I don't know what the number will be, but it looks and sounds to me like the biggest crowd of the season. Strong atmosphere so far. The lesson: Students will show up for free hats.
Xavier Pinson did a really nice job handling the Auburn press. The inbounders did a good job of gtting him the ball in the right position, but Pinson simply outran the press sometimes too. The best half of Pinson's career. He flat out controlled that game for 20 minutes.
Dru Smith doesn't jump off the screen. He's a guy that would have been an NBA all star in 1956. I don't think he's necessarily unathletic, he just has all these old school moves that are more about positioning than an ability to jump out of the gym. He also took seven of Mizzou's first 14 shots. I know it's not really in his nature, but this team is better when he's looking to score more.
Reed Nikko didn't have an impressive stat line, but he did a really nice job fighting for position down low and keeping a number of rebounds alive. Even six weeks ago Austin Wiley vs Reed Nikko would have been a complete mismatch. Not now. Reed is playing his best basketball.
Missouri played only six players more than five minutes (and seven more than two). They were in a rhythm. Maybe that's a coincidence.
Speaking of best basketball, I'd nominate that for Missouri's best half of the year. Really strong on both ends. They're on pace for 90 points and have only taken eight threes (and made five). But be aware it's unlikely Auburn goes 0-for-9 from three in the second half. The (visiting) Tigers have played a lot of close games this year and they've been really good in them. They're likely to make a run or two.
RED PANDA IS NEXT
Xavier Pinson did a really nice job handling the Auburn press. The inbounders did a good job of gtting him the ball in the right position, but Pinson simply outran the press sometimes too. The best half of Pinson's career. He flat out controlled that game for 20 minutes.
Dru Smith doesn't jump off the screen. He's a guy that would have been an NBA all star in 1956. I don't think he's necessarily unathletic, he just has all these old school moves that are more about positioning than an ability to jump out of the gym. He also took seven of Mizzou's first 14 shots. I know it's not really in his nature, but this team is better when he's looking to score more.
Reed Nikko didn't have an impressive stat line, but he did a really nice job fighting for position down low and keeping a number of rebounds alive. Even six weeks ago Austin Wiley vs Reed Nikko would have been a complete mismatch. Not now. Reed is playing his best basketball.
Missouri played only six players more than five minutes (and seven more than two). They were in a rhythm. Maybe that's a coincidence.
Speaking of best basketball, I'd nominate that for Missouri's best half of the year. Really strong on both ends. They're on pace for 90 points and have only taken eight threes (and made five). But be aware it's unlikely Auburn goes 0-for-9 from three in the second half. The (visiting) Tigers have played a lot of close games this year and they've been really good in them. They're likely to make a run or two.
RED PANDA IS NEXT
