I watched the Aggies' games against San Diego State on 1/25 and against Boise State on 3/4. Here are some of my takeaways:
-My prevailing thought throughout both games was "Man, they look a lot like Mizzou." When they're at their best, they are flying up and down the floor, pulling up for 3s in transition and overwhelming the opposing team with the way they run it up on the scoreboard. And when they're at their worst, they can't buy a 3 and don't step up enough on defense to keep the other team from pulling away.
-There are some differences between the Aggies and Tigers, though. For one, Utah State is a lot more conservative on defense and doesn't generate as many turnovers. For two, I don't think they have a true "star" like Mizzou does with Kobe Brown. They've a lineup of good guys, but none that I would call great. Kobe has the ability to completely take over a game when the time calls for it. Utah State does not have a guy like that.
-Their best player is junior point guard Steven Ashworth. He's got a really tight handle, makes good decisions and shoots the leather off the ball (he's got the exact same number of 3-point attempts as D'Moi Hodge this season and has made nine more). Sending pressure his way probably isn't a good idea, he's pretty close to having a 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. He's only 6-1 and 170, though, so he's not all that much of a threat to score inside. The key with him is just that you can't sag off when he spots up.
-As Gabe noted in his column this morning, they've got a 7-footer named Trevin Dorious who starts the game to set the tone for the team on defense but only averages 14ish minutes. He averages 7.3 blocks per 40 minutes but also commits 6.6 fouls per 40 minutes. The closer is 6-foot-9 Dan Akin, who leads the nation in bench double-doubles according to one of the broadcast teams. Akins is an elite finisher around the rim and has the fourth-highest free throw rate in the nation. Both guys are non-shooters. The setup reminds me a lot of the LA Clippers around 2018-20 when they would start Ivica Zubac and bring Montrezl Harrell off the bench.
-The rest of the starting lineup is made up of 6-foot-8 senior forwards Sean Bairstow and Taylor Funk and 6-foot-4 combo guard Max Shulga. They're all shooters, which why the team is so dangerous in transition - you can't wall up in the paint to stop the layup because they'll just kick it out for a wide-open look. They've got similar size to Alabama, but they don't leverage it nearly as much as the tide.
-There are really only two other guys who get regular minutes in the rotation. Like Gabe said, Mizzou's depth should definitely be an advantage, especially if Tre Gomillion is healthy.
-If their head coach, Ryan Odom sounds familiar and you're not sure why, it's because he was the head coach of the 16-seeded UMBC Retrievers who knocked off No. 1 Virginia in 2018. So, the guy knows how to pull off upsets. Missouri can't mess around in this one.
-I think this game is going to come down to which team can settle in on defense and string a few stops together and whether or not one team gets hotter than the other. If one team has a significantly better shooting night than the other, it's over. I think the game plan should be to approach it similarly to the Alabama game and bank on Utah State having less talent.
-My prevailing thought throughout both games was "Man, they look a lot like Mizzou." When they're at their best, they are flying up and down the floor, pulling up for 3s in transition and overwhelming the opposing team with the way they run it up on the scoreboard. And when they're at their worst, they can't buy a 3 and don't step up enough on defense to keep the other team from pulling away.
-There are some differences between the Aggies and Tigers, though. For one, Utah State is a lot more conservative on defense and doesn't generate as many turnovers. For two, I don't think they have a true "star" like Mizzou does with Kobe Brown. They've a lineup of good guys, but none that I would call great. Kobe has the ability to completely take over a game when the time calls for it. Utah State does not have a guy like that.
-Their best player is junior point guard Steven Ashworth. He's got a really tight handle, makes good decisions and shoots the leather off the ball (he's got the exact same number of 3-point attempts as D'Moi Hodge this season and has made nine more). Sending pressure his way probably isn't a good idea, he's pretty close to having a 3-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. He's only 6-1 and 170, though, so he's not all that much of a threat to score inside. The key with him is just that you can't sag off when he spots up.
-As Gabe noted in his column this morning, they've got a 7-footer named Trevin Dorious who starts the game to set the tone for the team on defense but only averages 14ish minutes. He averages 7.3 blocks per 40 minutes but also commits 6.6 fouls per 40 minutes. The closer is 6-foot-9 Dan Akin, who leads the nation in bench double-doubles according to one of the broadcast teams. Akins is an elite finisher around the rim and has the fourth-highest free throw rate in the nation. Both guys are non-shooters. The setup reminds me a lot of the LA Clippers around 2018-20 when they would start Ivica Zubac and bring Montrezl Harrell off the bench.
-The rest of the starting lineup is made up of 6-foot-8 senior forwards Sean Bairstow and Taylor Funk and 6-foot-4 combo guard Max Shulga. They're all shooters, which why the team is so dangerous in transition - you can't wall up in the paint to stop the layup because they'll just kick it out for a wide-open look. They've got similar size to Alabama, but they don't leverage it nearly as much as the tide.
-There are really only two other guys who get regular minutes in the rotation. Like Gabe said, Mizzou's depth should definitely be an advantage, especially if Tre Gomillion is healthy.
-If their head coach, Ryan Odom sounds familiar and you're not sure why, it's because he was the head coach of the 16-seeded UMBC Retrievers who knocked off No. 1 Virginia in 2018. So, the guy knows how to pull off upsets. Missouri can't mess around in this one.
-I think this game is going to come down to which team can settle in on defense and string a few stops together and whether or not one team gets hotter than the other. If one team has a significantly better shooting night than the other, it's over. I think the game plan should be to approach it similarly to the Alabama game and bank on Utah State having less talent.
