Mizzou Tigers men’s basketball at Vanderbilt: Prediction, time, TV, lineups
THE DETAILS
When: 8 p.m. Central time Tuesday
Where: Memorial Gymnasium, Nashville, Tennessee
TV: SEC Network
Radio: KMBZ (98.1 FM)
Betting line: Vanderbilt by 7.5
About Vanderbilt (12-10, 4-6 SEC): The Commodores are fresh off an 75-66 upset victory over then-No. 25 LSU last Saturday. It was their first win over a ranked opponent since Feb. 5, 2020. Vanderbilt has three Quad 1 wins this season after not posting any the season prior, but it has also lost to the likes of VCU, Temple and South Carolina. Led by their defense; the Commodores have a 95.9 defensive efficiency rating, which ranks No. 53 in the country, per KenPom. Vanderbilt also boasts the SEC’s leading scorer and preseason player of the year in Scotty Pippen Jr., who is averaging 18.7 points, 3.7 assists and 3.6 rebounds per game. KenPom ranks Vanderbilt No. 80.
About Missouri (9-13, 3-6 SEC): The Tigers bounced back from a four-game losing streak with a 70-66 road win at Texas A&M last Saturday. Mizzou shot 56.5% from the field and forward Kobe Brown looked back to his usual self with a 21-point, six rebound, six assist performance after being held to single-digit scoring in each of the prior four contests. He has proven to be the key to Missouri’s success all season; the team is 6-1 when he scores at least 15 points and hasn’t won a single game in which he’s been held to single-digit scoring. KenPom ranks Missouri No. 127.
PROJECTED LINEUPS
P | No. | Vanderbilt | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
G | 2 | Scotty Pippen Jr. | 6-3 | Jr. | 18.7 |
G | 3 | Rodney Chatman | 6-1 | Sr. | 7.1 |
G/F | 4 | Jordan Wright | 6-6 | Jr. | 12.4 |
F | 10 | Myles Stute | 6-7 | So. | 8.4 |
F | 42 | Quentin Millora-Brown | 6-10 | Sr. | 5.7 |
P | No. | Missouri | Ht. | Yr. | PPG |
G | 5 | “Boogie” Coleman | 6-5 | Jr. | 10.3 |
G | 1 | Amari Davis | 6-2 | Jr. | 10.3 |
G | 12 | DaJuan Gordon | 6-3 | Jr. | 8.6 |
F | 23 | Trevon Brazile | 6-9 | Fr. | 5.6 |
F | 24 | Kobe Brown | 6-8 | Jr. | 13.1 |
PREDICTION
Missouri will try to win consecutive SEC games for the first time all season when it takes on Vanderbilt in Nashville on Tuesday night.
One of the biggest keys for the Tigers in this one will be slowing down Pippen. Without a doubt the centerpiece for the Commodores’ offense, the crafty point guard has scored at least 21 points in 10 games this season. Even when he struggled shooting the ball against LSU last time out, Pippen proved a threat in other ways with nine assists and four steals.
On offense, Mizzou will be tested by Vanderbilt’s three-point defense, which has held conference opponents to an SEC best 28.2% shooting. The Tigers have shot the ball a lot better from deep in conference play compared to an abysmal 24.7% in nonconference action, but a 33.3% mark still isn’t great and they’d be wise to drive into the paint this game. Especially since the Commodores have allowed conference opponents to shoot 54.4% inside the arc, which ranks 12 in the league.
Also of note: There are injuries on both teams that could have an impact. For Missouri, senior guard Javon Pickett has been out for the last two contests with a head injury he suffered against Iowa State. Though he wasn’t dressed in uniform last game, he took some shots in warmups, which should be a positive sign. Vanderbilt head coach Jerry Stackhouse said on Monday that 7-foot center Liam Robbins will be a game-time decision and will be on a 12-14 minutes restriction if he plays. The Minnesota transfer has been injured all year, but he averaged 11.7 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game last season.
KenPom gives Mizzou a 25% chance of winning and the ESPN BPI has the odds at 13.9%.
Vanderbilt 73, Missouri 69
