Here's how Missouri used Michael Porter Jr. in his first game back from injury

Going into Thursday’s Missouri-Georgia matchup, it was unclear what was to be expected from the Tigers' Michael Porter Jr. in his first game since back surgery.

Bulldogs coach Mark Fox said Wednesday night that he wasn’t sure which position the Tigers would use him at since Porter Jr. is such a diverse player and can play multiple positions.

Missouri ended up using Porter Jr. primarily as a forward, with the 6-foot-10 freshman rotating between power forward and wing throughout the game, partly because of foul trouble by junior Kevin Puryear and freshman Jeremiah Tilmon.

MU coach Cuonzo Martin originally wanted Porter Jr. to be more of a shooter for the game but had to ax that as Tilmon, Puryear and Porter Jr.'s younger brother Jontay Porter all started to rack up fouls. Otherwise Martin didn’t really adjust the offense to Porter Jr. Instead Martin tried to put him in situations in which he could flash his skill set.

When Porter Jr. entered the game for the first time with 17:22 left in the first half, he came in as a power forward playing alongside junior point guard Jordan Geist, senior wings Jordan Barnett and Kassius Robertson and Jontay Porter as a center who could stretch the floor.

Porter Jr. opened up defending Georgia star Yante Maten, a tough assignment for a player four months removed from his last game. Porter Jr. stayed at power forward through his first few shifts, which included scoring on a feed from Jontay.

When Porter Jr. returned to the floor with 14:03 left in the first half, after less than a minute on the bench, he switched to the wing with Puryear and Tilmon alongside Geist and Robertson.

Porter Jr. stayed at the three spot until Tilmon and Puryear racked up more fouls, which forced Martin to make an adjustment with 10:10 left in the first half.

Martin inserted him back in alongside Geist, Robertson, Barnett and sophomore Reed Nikko, which put Porter Jr. back at the four spot.

Porter Jr. stayed in that role for the remainder of the first half, and hit one of his two threes in the game from just outside the elbow, which was part of Martin’s original plan.

“The biggest thing really was trying to put Mike in position where he could catch and shoot as opposed to having to make plays off the dribble, attacking the rim,” Martin said. “Because that takes time, when you're getting your legs up under you, the adrenaline of the crowd, the energy, all of that. So I was just really trying to put him in position where he's a spot shooter, posting up, making plays at the rim.”

Porter Jr. spent the majority of the second half as a power forward after Puryear’s foul trouble got worse and he fouled out with more than 10 minutes left. Foul trouble prevented Martin from ever having a lineup of both Porters and Tilmon, which would have given Missouri three players 6-10 or taller.

While Martin tried to use Porter Jr. as a spot-up shooter, a number of his points came on transition layups off feeds from Robertson and Geist.

Despite Porter Jr.’s 5-for-17 shooting performance, Martin said part of Porter Jr.’s shooting issues was that he was forced to shoot from places on the floor he hadn't practiced but was put into because of foul trouble.

“I thought he had opportunities to score the ball,” Martin said. “I think, more than anything, probably rushing his shots, shooting a little quick, because I thought the shots he took were good shots. And the biggest thing, trying to get him around the post a little more so now he doesn't have to exert as much energy as far as making plays.”

Porter Jr. will likely see more time on the wing in his next game if Barnett is suspended after he was arrested early Saturday morning for driving while intoxicated. The Tigers are to learn their postseason fate Sunday night and appear to be a lock for an at-large bid.

Even with Barnett, Missouri has just eight scholarship players available. Without their second-leading scorer, the Tigers would need Porter Jr. to play more than the 23 minutes he logged against Georgia.

Martin said Missouri will be better off in its next game with Porter Jr. now that they’ve had a chance to play a game with him and see some issues.

“I think we'll be fine,” Martin said. I'm glad he actually got it out of the way and we can move forward.”

This story was originally published March 10, 2018 at 5:33 PM with the headline "Here's how Missouri used Michael Porter Jr. in his first game back from injury."