‘There’s urgency and not panic’ for Mizzou basketball after winless start to SEC play
After dropping their first two games in Southeastern Conference play, the Missouri Tigers face an uphill battle.
As of now, their resume isn’t strong enough for an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Before the season, Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin stressed the expectation was to make it to the postseason. The Tigers’ play leaves a lot to be desired though.
But it’s still early. And Mizzou (8-6, 0-2 SEC) hasn’t lost any urgency, forward Reed Nikko said. They’re instead focused on staying grounded.
“There’s always a sense of urgency,” Nikko said. “Every game in SEC play you’re trying to get a win. There’s always going to be a sense of urgency in preparation. The important distinction is that there’s urgency and not panic. We’re preparing for this game, we’re going at it hard in practice.”
Mizzou’s next opponent in Florida (10-4, 2-0) was projected to be one of the best teams in the SEC. They are no longer ranked in the AP poll. But the talent is still there, Martin said, as the Tigers face the Gators at 7 p.m. Saturday in Mizzou Arena.
The headliner for Florida is Kerry Blackshear Jr., the graduate transfer from Virginia Tech. The 6-foot-10 forward averages 14.6 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. With the shorthanded Tigers missing Jeremiah Tilmon, Nikko said a significant part of the game plan is to limit Blackshear.
Dru Smith also pointed out Florida guard Andrew Nembhard, who leads the Gators with 6.1 assists per game.
“They’re really good inside,” Dru Smith said of Florida. “They have a lot of good guards. We’re going to have to slow their point guard down. He runs the team really well, gets a lot of assists.”
In recent practices, Martin and the Tigers focused on transition baskets, especially those that come off turnovers. The instant offense is a Martin principle — defense to offense — as the Tigers aim for easier paths to buckets than grinding half court sets.
Even an extra five points per game would smooth the Mizzou offense significantly, Martin said. The Tigers score 66.7 points per game, tied for No. 290 in the nation.
“That’s one of the biggest things that we talk about, transition baskets,” Martin said. “Getting out and running. It’s not so much as the point guard always being the ball handler, but it’s other guys. Being able to handle it and make sound decisions.”
When shots aren’t falling, the Tigers are also prone to extended scoring droughts. That was seen earlier this season when slow starts plagued Mizzou.
The most recent example was in the 69-59 loss to Tennessee. The game was back-and-forth and it looked to end that way. But a late 8-0 run from Tennessee was too much for the Tigers to overcome. Martin said those quick stretches come down to simply putting the ball in the hoop, though he said it’s easier said than done.
“That’s just our concentration and focus,” guard Mark Smith said. “We definitely know what we’re capable of but the little things, turnovers, fouls. Just key stuff like that. Just kills that energy for us a little bit. I definitely think we’re just maturing as a team. I feel like each and every game we are getting better in some aspects.”
Martin said Tilmon won’t play in Saturday’s game, adding the forward’s injury is considered “day-to-day.” That puts extra pressure on the rest of the Tigers to perform as they look to earn their first SEC win of the season.
“There was an urgency as soon as SEC play started,” Dru Smith said. “We haven’t got that done the first two games. But we know we definitely have to get one.”
This story was originally published January 10, 2020 at 3:20 PM.