Missouri Tigers vs. Arkansas Razorbacks in SEC Tournament: Prediction, time, TV, line
Missouri has won its way in the SEC men’s basketball tournament quarterfinals for the fourth time in its nine SEC seasons and will take on Arkansas. The teams split the regular-season series.
THE DETAILS
When: 6 p.m. Friday
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
TV: SEC Network
Radio: KMBZ (98.1 FM)
Betting line: Arkansas by 5
PROJECTED LINEUPS
P | No. | Arkansas | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 23 | Connon Vanover | 7-3 | R-So. | 7.1 |
F | 0 | Justin Smith | 6-7 | Gr. | 12.5 |
G | 11 | Jalen Tate | 6-6 | Gr. | 10.9 |
G | 5 | Moses Moody | 6-6 | Fr. | 17.5 |
G | 4 | Davonte Davis | 6-3 | Fr. | 7.5 |
P | No. | Missouri | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
F | 23 | Jeremiah Tilmon | 6-10 | Sr. | 12.5 |
F | 24 | Kobe Brown | 6-7 | So. | 7.9 |
G | 13 | Mark Smith | 6-5 | Sr. | 10.0 |
G | 1 | Xavier Pinson | 6-2 | Jr. | 14.0 |
G | 12 | Dru Smith | 6-3 | Sr. | 14.1 |
PREDICTION
About No. 8 Arkansas (21-5): Not many hotter teams in college basketball than the Razorbacks, who have won eight in a row and 11 of 12. The only loss in the run was to Oklahoma State in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. The run allowed Arkansas to zoom into a second-place SEC finish. Freshman Moses Moody continues to impress. His 17.5 scoring average is third among freshman nationally. He was voted to the All-SEC first team and is the league’s newcomer of the year.
About Missouri (16-8): The last time the teams met, Missouri was ranked 10th and the Razorbacks were outside the polls. Missouri has played Arkansas well twice, winning in Fayetteville and losing in Columbia in overtime without forward Jeremiah Timon. The Tigers, who slogged through a 73-70 victory over Georgia on Thursday, look to advance to the SEC semifinals for the first time in program history. And if Mizzou can stack victories in Nashville it will improve their NCAA Tournament seed, which based on a consensus of mock brackets is a No. 6 or No. 7 seed.
Prediction: The Tigers just missed a season sweep of Arkansas. Mizzou made a season-high 13 three-pointers in the game at Columbia but it was enough as the Razorbacks won 88-81 in overtime. Xavier Pinson had a big game with 23 points and five threes. Pinson also has 23 at Arkansas, and made 12 of 15 free throws.
But the difference-maker at Arkansas was Tilmon. He finished with 25 and 11 rebounds and the Razorbacks had no answer for him around the basket.
Arkansas as evolved into a top 10 team, and Moses Moody has been sensational. He’s a projected first-round draft pick and will look to get his postseason off to a big start. The Tigers have played well against the better teams on their schedule with three victories over teams currently in the top 10.
The Razorbacks will bring out the best in Mizzou. But it won’t be enough.
Arkansas 75, Missouri 72
This story was originally published March 12, 2021 at 5:00 AM.