Well that wasn't very good. Xavier Pinson was aggressive and got some things done offensively. Other than that, well, how about Xavier Pinson?
To be fair, Torrence Watson put together a nice personal 5-0 run in the final 40 seconds to cut the lead to nine and make it a little bit less daunting. If Missouri ends up making a run at Ole Miss in the second half, Watson deserves credit for starting the comeback.
Reed Nikko picked up two fouls in five minutes, the Smiths (Dru, Mark and Mitchell) combined for 5 points on 2-10 shooting, Javon Pickett literally didn't record a stat in the box score in 11 minutes and hasn't scored in about two weeks. But, hey, Tray Jackson got to play some.
What makes it even more fun is to look at the other side and see Blake Hinson, a guy you recruited last year out of junior college, leading the way with 19 points (the most he has scored in SEC play).
This team has improved offensively, but it still isn't going to win many games in which it gives up 98 points (that's what the Rebels are on pace for) and the opposing team shoots 54% from the floor.
Just in case this half hasn't depressed you enough, pretty much everything Missouri needed to happen to avoid playing on Wednesday didn't happen. If the Tigers don't come back, they've got to beat Bama, have A&M win at Arkansas, have Mississippi State beat Ole Miss and have Auburn beat Tennessee to get the 10 seed. If any of those don't happen, they'll play in the opening round. Oh, also, they're probably going to have to make the semifinals to have any chance at the NIT.
On the plus side, neither team has missed a free throw. I don't know what the record is for most combined makes without a miss, but if the second half continues to go the way the first half did, I'll likely look it up at some point to entertain myself. Barring a big turnaround, I think we can put away that "turned a corner" talk for a while.
To be fair, Torrence Watson put together a nice personal 5-0 run in the final 40 seconds to cut the lead to nine and make it a little bit less daunting. If Missouri ends up making a run at Ole Miss in the second half, Watson deserves credit for starting the comeback.
Reed Nikko picked up two fouls in five minutes, the Smiths (Dru, Mark and Mitchell) combined for 5 points on 2-10 shooting, Javon Pickett literally didn't record a stat in the box score in 11 minutes and hasn't scored in about two weeks. But, hey, Tray Jackson got to play some.
What makes it even more fun is to look at the other side and see Blake Hinson, a guy you recruited last year out of junior college, leading the way with 19 points (the most he has scored in SEC play).
This team has improved offensively, but it still isn't going to win many games in which it gives up 98 points (that's what the Rebels are on pace for) and the opposing team shoots 54% from the floor.
Just in case this half hasn't depressed you enough, pretty much everything Missouri needed to happen to avoid playing on Wednesday didn't happen. If the Tigers don't come back, they've got to beat Bama, have A&M win at Arkansas, have Mississippi State beat Ole Miss and have Auburn beat Tennessee to get the 10 seed. If any of those don't happen, they'll play in the opening round. Oh, also, they're probably going to have to make the semifinals to have any chance at the NIT.
On the plus side, neither team has missed a free throw. I don't know what the record is for most combined makes without a miss, but if the second half continues to go the way the first half did, I'll likely look it up at some point to entertain myself. Barring a big turnaround, I think we can put away that "turned a corner" talk for a while.
