Missouri Tigers basketball at Texas A&M: Prediction, TV, lineups, bet line, tipoff
THE DETAILS
When: Noon Saturday
Where: Reed Arena, College Station, Texas
TV: SEC Network
Betting line: Missouri by 4
Radio: KMBZ (98.1 FM)
PROJECTED LINEUPS
P | No. | Texas A&M | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 15 | Jonathan Aku | 6-10 | So. | 2.3 |
F | 5 | Emanuel Miller | 6-7 | So. | 16.6 |
G | 2 | Hayden Hefner | 6-6 | Fr. | 2.9 |
G | 20 | Andre Gordon | 6-2 | So. | 9.1 |
G | 11 | Hassan Diarra | 6-2 | Fr. | 6.5 |
P | No. | Missouri | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 23 | Jeremiah Tilmon | 6-10 | Sr. | 11.0 |
F | 24 | Kobe Brown | 6-7 | So. | 6.3 |
G | 13 | Mark Smith | 6-5 | Sr. | 11.9 |
G | 1 | Xavier Pinson | 6-2 | Jr. | 14.8 |
G | 12 | Dru Smith | 6-3 | R-Sr. | 11.3 |
About Texas A&M (7-4, 2-3 SEC): The Aggies have been beat up in their losses, but they’ve pulled out one-possession victories. They weren’t expected to compete much in the SEC, but second-year Aggies coach Buzz Williams had an impressive first season at Texas A&M and hopes to continue that trend. The Aggies are led by leading scorer Emanuel Miller, but they’ve been at their best in defensive slugfests. KenPom has them No. 98.
About No. 17 Missouri (7-2, 1-2 SEC): The Tigers haven’t played a game since Jan. 5 after a positive COVID-19 test paused team activities for a few days. Mizzou had a perfect nonconference slate but struggled in bits in SEC games. The Tigers last played against Mississippi State, where a 14-point lead disappeared in a matter of minutes. Mizzou forward Jeremiah Tilmon has led the way recently, along with a healthy dose of Xavier Pinson. The Tigers will try to get Mark Smith and Dru Smith going after they’ve struggled in the early days of conference play. KenPom ranks them No. 46.
Prediction: It’s been a minute for the Missouri Tigers in what’s been a quiet handful of days. Rust is certainly a concern after what Mizzou showed earlier this season. After a long layoff ahead of Bradley, the Tigers looked lethargic against the Braves and needed a last-second comeback to steal the win. It was a similar story against Tennessee, though the Vols dominated MU in the first game of SEC play.
But it’s a long season and the Tigers are looking to get back on track after their last two games were postponed because COVID-19. MU coach Cuonzo Martin said he anticipates his team being at full strength for Saturday’s game, though guarantees during a pandemic are difficult to come by.
It’s been a common theme in Mizzou games, but expect a ton of fouls and free throws in this game by design. The Tigers and Aggies are some of the best teams in the nation in free throw rate, meaning they get to the line a ton. Texas A&M’s offense has lagged behind its defense, but the Tigers need to limit the fouls and play into opposition’s game.
We’ll say the game is, as expected, an ugly one. The Aggies will try to slow it down into a defensive slugfest, getting to the free throw line to force Mizzou to play out of the half-court offense. Mizzou shows flashes of that offense at its best, which is more than enough to overcome the Aggies and get back to the .500 mark in conference play.
Missouri 65, Texas A&M 58