I’ll be honest, it feel like an absolute miracle that Missouri has this game tied right now. The Tigers got 16 combined points from Dru Smith, Mark Smith, Xavier Pinson and Jeremiah Tilmon. Dru, Tilmon and Kobe Brown all had to spend time on the bench with two fouls and Pinson has barely played after hitting his head on a chair behind the basket. The Tigers struggled to find good looks around the basket despite LSU being a very poor two-point defense on the season. Mizzou attempted an absurd 18 three-pointers in the first 20 minutes. They also shot 9-17 from the free throw line. Given all of that, I would have expected Missouri to be getting blown out right now.
But that’s obviously not the case. The biggest reasons why have been Drew Buggs and Torrence Watson. Because, of course. Buggs, who had made one three-pointer all season before today, hit two, including one on a four-point play. Watson, who didn’t play at all against Florida, has also hit two and leads Missouri with nine points. Add in a big three by Mitchell Smith, and that’s nearly half of Missouri’s points coming from three guys who average a combined 8 per game. That’s one of the fun things about sports, though. You never know what you’re going to see.
Sticking on the subject of Missouri’s offense, the Tigers have been very aggressive in pushing the ball in transition. It’s worked at times, but I think they need to be a little more judicious on picking their spots there, because a lot of times when you miss a transition layup, it leads to quick points on the other end. Xavier Pinson has been aggressive, attacking North and South like Cuonzo Martin always says he wants, but it hasn’t worked out for him so far. He appears to be okay after hitting his head, but that was a scary moment. With him and Dru Smith out of the game, the offense got far more stagnant. Jeremiah Tilmon has gotten himself into decent position on several occasions, but he seems to be struggling to handle the ball, either fumbling it on the catch or failing to finish when he gets it down low. Whether it’s through him or the two point guards or someone else, Missouri needs to do a better job of getting the ball around the basket in the halfcourt offense. The Tigers are on pace to shoot 36 threes. I don’t think that’s a winning formula for this team. Lastly, the offense has done a much better job getting to the free throw line than the last few games, but they’ve really struggled to convert. I am not really sure how a team that ranked 11th nationally in free throw shooting a season ago could have gotten so much worse this season with virtually the same roster.
On the other end, Missouri has largely struggled to stay in front LSU. They’ve gotten bailed out a bit, though, because LSU is just 5-15 on layups. The Missouri bigs did a pretty good job of at least altering shots around the rim, but that’s mostly just poor execution on LSU’s part. I think Mizzou needs to try to get away with switching less in the second half, because we saw quite a few times in the first 20 minutes where LSU got a good matchup on a switch, whether it was a forward guarding Cameron Thomas (he can absolutely ball) or a guard on Trendon Watford. LSU took advantage several times and missed quite a few other opportunities due to missed layups or turnovers. Overall, while I think Mizzou needs to play better in the second half to win, you certainly take being in a tie game after not playing the best first half, especially in a Quadrant I opportunity.
But that’s obviously not the case. The biggest reasons why have been Drew Buggs and Torrence Watson. Because, of course. Buggs, who had made one three-pointer all season before today, hit two, including one on a four-point play. Watson, who didn’t play at all against Florida, has also hit two and leads Missouri with nine points. Add in a big three by Mitchell Smith, and that’s nearly half of Missouri’s points coming from three guys who average a combined 8 per game. That’s one of the fun things about sports, though. You never know what you’re going to see.
Sticking on the subject of Missouri’s offense, the Tigers have been very aggressive in pushing the ball in transition. It’s worked at times, but I think they need to be a little more judicious on picking their spots there, because a lot of times when you miss a transition layup, it leads to quick points on the other end. Xavier Pinson has been aggressive, attacking North and South like Cuonzo Martin always says he wants, but it hasn’t worked out for him so far. He appears to be okay after hitting his head, but that was a scary moment. With him and Dru Smith out of the game, the offense got far more stagnant. Jeremiah Tilmon has gotten himself into decent position on several occasions, but he seems to be struggling to handle the ball, either fumbling it on the catch or failing to finish when he gets it down low. Whether it’s through him or the two point guards or someone else, Missouri needs to do a better job of getting the ball around the basket in the halfcourt offense. The Tigers are on pace to shoot 36 threes. I don’t think that’s a winning formula for this team. Lastly, the offense has done a much better job getting to the free throw line than the last few games, but they’ve really struggled to convert. I am not really sure how a team that ranked 11th nationally in free throw shooting a season ago could have gotten so much worse this season with virtually the same roster.
On the other end, Missouri has largely struggled to stay in front LSU. They’ve gotten bailed out a bit, though, because LSU is just 5-15 on layups. The Missouri bigs did a pretty good job of at least altering shots around the rim, but that’s mostly just poor execution on LSU’s part. I think Mizzou needs to try to get away with switching less in the second half, because we saw quite a few times in the first 20 minutes where LSU got a good matchup on a switch, whether it was a forward guarding Cameron Thomas (he can absolutely ball) or a guard on Trendon Watford. LSU took advantage several times and missed quite a few other opportunities due to missed layups or turnovers. Overall, while I think Mizzou needs to play better in the second half to win, you certainly take being in a tie game after not playing the best first half, especially in a Quadrant I opportunity.
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