Missouri Tigers find old conference foe on bracket. And Gonzaga likely would be next
Missouri men’s basketball didn’t have to wait long to know its place in the NCAA Tournament, and the Tigers won’t have to scour video archives to find tape of its opponent.
The West Region was the first revealed on the selection show and Gonzaga, the tournament’s overall top seed, was introduced.
The next game announced on the bracket: No. 9 seed Missouri vs. No. 8 seed Oklahoma in a meeting of old conference foes who met in Kansas City last season. The game tips off at 6:25 p.m. Central time Saturday on the North court at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis and will be broadcast on TNT.
Oklahoma defeated Mizzou 77-66 in the third-place game of the CBE Hall of Fame Classic, and plenty of players from both teams are back.
“I remember they had some shooters in that game,” Missouri forward Jeremiah Tilmon said.
Good memory. Oklahoma hit its first eight shots in that game, including five three-pointers.
Austin Reaves led the Sooners with 19 points and he’s an All-Big 12 selection this season.
Also back is Brady Manek, who scored 17 that night. Manek is a 6-9 forward who averages five three-point attempts per game and causes matchup problems.
Missouri’s top eight players from that game are back. Mark Smith had 18, Tilmon 13 and Torrance Watson 11.
The teams also have an NCAA Tournament history. Oklahoma defeated Missouri in the 2002 West Region final.
Tigers coach Cuonzo Martin has a more recent memory of the Sooners. A week before Mizzou defeated Alabama — a No. 2 seed — Oklahoma did the same.
“It’s a game I remember vividly,” Martin said. “And (Oklahoma) played without its best scorer.”
That’s correct. Reaves was one of two starters missing for Oklahoma that day because of COVID-19 protocols. Yet the Sooners put together a 66-61 victory in Norman. That was part of stretch where Oklahoma won eight of nine, including four over ranked teams.
That run catapulted the Sooners into the top 10. They were No. 25 in last week’s poll and are bound to fall out this week.
Both teams are coming in cold. Mizzou is 3-6 in its last nine games. They fell to Arkansas in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
“Tournament time is a fresh start for teams, exciting times,” Martin said.
Oklahoma has lost five of six. The only victory came against Iowa State in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament. The Sooners are coming off a loss to Kansas in the tournament semifinals.
Still, Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger believes his team is in good shape.
“I like our team a lot,” Kruger said. “This group’s done an amazing job when you think back in November where we’re at, the progress we’ve made.”
Missouri watched the selection show from a suite at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, home of the Indy 500. Several teams were there, having already traveled to the tournament site.
Were the Tigers happy with their draw? Many mock brackets had the Tigers as a No. 7 seed.
“We’re OK with it,” Tilmon said. “We just wanted to see our name get called honestly. It didn’t matter who we were going against.”
They didn’t wait long. And if Missouri, a two-point underdog in an early betting line, can top Oklahoma, No. 1 Gonzaga likely awaits in Monday’s second-round game. That is if the Zags get past the winner of the opening round game between Norfolk State and Appalachian State.
This story was originally published March 14, 2021 at 7:11 PM.