...until Mark Smith took the worst shot of the night that should have beaten Missouri with 10 seconds left. It didn't beat them only because Missouri played such good free throw defense and Pinson and Tilmon came to the rescue.
*Here's what should most excite you about this team: They're 6-0 and they haven't put together a full game yet. They played pretty well against Oral Roberts, but that wasn't a real test. They played 25-30 good minutes against Oregon, probably 20-25 against Wichita, 10 against Liberty, 30 against Illinois and about six tonight. But they haven't played 40. I don't know if they'll have to play 40 to beat Tennessee next week, but I bet they'll have to come close. Good early litmus test in the league. This team can win the SEC. I won't pick them to do it yet, but I think they're a top three team (I'd put UT and Arkansas in that boat too). A win next week might make me rethink that.
*Video and a full notebook on the front page. I'll write the mailbag in the morning then we'll preload some stuff for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Mizzou's unbeaten and matters again in basketball. Enjoy it. It's been a while.
