Mizzou Tigers showed winning basketball formula against a team it’s about to face again
The issues that have been the crux of Missouri’s lackluster season were on full display in a loss at Vanderbilt on Tuesday.
The Tigers made poor decisions, lacked ball movement and threw up ill-advised three-pointers on offense. On defense, they had untimely breakdowns and committed a cringe-worthy amount of fouls — the Commodores got to the line 35 times.
Sounds familiar doesn’t it?
For much of this season, the Mizzou men’s basketball team hasn’t played a style of basketball that translates to success — at least not with its current roster. There was one SEC opponent that the Tigers displayed a sustainable winning formula against, however. That team comes to Columbia on Saturday for a 7:30 p.m. game at Mizzou Arena.
Rewind back to a 78-53 road win over Ole Miss on Jan. 8 and you’d see everything that Missouri head coach Cuonzo Martin’s team should be doing on a nightly basis.
The Tigers took 44 shots in the paint — their most attempts against an SEC opponent all season — and shot their best percentage inside at 63.6%. Driving into the paint allowed them to get to the free-throw line 14 times, and they only sent the Rebels there 13 times, the second-fewest free throws they’ve allowed any league opponent. The most impressive — and essential — part: They only shot seven three-pointers, prioritizing ball movement and quality looks over ill-advised attempts.
“It’s hard to dictate because every matchup is different,” Martin said on Friday. “Sometimes you match up better with certain teams. And sometimes the ball is just going, you’re making shots, you’re making plays, and sometimes you have to grind them out.”
Looking at the season as a whole, the Tigers (9-14, 3-7 SEC) are averaging 40.1 two-point attempts in their nine wins compared to 37.0 such shots in their 14 losses. They’re making them at a much higher rate too: They’ve averaged 22.4 made field goals inside the arc in wins compared to 17.1 in losses. And the difference is even more stark when specifically looking at Mizzou’s success in the paint: It has averaged 36.7 points there in victories versus 28.6 in defeats.
When Missouri does not drive the ball inside, there are less opportunities to draw fouls. That has a direct correlation with wins as well.
In each of Missouri’s SEC victories this season, it has taken more attempts at the free-throw line than from beyond the arc, as a result of getting inside. The team is winless in the five SEC games that it’s chucked up more three-pointers than free opportunities at the charity stripe. MU barely gets to the line against league competition though; it has attempted 141 free throws in SEC games, which ranks dead last.
Meanwhile, the Tigers are sending their opponents to the free-throw line at an alarming rate, often unable to defend without fouling. In SEC games, Missouri’s opponents have gone to the line 22.5 times on average per game, resulting in 16.1 made free-throws per contest.
As much as all of these issues have plagued Missouri this season, they weren’t a factor when the team defeated Mississippi. That January trouncing could have been a turning point of sorts in the season. And while there has been some improvement from the Tigers since, it hasn’t resulted in wins — they have lost five of their last six games — and the most recent result at Vanderbilt put the team’s glaring issues on full display against a squad it was capable of beating.
“I think we’ve improved as a team in all those areas — shooting the ball, offensive production, defensively,” Martin said. “I just think you have to be consistent with it. And it’s a matter of just making shots. I mean, you make shots, you defend hard, you execute what we’re trying to do, you can’t have slippage.
“… You play the game, you start the game, you finish the game the same way. You have to play hard, you have to stay focused, you have to be prepared, accountable for your actions, understanding what you’re trying to do. So I think that’s the biggest thing.”
It’s paramount for Mizzou to repeat the pattern it used the first time against Ole Miss this Saturday. Especially so because of what’s at stake.
Let’s be realistic: The Tigers aren’t making the NCAA Tournament (barring a miracle run in the SEC Tournament), and even the NIT feels like a stretch with the team under .500. But with Mizzou and Mississippi separated by half a game in the conference standings and three games separating sixth place from 13th, this weekend’s contest could be a determining factor in whether MU finishes second to last or has a shot to end up closer to the middle of the pack.
“I’ve never been consumed with us looking at a schedule,” Martin said. “...You tackle what’s in front of you, and you go as hard as you can go and then the next one presents itself. And then when the smoke clears you’ll be where you need to be because you’re focused on the task at hand.”
This story was originally published February 11, 2022 at 5:55 PM.
