Jan. 27, 2000
Texas A&M (6-11, 2-4) at Missouri (11-6, 4-1)
Jan. 29, 2000 - Columbia, Mo.
TIPOFF: 12:45 p.m. (central).
ARENA: Hearnes Center (13,300). Opened in 1972. MU is 352-60 alltime at Hearnes.
RADIO: Tiger Network (Mike Kelly, play-by-play/Gary Link, color). Carried on more than 50 stations statewide, and on the Internet at www.mutigers.com.
TV: ESPN Regional (Big 12 Conference Package). Dave Armstrong, play-by-play, Jon Sundvold, color. A list of statewide affiliates carrying the game is on page 7 of these notes.
RANKINGS: MU is receiving votes in both polls, A&M is not ranked.
SERIES: MU leads, 5-1, and has won two of three meetings since the inception of the Big 12 Conference. A&M is 0-2 in Columbia.
COACHES:
Missouri: Quin Snyder (Duke '89), 11-6 at MU (1st season), 11-6 overall (1st season).
Texas A&M: Melvin Watkins (UNC-Charlotte '77), 18-26 at A&M (2nd season), 60-46 overall (4th season). Watkins is 0-1 vs. Missouri.
OFFICIALS: Will be announced prior to tipoff.
TIGERS LOOK FOR MU-RECORD 5TH STRAIGHT BIG 12 WIN SATURDAY
The Missouri Tigers (11-6 overall, 4-1 in Big 12 Conference play) look to add to a league-best four-game winning streak on Saturday, as they play host to the Texas A&M Aggies (6-11, 2-4). Tipoff is set for 12:45 p.m.
Missouri has not played since dismantling 7th-ranked Kansas last Saturday in Columbia, 81-59. It was KU's worst loss in nearly 10 years. If the Tigers win Saturday, it would give MU five straight wins in Big 12 play, which would be a school record, since the inception of the league in 1996.
Texas A&M is coming off a tough 65-58 loss at Iowa State on Wednesday, a game in which the Aggies led in the final four minutes. A&M, which starts four freshmen, has league wins over Oklahoma State and Texas Tech.
MISSOURI TIGERS (11-6, 4-1)
(Probable Starting Lineup/Just an SID's best guess)
| P | NO | NAME | HT | WT | YR | HOMETOWN | PPG/RPG |
| F | 24 | Jeff Hafer*** | 6-5 | 212 | Sr. | Joplin, Mo. | 7.2 / 3.2 |
| C | 33 | Tajudeen Soyoye | 6-9 | 236 | Jr. | Lagos, Nigeria | 10.8 / 6.4 |
| G | 5 | Keyon Dooling* | 6-3 | 184 | So. | Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. | 16.1 / 2.4 |
| G | 12 | Brian Grawer** | 6-0 | 165 | Jr. | St. Louis, Mo. | 6.9 / 2.8 |
| G | 4 | Clarence Gilbert* | 6-2 | 197 | So. | Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. | 13.9 / 3.5 |
TEXAS A&M AGGIES (6-11, 2-4)
(Probable Starting Lineup/Just an SID's best guess)
| P | NO | NAME | HT | WT | YR | HOMETOWN | PPG/RPG |
| F | 14 | Tomas Ress | 6-9 | 207 | Fr. | Solorno, Italy | 3.3 / 1.8 |
| F | 52 | Jerald Brown*** | 6-7 | 218 | Sr. | Houston, Texas | 6.0 / 3.5 |
| C | 44 | Andy Slocum | 6-11 | 252 | Fr. | West Monroe, La. | 4.0 / 2.8 |
| G | 4 | Jamaal Gilchrist | 5-10 | 187 | Fr. | Washington, D.C. | 9.1 / 4.0 |
| G | 32 | Bernard King | 6-3 | 178 | Fr. | Gibsland, La. | 15.9 / 4.9 |
MISSOURI-TEXAS A&M SERIES
Missouri and Texas A&M will be meeting for just the seventh time when they tip off Saturday afternoon in Columbia.
MU leads the series by a 5-1 margin, and has won two of three meetings since the formation of the Big 12 Conference in the 1996-97 season.
The Tigers have won two straight, including a 96-91 win last year in College Station, and a 73-60 win in Columbia in 1998.
The Aggies are 0-2 in Columbia.
LAST YEAR AT COLLEGE STATION
MU 96, TEXAS A&M 91Jan. 9, 1999 -- C. Station, Texas
Missouri hit 5-of-6 free throws in the final two minutes to hold on for a wild 96-91 win. MU held a 15-point lead with 14 minutes left in the game, and appeared on its way to a comfortable win. But the Aggies wouldn't cooperate, as they broke off a 27-10 run to take an 84-82 lead with seven minutes left. It was a seesaw affair from there, with six ties the rest of the way. The last came with 2:25 in the game, when John Woods, who would finish with a game-high 24 points, hit a jumper in the lane to tie it up at 91. The Tigers held A&M scoreless the rest of the way.
| MU (96) | FG | 3PT | FT | RB | A | PF | TP |
| Parker - f | 3-5 | 1-1 | 1-2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 8 |
| White - f | 9-13 | 1-2 | 2-3 | 7 | 2 | 5 | 21 |
| Hardge - c | 0-4 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
| Grawer - g | 6-11 | 4-7 | 2-2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 18 |
| Woods - g | 9-13 | 3-4 | 3-4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 24 |
| Gilbert | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Dooling | 0-2 | 0-1 | 4-6 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| Hafer | 3-5 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
| Rowan | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Schumacher | 3-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 6 |
| Totals | 34-60 | 11-17 | 17-23 | 31 | 28 | 22 | 96 |
| A&M (91) | FG | 3PT | FT | RB | A | PF | TP |
| Jones - f | 7-9 | 0-0 | 9-12 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 23 |
| White - c | 2-4 | 0-0 | 4-6 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| Clayton - g | 3-6 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| Cook - g | 7-17 | 1-7 | 1-6 | 3 | 14 | 1 | 16 |
| Brown - g | 4-6 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Wise | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Schmidt | 4-6 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 11 |
| Jack | 2-3 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Leatherman | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Jacobs | 2-4 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Totals | 32-57 | 9-21 | 18-28 | 27 | 28 | 19 | 91 |
Officials: Kaster, Whitehead, Thibodeaux
| Missouri | 55 | 41 | - 96 | ||
| Texas A&M | 46 | 45 | - 91 |
Attendance: 2,936
RAMS MANIA
Most experts predict that the St. Louis Rams will win the Superbowl over what should be the Houston Oilers.
The Tigers have jumped on the Rams bandwagon, as they've picked the homestate team by a 10-1 margin. Clarence Gilbert is the sole dissenter, as he picked the Titans (Oilers) to win. Anyone other than Gilbert might be laughed at, but he's so hot right now, his pick shouldn't be discounted.
Here's a look, just for fun, at how the Tigers see the game turning out Sunday:
| Brian Grawer | Rams, 31-24 |
| Josh Kroenke | Rams, 35-28 |
| Clarence Gilbert | Titans, 21-7 |
| Johnnie Parker | Rams, 30-14 |
| Kenge Stevenson | Rams, 42-17 |
| Keyon Dooling | Rams, 24-21 |
| Kareem Rush | Rams, 31-14 |
| Tajudeen Soyoye | Nigeria 2, USA 0 |
| Mark Wampler | Rams, 38-23 |
| Pat Schumacher | Rams, 14-3 |
| Jeff Hafer | Rams, 35-21 |
| Justin Gage | Rams, 31-21 |
STREAKING TIGERS
To paraphrase a cheesy 70's song, "If streaking is wrong, the Tigers don't want to be right."
What we're trying to say here is that MU looks to extend its four-game winning streak Saturday when they host the Texas A&M Aggies.
MU's four-game winning streak is currently the longest in the Big 12 Conference. No other team has won more than two straight games, entering Saturday's games.
MORE ON STREAKS
If Mizzou claims a win Saturday vs. A&M, it would give MU five straight Big 12 Conference wins. That would be a school record, since the league formed in 1996. The previous long was four games, which was accomplished last year.
START ME UP
With a 4-1 record through five games, Missouri is already off to its best start since the formation of the Big 12 Conference.
A win Saturday would give the Tigers a 5-1 league record, which would be one game better than they've ever stood through six games in Big 12 play. If they follow the progression pattern below, look for the Tigers to make some noise this season.
Here's a look at how the Tigers have started the league season in the past three years:
| Year | 1st 6 | Overall (Place) | |
| 1996-97 | 2-4 | 5-11 (10th) | |
| 1997-98 | 3-3 | 8-8 (5th) | |
| 1998-99 | 4-2 | 11-5 (2nd) |
FOUR FORMER TIGERS HONORED
Four former Tiger basketball standouts will be honored this weekend, as they will be inducted into the MU Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.
Joining the Hall this year include former players Kim Anderson, Melvin Booker, Ricky Frazier and Woody Hatfield.
KIM ANDERSON - Currently in his first year as director of basketball operations for the Big 12 Conference, Anderson was a junior forward on Norm Stewart's first Big Eight Conference championship team in 1976, then led the league in scoring and was it's "Player of the Year" in 1977. He tallied 1,289 points in his career to rank among MU's top-20 alltime scorers. From 1982 until 1999, he was an assistant coach, including 12 years at MU and six others at Baylor.
MELVIN BOOKER - Booker was the catalyst for MU's 14-0 run through the Big Eight Conference in 1994, and eventual advancement to the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. He was an all-Big Eight selection as a junior (15.8 ppg) and senior (18.1 ppg), and was a first-team all-American in 1994. He ranks fifth in school history in scoring (1,697 points) and second in both three-point field goals (183) and assists (488). Booker is currently playing in Europe, and will not be in attendance this weekend.
RICKY FRAZIER - Played on three Big Eight Conference championship and NCAA Tournament teams from 1980-82. He was all-Big Eight and all-District in 1981 and '82 and Big Eight Player of the Year and all-America in 1982. He was selected to MU's "Team of the Decade" for the 1980s, and was drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the second round of the 1982 NBA Draft.
WOODY HATFIELD - Hatfield starred at MU in football, basketball and track and field in the 1930s, and will be inducted as part of the Pioneer Era (1890-1966).
THE QUIN-TISENNTIALS
The 15th head coach in Missouri basketball history, Quin Snyder is 11-6 in his first season as a head coach. He notched his first career win Nov. 13th vs. Princeton, when the Tigers grabbed a 51-48 victory in the NABC Classic in Syracuse, N.Y. His first win in the Big 12 Conference came on Jan. 12th, as the Tigers jumped Colorado, 100-86. His first-ever road win will go down in the books as a 74-72 win at Baylor on Jan. 18th.
An exciting new era began at Missouri this past April, when Snyder was introduced as men's head basketball coach by Director of Athletics Michael Alden.
Snyder, an assistant coach at Duke University the past four years, is just the fifth different head coach at Missouri since 1926.
Snyder's mission is to take the Tiger program to the next level. And if that next level represents the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament, Snyder will be a repeat visitor. In 10 years at Duke, he took part in five Final Fours - three as a player (1986, 88, 89) and two more as a coach (1994, 99). For those of you keeping score at home, that's exactly five more Final Fours than Mizzou has qualified for in its previous 93 years.
Snyder had served as Duke's associate head coach the past two seasons, and was entrusted with numerous on-court coaching responsibilities, as well as recruiting duties for the Blue Devils by Head Coach Mike Krzyzewski. He was widely credited with recruiting the group of student-athletes (including 1999 national player-of-the-year Elton Brand) at Duke who compiled a 37-2 record last year and finished as NCAA runners-up.
Snyder and his wife, Helen, were married on Sept. 24th of this year. Snyder celebrated his 33rd birthday on Oct. 30th.
OFFENSE GETTING UNTRACKED
Since conference season rolled around, the Missouri has made itself into one of the league's top offensive units, as the Tigers rank as the Big 12's 2nd-highest scoring team in league games, with an 81.8 per-game average entering Saturday's game with Texas A&M.
In conference play, MU also leads the league in field goal percentage (49.8%) and free throw percentage (72.9%) and is second in three-point shooting (43.5%).
The turnaround in offensive performance has been dramatic for the Tigers. Entering the league season, MU ranked 12th in the league in field goal percentage.
MU is coming off an outstanding performance against #7 Kansas, in which the Tigers shot 54.7% from the floor, including 50.0% from three-point land (11-of-22).
In a 100-86 win over Colorado on Jan. 12th, the Tigers had a brilliant offensive performance. Missouri shot a scintillating 64.6% from the floor against the 'Buffs, which is the best shooting day for an MU team since the Tigers hit for 64.7% against Chicago State on Dec. 2, 1995. It's also the best mark put forth by a Tiger team since the inception of the Big 12 Conference. The previous Big 12 best by MU was a 56.7% shooting day at Texas A&M in 1999.
In scoring 100 points for the first time since beating Southern, 111-69 on Dec. 30, 1996, the Tigers' offensive prowess was impressive, considering the fact that just eight days earlier, MU suffered through its worst shooting performance in over 22 years. On Jan. 8th, MU fell to Winthrop, 51-46, in a game in which the Tigers made just 25.0% of their shots. That was MU's lowest output since shooting 23.9% in a 96-49 loss to Kansas on Dec. 28, 1977.
GILBERT LEADS BIG 12 IN SCORING
Sophomore guard Clarence Gilbert enters Saturday's game as the top scorer in Big 12 Conference games, as he's scoring at a 22.4 points per game clip. He leads OU's Eduardo Najera, who is second, at 20.4 ppg.
Gilbert is coming off a performance against Kansas that will have Tiger fans talking for a long time. Against the Jayhawks, Gilbert scored a career-high 27 points, and didn't even play the last 6:09 because of an ankle sprain.
Gilbert hit 7-of-10 three pointers against KU, including a torrid stretch where he hit five straight treys to push MU out to a 56-39 lead with 12:41 left in the game. He also led the team with six rebounds, and added four assists.
Gilbert celebrated his 20th birthday on Jan. 15th vs. Kansas State by scoring 25 points and grabbing six rebounds. In Big 12 games, he's now scored 26 points (at Iowa State), 19 points (vs. Colorado), 25 points (vs. KSU), 15 points (at Baylor) and 27 points (vs. Kansas).
Gilbert's feats in conference play thus far are pretty impressive, given the fact that he averaged just 4.8 points a game in Big 12 play last year as a freshman.
He also ranks 1st in league games with 26 three-pointers made, and in three-point shooting percentage (56.5%). His season scoring average of 13.9 currently ranks 17th in the league.
TIGER QUICK FACTS
- Sophomore guard Keyon Dooling has really excelled in running the team of late, as he's turned in consecutive games with seven assists apiece. He currently ranks 10th in the Big 12, with a scoring average of 16.1 points a game. He's coming off a solid game vs. Kansas, when he scored 12 points and added seven assists and three rebounds. Two weeks ago vs. Colorado, he was near-perfect when he scored 25 points on 7-of-8 shooting, including a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point land. He also was good on 7-of-8 free throws on the night, and added five assists. His 25 points tied a career high, and he's accomplished that three times this season - against Princeton, #15 Illinois and Colorado.
- Junior center tajudeen soyoye notched the second double-double of his career last Tuesday at Baylor, as he racked up 14 points and added 11 rebounds in 31 minutes of play. He followed up with a solid game against Kansas, when he scored 16 points and held KU's Eric Chenowith to six points and five rebounds. MU is now 11-1 on the year when he plays 26 minutes or more, and is winless (0-5) when he plays 25 minutes or fewer. Soyoye currently ranks 9th in the Big 12 with a season field goal rate of 55.8 percent.
- Junior guard BRIAN GRAWER scored 14 points two Saturdays ago vs. Kansas State, which is just one point shy of his season high. Grawer made 6-of-12 shots on the day, a sign that he could be finding his way out of an extended shooting slump. The career 48 percent shooter is connecting on 31 percent of his shots thus far. Grawer is shooting 91.7 percent from the foul line this year (33-of-36), and would lead the Big 12 in that category, if he had three more makes.
- Johnnie Parker was a key performer in MU's win over Kansas. He scored nine points off the bench (on 4-of-5 FGs), and gave the Tigers a spark when he scored a bucket on MU's last possession of the first half for the third straight game. He currently ranks 3rd in conference play with a field goal percentage of 63.6 percent. Earlier, Parker had followed up a 10-point performance at Iowa State by racking up a career-high 16 points in 20 minutes off the bench vs. Colorado. That gave him his first back-to-back double figure scoring games since he scored 10 points in consecutive games as a freshman against Illinois and Maryland.
- Senior forward Jeff Hafer scored eight points and added a team-best six rebounds vs. Kansas last Saturday, in just 19 minutes of play. Previously, he had a solid effort vs. Baylor, as he scored 15 points, on 7-of-9 shooting. He's averaging 10.6 points per game in Big 12 play, and is shooting 63.3 percent from the floor, which ranks 4th in league games. Hafer scored a career-high 19 points against Colorado, eclipsing the previous best of 18 he had against Coppin State as a sophomore. Hafer hit 12-of-14 free throws on the night, and added four assists.
- Freshman forward justin gage, who entered the Jan. 18th game at Baylor shooting just 46.2 percent from the foul line, calmly nailed a pair of free throws with :16 seconds left to give MU a 73-68 lead, which proved to be the winning points in MU's 74-72 win. Gage is a quarterback on the MU football team who walked on to the basketball team following the conclusion of the football season.
WELCOME BACK, KAREEM!
It's only been a total of nine games, but it's seemed like an eternity for freshman forward Kareem Rush, who returns to the court Saturday against Texas A&M after sitting out MU's last nine games due to an NCAA ruling.
Rush missed games from Dec. 18 through last Saturday vs. Kansas, due to impermissible benefits he received from an AAU coach prior to his enrollment at Missouri.
The University first declared him ineligible on Dec. 14th, and turned in its findings to the NCAA. The NCAA then ruled he must sit out 50 percent of MU's games originally, but reduced the sentence to 33 percent, or nine games. Additionally, Rush will have four years to donate to charity the monetary value of gifts he received from his former coach.
Missouri managed to go 6-3 during Rush's absence, with big wins over #7 Kansas, #15 Illinois and Iowa, but he'll certainly be welcomed back with open arms.
Rush is averaging 10.9 points and 5.1 rebounds a game, numbers which rank 3rd and 2nd, respectively, on the team.
Here's a condensed timeline:
Dec. 14 - MU declares Rush ineligible.
Dec. 18 - Rush misses 1st game vs. Iowa.
Dec. 21 - NCAA says Rush must sit 14 games (50 percent) and repay monetary value of gifts to charity.
Dec. 29 - NCAA lessons suspension to nine games total (33 percent).
MU'S RPI IS A.O.K.
Missouri ranks 34th in the latest RPI rankings, while Texas A&M rates #148 in the land. MU's schedule ranks as the 19th-toughest in the nation currently. The Big 12 Conference is ranked as the #4 league in strength ratings, behind only the Big Ten, Pac-10 and Conference USA.
DEFENSE TIGHTENS THE SCREWS
After giving up 86 points in consecutive games against Iowa State and Colorado, Head Coach Quin Snyder preached to his Tigers the importance of focusing on defense.
The message has been received crystal clear by Snyder's troops, as the Tigers have played stifling defense since. Last Saturday, MU held Kansas to just 36.8% shooting, forced 18 Jayhawk turnovers, and allowed KU to post just 13 assists, on a team which averaged 21 assists per game.
The previous Saturday, MU held Kansas State to 38.9% shooting, including 18.8% from three-point range (3-of-16). Additionally, MU harassed the Wildcats into 20 turnovers, and tied a season high by nabbing 13 steals.
The Tigers have twice held opponents to under 35% - including an opponent season-low mark of 34.5% percent vs. Morgan State.
REBOUND THAT BASKETBALL
Missouri is not exactly what you'd consider a huge team, as only two players on the roster stand 6-foot-9 or taller.
But the Tigers have come up big on the glass recently, as they outrebounded both Colorado and Kansas State. Those performances broke a string of eight straight games in which MU had been outrebounded by foes.
Against KSU, the Tigers enjoyed a 46-33 rebounding advantage, including 16-6 on the offensive end, which led to an 18-4 edge in second chance points in the game. Additionally, MU's starting guard trio of Keyon Dooling (7 rebounds), Clarence Gilbert (6) and Brian Grawer (6) accounted for 19 combined rebounds.
Rebounding also keyed MU's win over Colorado on Jan. 12th. Mizzou outrebounded CU by only one, 30-29, but Colorado came into the game as the Big 12's 2nd-best rebounding team.
In MU's previous six games the outsized Tigers had been outrebounded by a margin of 244-to-170 (an average of 40.7 to 28.3), including a season-high deficit of 18 against Kentucky (44-to-26).
Missouri is averaging 33.1 rebounds a game entering the Texas A&M contest. The Tigers are 5-0 when outrebounding their opponent, and 5-5 when losing the battle of the boards.
ACHIEVING A BALANCE
Unlike this SID's checkbook, the Missouri Tigers have showed great balance of late, on the offensive end of things.
MU has had at least four players score in double figures in four of five conference games thus far. MU had five score in double digits against both Iowa State and Colorado, and had four reach that mark vs. Kansas State, and at Baylor. Three Tigers hit the mark last Saturday vs. Kansas, but three others were just one basket away from double figures, as well.
For the season, four Tigers are averaging double figures in scoring. In Big 12 play, four Tigers are scoring in double figures as well, led by Clarence Gilbert's 22.4 per-game standard. Other Tigers in double figures in league play include: Keyon Dooling (15.2 ppg), T.J. Soyoye (13.8), and Jeff Hafer (10.6). One other Tiger, Brian Grawer, is just shy of that mark, at 9.2 points a game.
THE DYNAMIC DUO
Batman and Robin beware, Missouri can claim a pretty potent duo of its own, in sophomore guards Keyon Dooling and Clarence Gilbert.
Dooling and Gilbert, childhood friends and high school teammates from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., are the top two scorers on the Tiger squad, entering the Texas A&M contest.
Dooling leads all MU scorers, and ranks 10th in the Big 12, with an average of 16.1 points a game. He leads the team in free throws made and attempted, blocked shots and minutes played, and is second on the squad in field goals made, assists, steals and three point field goals made.
Gilbert is second on the team with a scoring average of 13.9 points a game, more than three times his freshman scoring average of 4.2. Gilbert is averaging 22.4 points a game in league play, a statistic which currently leads the league. For the season, he's shooting 46.3% from three-point range, up from 23.7% a year ago.
GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES
Missouri has used the three-point shot to its advantage this year. The Tigers enter the Texas A&M game as the top three-point outfit in the Big 12 Conference. Through 17 games, Missouri has hit 155-of-415 three pointers, both totals which are tops in the Big 12 Conference thus far.
MU has made at least 10 three pointers in a game seven times on the year, and last Saturday hit 11-of-22 attempts against Kansas. On Jan. 12th, the Tigers scorched the nets vs. Colorado, when MU hit 10-of-15 attempts for a season-best 66.7% clip.
Ironically, however, MU scored a season-high 100 points against Colorado, but the 15 three point attempts were the fewest they've tried this season.
Taking a look at the season stats, it appears that when MU tries fewer threes, they are more successful. The three games in which MU has attempted the fewest number of threes this year, MU is 3-0. The three games in which they have attempted the most number of threes this year, the Tigers are just 1-2. Here's a breakdown:
| 15 vs. Colorado | W |
| 17 vs. SMU | W |
| 18 at Baylor | W |
| 31 vs. Morgan State | W |
| 30 vs. Indiana | L |
| 30 vs. Winthrop | L |
MU tied a single game school record back on Nov. 27th when it made 15 threes in a rout of Morgan State. The 15 threes made tied the record previously accomplished in 1997 vs. Wake Forest and in 1998 vs. Kansas State.
Seven different Tigers dialed long distance vs. Morgan State, including freshman Josh Kroenke, who came off the bench to nail five treys for the second straight game.
Conversely, Tiger opponents have yet to reach double digits in threes made for a game. Princeton had an opponent high when they hit eight treys on Nov. 13 against the Tigers.
Season records to keep an eye on include 214 three-pointers made and 580 treys attempted, both by the 1997-98 squad. Through 17 games, the Tigers are on pace to make 264 three pointers in 708 attempts.
GETTING TO THE LINE
All season long, Tiger Coach Quin Snyder has preached the importance of driving the ball, which leads to open shots and getting fouled. Missouri's focus on being aggressive offensively led to a big night from the foul line against Colorado, as the Tigers' efforts resulted in a season-high 28 made free throws. MU shot a solid 77.8% from the line (28-of-38), which was a big factor in the outcome of the game, as CU was 19-of-28 on the night.
MU followed up by making 14-of-19 free throws against Kansas State, and made 16-of-22 at Baylor, including 7-of-8 shots in the game's final two minutes. In league games, MU leads the conference with a 72.9% rate from the foul line.
MU faced a huge deficit at the foul line at Iowa State, as the Cyclones hit 24-of-34 free throws, compared to just 8-of-11 for the Tigers. MU actually outscored ISU by a 73-62 margin from the field, but couldn't overcome the Cyclones advantage from the line.
MU had trouble getting to the line against Indiana. In that game, MU earned only eight free throw attempts, making six, while the Hoosiers connected on 18-of-27 on the night - clearly a deciding factor in IU's five-point win.
TIGERS SIGN THREE PREP BLUE-
CHIPPERS DURING EARLY PERIOD
MU Head Coach Quin Snyder has signed three high school standouts in what looks to become one of the nation's top recruiting classes.
During the early signing period, which ran from Nov. 10-17, Snyder inked prep stars Rickey Paulding, Arthur Johnson and Wesley Stokes to national letters of intent.
Here's a look at each of them:
RICKEY PAULDING
Paulding, a 6-foot-5 guard from Detroit Renaissance High School, is considered one of the nation's top 30 prep prospects, and has been selected to the pre-season all-American team by Street & Smith Magazine . He averaged 25.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots per game last season at Renaissance High, and was selected to Michigan's all-state team in 1999. His point total led the extremely competitive Detroit Public School League last year.
Paulding selected Missouri over Michigan State, Ohio State and Miami, Fla.
ARTHUR JOHNSON
Johnson, a 6-foot-9 power forward from Detroit Pershing High School, is considered a top 30 national prospect by many recruiting services. He's one of the top big men in the country, and is coming off a season in which he averaged 16 points and 13 rebounds per game as a junior. He led his Pershing team to a top-five ranking in the state last year, and earned all-state honors for his efforts.
Johnson selected Missouri over Miami, Fla., Michigan, Ohio State and Michigan State. His high school coach is Arnold Neville.
WESLEY STOKES
Stokes, a 5-foot-10 point guard out of Long Beach Poly, is considered the top-rated point guard prospect in the West, and is a top-50 national recruit. Stokes averaged 16 points, eight assists and four steals per game last year as a junior, and garnered much attention after some superb play in various summer all-star camps.
Stokes selected Missouri over Southern California, San Diego State, Texas and Massachusetts. His high school coach is Ron Palmer, who directed Long Beach Poly to a 24-7 record last season, and the quarterfinals of the Southern California Regionals. They are a pre-season favorite to win the Southern Section Division I-AA championship, which would be their second in the past four years.
"We're obviously very excited to have such good kids want to join our program," said Quin Snyder. "We get better with all three of them, in different ways."
MIZZOU SETS ATTENDANCE RECORD
Missouri has broken single game attendance records twice in Quin Snyder's first year as head coach.
Last Saturday vs. Kansas, a record 14,098 fans packed the Hearnes Center to see MU crush KU, 81-59. It was the first time over the 14,000 mark for an MU home game.
Previously, Missouri's home game on Dec. 7th vs. Indiana drew 13,782 fans, which broke the record of 13,706 set in 1989 vs. Kansas. It is only the second entry in the top ten that involves a non-conference team.
Here's a listing of the top ten single-game attendance records at Hearnes.
| 1. | 14,098, 1-22-00 vs. Kansas |
| 2. | 13,782, 12-7-99 vs. Indiana |
| 3. | 13,706, 2-11-89 vs. Kansas |
| 4. | 13,645, 1-14-89 vs. Iowa State |
| 5. | 13,610, 2-27-88 vs. Kansas |
| 6. | 13,558, 2-21-88 vs. Oklahoma State |
| 7. | 13,544, 1-23-88 vs. Iowa State |
| 8. | 13,471, 3-3-88 vs. Oklahoma |
| 9. | 13,470, 2-4-89 vs. Kansas State |
| 10. | 13,454, 12-28-88 vs. Arkansas |
TIGERS HIT THE ROAD
When MU plays at Baylor Tuesday evening, the game will mark just the second true road game of the year for the Tigers.
Due to a scheduling rarity, five of the Tigers' six games thus far outside of the Hearnes Center have been played at neutral-court sites. Missouri opened up at the NABC Classic in Syracuse, N.Y., and never faced the host Orangemen. Later, the Tigers played a pair of neutral-site games in St. Louis and closed out 1999 by facing Kentucky in New Orleans, La. MU dropped a 86-81 decision at Iowa State on Jan. 8th to open league play.
The Tigers hold a 1-4 record in games away from the Hearnes Center thus far. Here's a look at the Tigers' numbers this season at home compared to the six games they've played thus far outside the friendly confines of Hearnes:
| Category | Home | Away |
| Record | 7-2 | 2-4 |
| Points | 74.8 | 65.0 |
| Opp. Points | 63.8 | 69.5 |
| FG % | 43.6 | 39.6 |
| Opp. FG % | 41.3 | 50.2 |
| 3-pt. FG % | 35.4 | 39.0 |
| Rebounds | 36.7 | 28.8 |
Individually, numbers which stand out include the following: T.J. Soyoye is averaging 12.3 ppg at Hearnes, and just 7.0 away from home ... Soyoye is shooting an outstanding 59.4% from the floor at Hearnes (41-of-69 FGs), and just 42.4% away from home (14-of-33)...Conversely, leading scorer Keyon Dooling is averaging 20.2 ppg away from Hearnes, compared to 13.8 ppg at home.
TIGER QUICK NOTES
Sophomore forward Matt Rowan left the University of Missouri men's basketball team, and will transfer from MU at the following of the fall semester, as announced Nov. 16th by Head Coach Quin Snyder.
Rowan, a Liberty, Mo. native, did not play in either of Missouri's games at the NABC Classic in Syracuse, N.Y. The 6-foot-7 forward saw limited action last season as a freshman, averaging 0.8 points and 1.4 rebounds in 17 games. He averaged 4.9 minutes played in those contests.
Rowan will remain on scholarship through the end of the fall semester, after which time he will be released from his commitment. By releasing him at the end of the semester, Rowan will be allowed to pursue a number of options. He will be eligible to play immediately at any Division II school, and would have to sit out until the end of the first semester of the 2000-2001 season if he was to choose another Division I program.
"We wish Matt the very best, and we'll do whatever we can to help him with his future plans," said Coach Snyder. "He's made a personal decision that he wants to be in a program where he'll be able to make more of a contribution, and we certainly understand and respect his decision."
A quick check of the MU record book shows that Missouri had never before won a game when shooting worse than 30.0%. The Tigers managed a 51-48 win over Princeton on Nov. 13th despite shooting just 29.4%. The previous low shooting night during a Tiger win was back on Feb. 8, 1995, when MU shot just 30.0%, but beat Iowa State, 59-56 in Columbia.
The first point scored in the Quin Snyder era came on a free throw from T.J. Soyoye. Johnnie Parker hit the first field goal (a three-pointer), got the first steal and blocked shot. Soyoye grabbed the first rebound, and Jeff Hafer was the first sub. Keyon Dooling clinched the first win for Snyder with a pair of free throws late in the game vs. Princeton.
An impressive handful of visitors have come calling in the early season to check out Quin Snyder and his Tigers. Early in the year, Doug Collins, current NBA analyst for NBC Sports, and a former NBA head coach and all-star player, visited Tiger camp. He saw the Tigers three days during his visit, and addressed the Tiger team following one practice.
Also paying a visit to Columbia a few weeks ago was former Duke and Vanderbilt standout Billy McCaffrey. He saw practices on two days before heading out of town.
Earlier this summer, current Detroit Pistons Head Coach Alvin Gentry paid a visit to Columbia. Gentry coached with MU associate head coach John Hammond at Detroit.
INJURY REPORT
Sophomore Clarence Gilbert sprained his left ankle last Saturday vs. Kansas, and did not play the final six minutes of the game. Gilbert did not practice either Monday or Tuesday, but returned to the court Wednesday. He is expected to play Saturday against Texas A&M, but could be less than 100 percent. His 85 percent right now wouldn't be too bad, however!
TIGER FACT-OF-THE-GAME
A win for Missouri on Saturday would give the Tigers five straight Big 12 Conference wins. That would be a school record for MU since the league's inception, back in 1996-97.
SERIES HISTORY
TEXAS A&M(MU Leads, 5-1)
LAST 20 MEETINGS
| 12-22-69 | W, *81-79 | at El Paso |
| 11-30-91 | W, 77-47 | at Columbia |
| 12-5-92 | W, 81-55 | at College Station |
FIRST YEAR IN BIG 12 CONFERENCE
| 1-28-97 | L, 57-61 | at College Station |
| 2-14-98 | W, 73-60 | at Columbia |
| 1-9-99 | W, 96-91 | at College Station |
* Sun Carnival
at Columbia: MU leads, 2-0
at Hearnes: MU leads, 2-0
at College Station: MU leads, 2-1
at Neutral Sites: MU leads, 1-0
Big 12 Conference Games: MU leads, 2-1
Big 12 Tournament Games: No meetings
TIGER COMEBACKS
Missouri has rallied from deficits five times this season to register wins under Quin Snyder. Here's a look at those games:
| Date | Opp. | Deficit (Time) | Final Score |
| 11-13 | Princeton | 9 pts. (13:06, 1st) | 51-48 |
| 11-21 | UNCA | 10 pts. (1:26, 1st) | 75-69 |
| 12-1 | SMU | 6 pts. (5:58, 2nd) | 63-60 |
| 12-21 | Illinois | 14 pts. (8:03, 1st) | 78-72 |
| 1-12 | Colorado | 7 pts. (9:21, 1st) | 100-86 |
MU RECORD WHEN
| 1999-2000 | |
| Ahead at half | 9-1 |
| Behind at half | 2-5 |
| FG% of .450 or more | 7-1 |
| FG% less than .450 | 4-5 |
| Better FG% than opp. | 9-0 |
| Worse FG% than opp. | 2-6 |
| Opp. shoots less than .450 | 6-1 |
| 3FG% of .400 or more | 5-1 |
| 3FG% less than .400 | 6-5 |
| Try more than 20 3FGs | 7-6 |
| Try 20 or less 3FGs | 4-0 |
| Try more FTs than opp. | 7-1 |
| Try less FTs than opp. | 4-5 |
| Bench outscores opp. bench | 3-1 |
| Opp. bench outscores MU bench | 8-4 |
| Outrebound opp. | 5-0 |
| Tied or outrebounded | 6-6 |
| More TOs than opp. | 3-1 |
| Same or fewer TOs | 8-5 |
| Make 10 or more TOs | 9-5 |
| Make less than 10 TOs | 2-1 |
| Score less than 50 pts. | 0-1 |
| Score 50-59 pts. | 1-2 |
| Score 60-69 pts. | 1-1 |
| Score 70-79 pts. | 5-1 |
| Score 80 or more pts. | 4-1 |
| Allow less than 50 pts. | 1-0 |
| Allow 50-59 pts. | 3-1 |
| Allow 60-69 pts. | 4-1 |
| Allow 70-79 pts. | 2-3 |
| Allow 80 or more pts. | 1-1 |
| Overtime | 0-0 |
| Vs. AP Top 25 | 2-1 |
| Home Games | 8-2 |
| Road Games | 1-1 |
| Neutral Site Games | 2-3 |
| Day Games | 5-2 |
| Night Games | 6-4 |
| On Monday | 0-0 |
| On Tuesday | 2-2 |
| On Wednesday | 2-0 |
| On Thursday | 0-1 |
| On Friday | 1-1 |
| On Saturday | 5-1 |
| On Sunday | 1-1 |
| On Mizzou Sports Network | 3-3 |
| On CBS | 0-0 |
| On ESPN | 0-1 |
| On ESPN-Plus | 1-0 |
| On ABC | 1-0 |
GAMES DECIDED BY...
| 5 pts. or less | 3-4 |
| 6-10 pts. | 2-0 |
| 11-19 pts. | 4-2 |
| 20 or more pts. | 2-0 |