By: Grant Salsman
What a week it was for the Mizzou men’s basketball team.
The Tigers had a furious 16-point comeback against Cal to win 98-93. They then followed that up with a historic 76-67 victory over Kansas.
Here are five takeaways from the big week.
This team is gritty.
This Missouri team feels like a mid-2000s throwback. The Tigers are not afraid to beat you driving inside and making tough buckets. They also fly around on the defensive end in two games they forced 37 turnovers and recorded 21 steals. They only made a combined seven 3-pointers but still found ways to win.
Dennis Gates coached his two best games at Missouri.
It is Gates’ third season at Mizzou and these two games feel like his best work. He managed his rotations perfectly in the second-half comeback against Cal. He then had a perfect plan against the Jayhawks having his team firing in the first half. Missouri led by 14 at halftime. This team seems to form perfectly to what Gates has been looking for: long defensive guards and size down low.
Tamar Bates can carry this team.
Bates etched himself in Missouri lore forever after a 29-point performance against Kansas. He went 9-for-15 from the field and added a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line. The graduate guard also had 13 of his 15 points against Cal in the second half. Bates has been able to carry the load offensively while Caleb Grill remains out. Grill missed the Cal and Kansas games with a neck injury.
Josh Gray is a total game-changer.
Gray adds something that Missouri did not have last season: size and athleticism. He was able to use his strength to control the paint against the Jayhawks. He grabbed 10 rebounds and was a presence the entire game both on offense and defense. On the defensive side, he played the middle of the Tigers’ 2-3 zone clogging the paint and forcing Kansas into turnovers and bad shots. On the offensive side, his screens created space in the lane for guards like Bates and Anthony Robinson II. The combination of Gray and Peyton Marshall at center for the Tigers could prove to be deadly for opposing teams.
Missouri has tournament potential.
Many fans did not believe in this team entering the season. The Tigers ended last year winless in the SEC and were a program seeking an identity. The SEC is by far the best conference in college basketball and it will not be easy, but picking up a quad one victory this early is a very bright sign. Missouri needs to carry this momentum into the SEC schedule. If the Tigers can finish non-conference undefeated, including a win over rival Illinois they will be set up entering SEC play.
(Photo credit: LG Patterson)
