Can Mizzou’s Jeremiah Tilmon avoid foul trouble against Mississippi State?

Mizzou at Mississippi State

WHEN/WHERE: 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Miss.

TV/RADIO: SEC Network; KMBZ (98.1 FM)

PROJECTED LINEUPS:

Keys for Missouri (13-7, 3-4 SEC):

▪ Protect the paint. Mississippi State will try to beat Missouri near the basket. The Bulldogs aren’t much a threat anywhere else. They have made just 28.4 percent of their three-point attempts this season, the worst mark in the SEC.

▪ Keep Jeremiah Tilmon in the game. In order to protect the paint, Mizzou will need its freshman center. Cuonzo Martin said earlier this season that Tilmon is the foundation of Mizzou’s defense, but Missouri has spent much of conference play without him. He has averaged 4.3 personal fouls and 16 minutes per game during SEC play. The Tigers become a far less athletic team when Reed Nikko has to play significant minutes. Mississippi State starts a freshman at center, too. Abdul Ado leads the Bulldogs in rebounds with 6.9 per game.

▪ Stay engaged on defense. Martin thought MU’s defensive focus lapsed in a loss to No. 19 Auburn because Missouri’s offense struggled. “We’re not good enough offensively to win games,” point guard Jordan Geist said. “We know we have to bring it on defense.” Mizzou has started games slowly during conference play, and that could happen again on Saturday. Mississippi State’s defense ranks No. 22 in the country in effective field goal percentage, and the Bulldogs guard three-pointers well.

Keys for Mississippi State (14-6, 2-5 SEC):

▪ Force turnovers. Missouri’s turnover problem reemerged against Auburn on Wednesday, when Mizzou gave the ball away 20 times. At Kentucky for its last game, Mississippi State used a new three-guard starting lineup that included sophomore guard Lamar Peters. Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said he used the lineup to apply more defensive pressure. That could work well against Mizzou.

▪ Make free throws. Mississippi State must draw fouls on Tilmon and Jontay Porter. And when the Bulldogs do so, they must make their foul shots. The Bulldogs are shooting 66.1 percent from the foul line this season, one of the lowest marks in the SEC. Mississippi State is already a far inferior three-point shooting team compared to Mizzou. Howland’s team can not also let the Tigers build a lead from the free-throw line.

▪ Get a good game from Quinndary Weatherspoon. The junior preseason first-team All-SEC pick is both a wing player and point guard for the Bulldogs this season. His versatility could allow Mississippi State to search for the matchup it wants him to exploit against Missouri. The Tigers can’t lose focus when defending Weatherspoon, who is averaging 15.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists during conference play.

This story was originally published January 26, 2018 at 5:33 PM with the headline "Can Mizzou’s Jeremiah Tilmon avoid foul trouble against Mississippi State?."