* Stop me if you’ve heard this before: That was an ugly half of basketball. Particularly for Missouri. The Tigers are 6-24 from the field and 2-9 from three-point range. Mizzou legitimately has more airballs than made threes. Thrilling Friday night entertainment.
* Missouri has played well on the defensive end so far, which is an improvement from Tuesday. But live ball turnovers have been an issue. Mississippi State has scored eight of its points off turnovers. Amari Davis basically handed the Bulldogs a pair of layups when he threw terrible passes on consecutive possessions. Obviously, those turnover problems are nothing new. Missouri will need to find a way to clean that up in the second half.
* The other thing that has been a problem for a while and continued to be one so far tonight is a foul disparity. That figured to be particularly problematic tonight, as Mississippi State is one of the best teams in the conference at getting to the free throw line. So far, Mizzou has actually gotten lucky. The Tigers have been called for 10 fouls compared to seven for Mississippi State, but they have actually outscored the Bulldogs at the line, thanks in large part to a pair of missed front ends by Iverson Molinar. I will note that I was pleased to see Cuonzo Martin finally put Kobe Brown back into the game before halftime after he picked up two early fouls. It didn’t do much good, Brown hasn’t scored tonight, but I’ve criticized him when he’s failed to do so, so it seems fair to point that out.
* On the offensive end, Missouri simply hasn’t been able to get any clean looks inside. That’s a major problem for this team, because as you all know, they can’t shoot. I certainly wouldn’t argue if someone said Missouri needs to attack the basket more (and I would particularly like to see some more post-up opportunities for Kobe, although that’s admittedly tough when he’s helping bring the ball up the court) but really Mississippi State is just packing its zone defense in and daring Missouri to shoot over them. Regardless of the cause, Mizzou only scored four points in the paint during that first half. That is not a good recipe for the Tigers.
* The one thing we can count on these days is Javon Pickett scoring in double figures. He only needs one more point to get there. He’s going to need some help from Kobe Brown and others if it’s going to result in a win.
* Missouri has played well on the defensive end so far, which is an improvement from Tuesday. But live ball turnovers have been an issue. Mississippi State has scored eight of its points off turnovers. Amari Davis basically handed the Bulldogs a pair of layups when he threw terrible passes on consecutive possessions. Obviously, those turnover problems are nothing new. Missouri will need to find a way to clean that up in the second half.
* The other thing that has been a problem for a while and continued to be one so far tonight is a foul disparity. That figured to be particularly problematic tonight, as Mississippi State is one of the best teams in the conference at getting to the free throw line. So far, Mizzou has actually gotten lucky. The Tigers have been called for 10 fouls compared to seven for Mississippi State, but they have actually outscored the Bulldogs at the line, thanks in large part to a pair of missed front ends by Iverson Molinar. I will note that I was pleased to see Cuonzo Martin finally put Kobe Brown back into the game before halftime after he picked up two early fouls. It didn’t do much good, Brown hasn’t scored tonight, but I’ve criticized him when he’s failed to do so, so it seems fair to point that out.
* On the offensive end, Missouri simply hasn’t been able to get any clean looks inside. That’s a major problem for this team, because as you all know, they can’t shoot. I certainly wouldn’t argue if someone said Missouri needs to attack the basket more (and I would particularly like to see some more post-up opportunities for Kobe, although that’s admittedly tough when he’s helping bring the ball up the court) but really Mississippi State is just packing its zone defense in and daring Missouri to shoot over them. Regardless of the cause, Mizzou only scored four points in the paint during that first half. That is not a good recipe for the Tigers.
* The one thing we can count on these days is Javon Pickett scoring in double figures. He only needs one more point to get there. He’s going to need some help from Kobe Brown and others if it’s going to result in a win.
