March 7, 2000
COLUMBIA, Mo. - The 6th-seeded Missouri Tigers (17-11 overall, 10-6 in Big 12 Conference play) head to Kansas City, where they'll take on the 11th-seeded Texas Tech Red Raiders (12-15, 3-13) in the first round of the 2000 Big 12 Tournament. Tipoff is set for 8:20 p.m. Thursday. The winner will advance to the tournament quarterfinals, where they'll play 3rd-seeded Oklahoma (24-5, 12-4) at 8:20 p.m. Friday.
Missouri won the only meeting this season between the two schools by an 86-76 count in Lubbock back on Feb. 15th. MU super-freshman Kareem Rush led a Tiger comeback from an 11-point second-half deficit, by scoring a career-high 31 points. Mizzou used an incredible 17-0 run over the final 6:42 of the game to overcome a 76-69 deficit.
Missouri is coming off a last-second loss at #23 Kansas Sunday afternoon, while Tech was handed an 88-67 loss at Colorado on Saturday. The Red Raiders rebounded from an 0-9 start in Big 12 play to go 3-4 over their last seven games.
MU's last six losses, and eight of 11 overall, have come against opponents which are currently ranked in the A.P. top-25 poll.
POST-SEASON HONORS ROLL IN
Missouri has enjoyed quite a bit of success in its first year under Head Coach Quin Snyder, and the accolades are beginning to flow.
On Monday, three different Tigers were honored as part of the Associated Press year-end awards.
Sophomore guard Keyon Dooling was named a 2nd-team all-Big 12 selection, for his play in leading the Tigers to a 10-6 mark in league play. Dooling was an honorable mention all-Big 12 pick last year as a freshman, and was a Big 12 all-freshman team pick, as well.
Freshman phenom Kareem Rush made enough of an impression upon league scribes to be named an honorable mention all-Big 12 selection, as he set an MU freshman scoring record. Rush also was named to the Big 12 all-freshman team, as well as part of the all-bench team.
Sophomore guard Clarence Gilbert was named to the Big 12 all-improved team, as the Fort Lauderdale, Fla. native averaged 12.9 points a game this year - nearly three times as much as his average of 4.8 points a game last year as a freshman at Mizzou.
4th Annual Phillips 66/Big 12 Tournament
March 9-12, 2000 - Kemper Arena - Kansas City, Mo.
| FIRST-ROUND SCHEDULE -- Thursday, March 9 | ||
| Game 1 | #9 Baylor (13-14/4-12) vs. #8 Nebraska (11-18/4-12) | 12:00 p.m. CST |
| Game 2 | #12 Kansas State (9-18/2-14) vs. #5 Kansas (22-8, 11-5) | 2:20 p.m. CST |
| Game 3 | #10 Texas A&M (8-19/4-12) vs. #7 Colorado (17-12/7-9) | 6:00 p.m. CST |
| Game 4 | #11 Texas Tech (12-15/3-13) vs. #6 Missouri (17-11/10-6 | 8:20 p.m. CST |
| SECOND-ROUND SCHEDULE -- Friday, March 10 | ||
| Game 5 | Baylor/Nebraska vs. #1 Iowa State (26-4/14-2) | 12:00 p.m. CST |
| Game 6 | Kansas State/Kansas vs. #4 Oklahoma State (23-5/12-4) | 2:20 p.m. CST |
| Game 7 | Texas A&M/Colorado vs. #2 Texas (22-7/13-3) | 6:00 p.m. CST |
| Game 8 | Texas Tech/Missouri vs. #3 Oklahoma (24-5/12-4) | 8:20 p.m. CST |
| SEMIFINAL SCHEDULE -- Saturday, March 11 | ||
| Game 9 | Game 5 winner vs. Game 6 winner | 1:00 p.m. CST |
| Game 10 | Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner | 3:20 p.m. CST |
| CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE -- Sunday, March 12 | ||
| Game 11 | Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner | 2:00 p.m. CST |
THE QUIN-TISENNTIALS
The 15th head coach in Missouri basketball history, Quin Snyder is 17-11 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 1999. Snyder celebrated his 33rd birthday on Oct. 30th.
SNYDER TIES MU COACHING MARK
With a win on March 1 against Nebraska, MU Head Coach Quin Snyder tied the school record for wins by a first-year coach. A win Thursday against Texas Tech would give him the record to himself.
Snyder's 17th win tied the record for coaches in their first year at MU, a feat which had been accomplished twice - but not since the 1920-21 season, when Craig Ruby guided MU to a 17-1 mark and the Missouri Valley Conference championship.
Three years prior to that, in the 1917-18 season, Walter Meanwell (now in the College Basketball Hall of Fame) coached the first of his two seasons at MU, and led the Tigers to a similar 17-1 record, and an MVC title - that marked Mizzou's first-ever conference championship in the sport of basketball.
A SPOT 0N THE DANCE FLOOR FOR MU As the post-season gets underway, the question has been asked whether or not Missouri will be included in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
Well, according to the experts, MU is worthy of such inclusion.
A sample of five media/website outlets shows that all five list MU as in the big dance. Here's a brief overview of their thoughts:
| Outlet | MU Seed | Opp. (Seed) |
| ESPN.com | 9 | Vanderbilt (8) |
| CNNSI.com | 9 | Utah State (8) |
| CollegeRPI.com | 10 | Miami, Fla. (7) |
| CBSSportsline.com | 12 | Purdue (5) |
| Sporting News | In tournament (No seeds given) | |
For what it's worth, the CollegeRPI.com folks are pretty accurate with their evaluations. Last season, they correctly picked 32 of 34 at large teams, and had 49 of the 64 teams seeded within one spot of what their actual seed was.
MU'S RPI IS A.O.K.
Missouri ranks 32nd in the latest RPI rankings, while Texas Tech rates #145 in the land. MU's schedule ranks as the 13th-toughest in the nation currently. The Big 12 Conference is ranked as the #5 league in strength ratings, behind only the Big Ten, SEC, Conference USA and Pac-10 conferences.
For you historians, here's a look back at MU's last three NCAA appearances, and where the Tigers ranked in the RPI rankings after the regular season.
| Season | Record | RPI | Schedule |
| 1999-00 | 17-11 | 32nd | 13th |
| 1998-99 | 20-8 | 31st | 79th |
| 1994-95 | 19-8 | 17th | 22nd |
| 1993-94 | 24-3 | 2nd | 35th |
MU AT KEMPER ARENA
Missouri has an alltime record at Kemper Arena of 43-22 (62.2%). That includes a 4-3 mark in the Big 12 Tournament, a 29-13 mark in the Big Eight Tournament, a 10-5 mark in the last three years of the old Big Eight Holiday Tournament (1974-78), regular-season wins over LaSalle (1981) and Notre Dame (1982), and a 1-1 record in the 1986-87 BMA Classic (win over Oral Roberts and a loss to Alabama).
MU-TEXAS TECH SERIES
Missouri and Texas Tech will be meeting for just the eighth time in the two schools' histories when they hook up Thursday in Kansas City.
Missouri holds a slim 4-3 edge in the series, including an 86-76 win at Lubbock back on Feb. 15th of this year.
This will mark the first time the two schools have met in the Big 12 Tournament, but it's not the first time they've met in a postseason tournament setting.
In March of 1976, Missouri defeated Texas Tech, 86-75, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, played at Louisville, Ky.
LAST TIME VS. TEXAS TECH
Kareem Rush scored 31 points and Missouri scored the final 17 points of the game, as the Tigers posted a come-from-behind 86-76 win in Lubbock on Feb. 15th.
Missouri won its fourth consecutive road game and held the Red Raiders scoreless over the final 6:42 of the game while overcoming a 76-69 deficit. Rush was a major reason, connecting on a pair of 3-pointers early in the run, the second of which gave the Tigers the lead for good at 79-76 with 3:40 remaining. His 31 points was just one shy of the MU freshman record, posted by Derrick Chievous vs. Arizona in 1984.
James Ware's 3-pointer with 6:42 left had given Tech a seven-point cushion. But the Red Raiders, who had led by as many as 11 in the second half, failed to score on their final 11 possessions of the game, committing eight turnovers and missing three shots.
Rush, who converted 10 of 14 shots from the field, was one of four Tigers in double figures. Keyon Dooling had 19, Clarence Gilbert scored 16 and Soyoye added 12.
| MU (86) | FG | 3PT | FT | RB | A | PF | TP |
| Parker-f | 1-6 | 0-1 | 1-1 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Soyoye-c | 4-11 | 0-0 | 4-5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Gilbert-g | 4-15 | 4-11 | 4-5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 16 |
| Dooling-g | 4-13 | 2-6 | 9-10 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 19 |
| Grawer-g | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| Kroenke | 1-4 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Rush | 10-14 | 7-9 | 4-4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 31 |
| Gage | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Schumacher | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 25-65 | 14-32 | 22-27 | 30 | 17 | 16 | 86 |
| TECH(76) | FG | 3PT | FT | RB | A | PF | TP |
| Layne-f | 5-7 | 0-0 | 6-9 | 7 | 6 | 4 | 16 |
| Kennard-f | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Mitchell-f | 2-5 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 6 |
| Young-g | 11-18 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 26 |
| Ware-g | 4-11 | 4-7 | 5-6 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 17 |
| Malone | 0-1 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Hobbs | 2-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 5 |
| Phillips | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Faltesek | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 26-49 | 8-16 | 16-21 | 37 | 17 | 20 | 76 |
Officials: Paparo, Hall, Sitov
| Missouri | 40 | 46 | - 86 |
| Texas Tech | 44 | 32 | - 76 |
Attendance: 8,894
last time out: #23 KU 83, MU 82
Missouri fought back valiantly from a 14-point second-half deficit to take a one-point lead into the final 15 seconds, but it wasn't enough, as the 23rd-ranked Jayhawks hit 4-of-4 free throws to hold off the Tigers, 83-82.
Kansas led by a 63-49 margin after a Nick Bradford jumper with 11:20 remaining, but MU freshman Kareem Rush and senior Jeff Hafer combined to score 12 points over the next three minutes to pull MU to within four, at 65-61 with 8:08 left.
KU stretched the lead back to 10 points with 4:20 left, and led 79-73 with 3:09 remaining, before a 7-0 MU run staked the Tigers out to an 80-79 advantage with just 1:40 left. The run was capped by Tajudeen Soyoye, who hit 3-of-4 free throws in the sequence.
The teams traded turnovers over the next minute, and KU had the ball down one with 40 seconds to play. After working the clock inside 15 seconds, KU's Drew Gooden got loose underneath, and was fouled by MU's Jeff Hafer. An intentional foul was ruled by the officials with 13 seconds left, and Gooden hit both free throws to give KU the lead back, at 81-80.
MU forced two Kansas timeouts and a jump ball on the ensuing inbounds plays, but the Jayhawks eventually got the ball in the hands of Kirk Hinrich, who calmly sank two more free throws after being fouled with eight seconds left to make it 83-80.
Mizzou's Keyon Dooling - who had an incredible dunk in the first half waved off only to be called for his second foul - tried a desperation three-pointer from the corner as time wound down, but it would not go. Teammate Clarence Gilbert tipped in the shot before the buzzer to account for the final score.
Freshman Kareem Rush led MU in scoring for the third straight game, as he tallied a game-high 20 points, while Gilbert added 18 of his own. The late foul by Hafer overshadowed an excellent performance, as he added 14 points on a career-high four three-point field goals.
DOOLING DUNK WAS ONE FOR THE AGES If you haven't had a chance to see the highlight of Keyon Dooling's breathtaking dunk at Kansas on Sunday, do yourself a favor and track down a copy of the play - it could arguably have been the play of the year.
With just under nine minutes left in the first half, and MU holding a 22-19 lead, Dooling led a 2-on-1 fastbreak opportunity, and he smelled blood.
Dooling attacked the left side, planted his feet roughly 8-10 feet from the basket, and soared high over KU's posterized Ashante Johnson. Dooling threw the dunk in, and fell to the floor after being bumped during the play.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, the basket was waved off, as Dooling was called for a charge. Wow. Really, we mean wow. That's all we can say without being flogged in public.
The play was a momentum turner, as the foul was Dooling's second of the half, and he was forced to sit the final eight minutes on the bench. Additionally, instead of a three-point play and a 25-19 MU lead, the score remained 22-19, and KU quickly tied it up when Kirk Hinrich nailed a three pointer on the Jayhawks' next possesion.
DOOLING NAMED TO NABC 1ST TEAM
Sophomore guard Keyon Dooling was selected to the National Basketball Coaches Association District 12 First Team, as recently released by the NABC.
Dooling was named on the District 12 First Team along with Eduardo Najera of Oklahoma, Marcus Fizer of Iowa State, Desmond Mason of Oklahoma State and Eric Coley of Tulsa.
Dooling was also recently named 2nd team all-Big 12 by the Associated Press.
First and second teams were chosen in each of 15 districts, making 150 student-athletes honored overall. Fifteen of those players will later be selected to first, second or third team all-America teams.
Anthony Peeler is the last Tiger to be selected to the NABC all-America team, when he was named a 2nd-team NABC all-American in 1992.
CARDIAC KIDS
While the Tigers would certainly prefer a big win on Thursday against Texas Tech, MU has been predisposed to playing tight ballgames this season.
Just under half of MU's games (13-of-28 to be exact) have been decided by six points or fewer. The Tigers hold a 7-6 record in those games.
MU is coming off a tough one-point loss at #23 Kansas on Sunday, a game in which the Tigers led with as little as 13 seconds left in the contest.
MU VS. RANKED TEAMS
Missouri has played nine games against ranked teams entering the Big 12 Tournament, and the Tigers stand 2-7 in those contests.
Each of MU's last six losses have come at the hands of teams which are currently ranked in the top-25 - Kansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas and Iowa State (twice). MU's other loss vs. ranked competition came at the hands of then-#15 Indiana.
MU's wins came against then-#7 Kansas and then-#15 Illinois.
MU REGAINs SHOOTING TOUCH
Through the first seven games of the Big 12 season, Missouri was the top-shooting outfit in the league, as the Tigers shot an even 50.0% as a team in those contests (204-of-408), a mark which led the league through seven contests.
In the next seven games, however, the Tigers struggled to find the range. Mizzou shot a combined 37.7% from the floor as a team (157-of-417), which contributed to the Tigers' 3-4 mark during that span.
In the first seven games, MU shot 43.5% as a team from three-point range (67-of-154), but cooled off to shoot 35.0% from beyond the stripe (69-of-197) in the next seven outings.
MU broke out of its slump last week against Nebraska, as the Tigers connected on 48.2% from the floor - its best mark in eight games, since going for a 48.3 mark at Colorado on Feb. 2nd.
The Tigers might not have lit it up at Kansas on Sunday, shooting 43.5% from the floor, but they were solid from long-range, as they connected on 42.4% of their three-pointers (14-of-33). It marked only the second time this season that MU has lost when shooting 40.0% or better from three-point range. MU is now 8-2 when doing so, and is 9-9 when shooting below 40.0% from three-point range.
KAREEM OF THE CROP
Whether or not he wins league freshman of the year honors, it's pretty clear that since he returned to the lineup 11 games ago, MU freshman Kareem Rush is one of the league's top first-year players.
Rush is coming off yet another outstanding performance Sunday at #23 Kansas, a game in which he scored a game-high 20 points and added a career-best four assists. It marked the third straight game - and seventh since he returned - that Rush has led MU in scoring.
Rush made his third straight start on Sunday, and responded by hitting 8-of-14 field goals, including 3-of-5 from three-point range.
Previously against Nebraska, he once again led the way for the Tigers, scoring a game-high 23 points, on 7-of-11 shooting (4-of-7 3-pt. FGs). He got MU off to a quick start, as he scored the team's first eight points.
On Feb. 21st, he won his second Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week award in three weeks, based on incredible performances at Texas Tech and Kansas State.
At Tech, Rush scored a career-high 31 points, leading MU to a come-from-behind win that was crucial to keeping the Tigers in the Big 12 race, as well as keeping hopes alive for an NCAA Tournament bid.
Just how impressive were his exploits in Lubbock? You be the judge:
Rush virtually single-handedly drew MU back from an 11-point second-half deficit. Texas Tech took an 11-point lead, at 55-44, with 15:31 left in the game. From that point on, Rush scored 19 points, just two fewer than the 21 points tallied by the Red Raiders the rest of the way, as MU rallied for an 86-76 win.
Rush was 10-of-14 from the floor, including 7-of-9 from three-point range, including consecutive threes with under four minutes left that gave MU the lead for good.
Rush's 10-of-14 (71.4%) shooting was vital, as the rest of the team shot a combined 29.4% as a team (15-of-51).
Rush followed with yet another salty performance at Kansas State, scoring 19 points, and adding three rebounds and three steals in 25 minutes. He hit 4-of-7 three pointers, and nailed 7-of-8 free throws.
MORE MOUNT RUSH-MORE
Kareem Rush's 31-point performance at Texas Tech marked just the second time in Tiger history that a freshman has scored 30 or more points in a game.
He joined former Tiger all-American Derrick Chievous in that select group, as Chievous scored 32 points as a rookie on Dec. 29, 1984 against Arizona.
Additionally, Rush's total was the most ever scored by a Tiger in Big 12 play, and was the most overall since Sammie Haley scored 31 against Murray State in the 1996 NIT.
The last time a Tiger had scored 30 or more in a conference game was back in 1994, when Melvin Booker scored 32 at Kansas.
MU TIES BIG 12 RECORD FOR THREES
Missouri came out firing on all cylinders on Feb. 19th at Kansas State, as the Tigers hit their first six three-point field goal attempts, on the way to a 12-of-19 effort beyond the arch in the first half.
The 12 threes made in the opening half tied the Big 12 record for threes made in a single half, tying the 12 made by Texas against Kansas State in 1997.
The Tigers appeared well on their way to breaking the MU single-game mark of 15 threes made (accomplished three times previously, including once this season), as well as the Big 12 single-game record of 18 (by Texas in 1997 vs. Kansas State), but the basket tightened up after halftime. MU connected on just 2-of-14 threes in the second half, to end the game 14-of-33.
THREE-PEATS
Missouri enters Thursday's contest as the 4th-most prolific three-point shooting team in the country, according to the latest set of NCAA statistics.
Through games of Feb. 28th, Missouri ranks 4th in the NCAA with an average of 9.4 three-point field goals made per game. The Tigers trail only Tennessee Tech (9.9 per game), Belmont (9.8) and Samford (9.5).
Additionally, while MU's success isn't solely related to its success from long range, there is a standard that appears to dictate whether the Tigers will be successful, or not.
To date, MU is tough to beat when it hits 40.0% or better from three-point range, as the Tigers are 8-2 in those games. Conversely, MU is a .500 club (9-9) when it makes less than 40.0% from three-point range.
After hitting a season-worst 3-of-23 from three-point range (13.0%) at Oklahoma, MU rebounded to nail 12 bombs (in 32 attempts) vs. Nebraska, and followed by making 14 more treys at Kansas on Sunday - a total which is just one shy of the MU single-game record.
TIGERS SET THREE-POINT RECORD
After nailing 14 three-pointers on Feb. 15th at Texas Tech, Missouri broke the school single-season three-point field goal record. Through 28 games now, the Tigers have already proven to be the school's most prolific long-range shooting team, with 270 treys.
That breaks the single-season team record of 214 treys made by the 1997-98 squad.
Missouri is also closing in on the Big 12 record for three pointers in a season. They need just five treys to break the record of 274 set by Oklahoma just last season. MU already has broken the Big 12 record for threes attempted in a season. The old mark was 717 attempts by Texas in 1997-98.
Additionally, MU's 723 three-point attempts thus far has shattered the school single-season mark of 580 set by the 1997-98 Tiger squad.
Here's a look at the single-season marks:
THREE-POINT FGs MADE
| 1. | 270 | 99-00 |
| 2. | 214 | 97-98 |
| 3. | 204 | 93-94 |
| 4. | 197 | 96-97 |
| 5. | 180 | 94-95 |
| 180 | 98-99 |
THREE-POINT FGs ATTEMPTED
| 1. | 723 | 99-00 |
| 2. | 580 | 97-98 |
| 3. | 575 | 93-94 |
| 4. | 549 | 96-97 |
| 5. | 474 | 98-99 |
MU HITTING THE FREEBIES FREELY
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 has led to an average of 25.4 free throw attempts in the five games prior to Sunday's Kansas contest. At KU, the Tigers received just 13 opportunities from the line, compared to 24 for the 'Hawks.
The Tigers have been rather clutch from the line recently, as they've connected on 76.4 percent of its foul shots in their last six games (107-of-140).
More importantly, in its last five wins, the Tigers have been solid from the foul line in the clutch, as MU has gone a combined 34-of-44 (77.3%) from the line in the last two minutes of all four games.
Mizzou finished 2nd in the Big 12 Conference in foul shooting in league play, with a team percentage rate of 72.2 percent. In all games, the Tigers rate 3rd in the league, with a season mark of 69.8 percent.
Getting to the line has proven to be an indicator of MU's success this season. In its 17 wins, the Tigers have attempted an average of 25.0 foul shots per game. In its 11 losses, MU is shooting just 16.5 freebies a game, compared to 22.0 by its foes. The 8.5 extra attempts would have certainly come in handy in its six losses suffered by five points or fewer.
MU SOLID IN THE CLUTCH
In Big 12 play, Missouri has hit for an outstanding 81.4 percent as a team from the foul line in the last three minutes of the game (79-of-97).
That breaks down to a a 31-of-36 mark at home (86.1%) and 48-of-61on the road (78.7%). Here's a look individually at MU's numbers:
| Tiger | FT | FTA | PCT. |
| Rush | 4 | 4 | 1.000 |
| Parker | 4 | 4 | 1.000 |
| Gage | 2 | 2 | 1.000 |
| Grawer | 20 | 22 | .909 |
| Dooling | 22 | 26 | .846 |
| Soyoye | 7 | 9 | .778 |
| Hafer | 9 | 12 | .750 |
| Gilbert | 9 | 14 | .643 |
| Kroenke | 1 | 2 | .500 |
| Schumacher | 1 | 2 | .500 |
| Total | 79 | 97 | .814 |
GRAWER GOING FOR FT RECORDS
Individually, junior guard Brian Grawer leads the Big 12 with a season mark of 90.6 percent, making 58-of-64 freebies thus far. If he was to hold that percentage, he'd break the MU single-season record of 89.6 percent set by Travis Ford in the 1989-90 season.
Additionally, he is poised to break the single-season Big 12 free throw percentage record of 86.1 percent set by Cory Carr of Texas Tech in 1997-98.
Grawer also won the Big 12 FT shooting title for league games, as he led the way with a 90.5% success rate in league play. He had a shot at setting the Big 12 record for a league season, which is 90.9 percent, set by former Tiger Corey Tate in 1997 (40-of-44). He needed to go 3-of-3 from the line last Sunday at Kansas to raise his percentage to 91.9 percent, but he did not get an opportunity to shoot any foul shots.
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.
The Tigers enter Thursday's game against Texas Tech having been outrebounded in each of their last six games (40.0-to-31.7). In Sunday's loss at Kansas, the KU big men exploited MU's size for a sizeable 47-to-29 rebound edge.
In its last seven games, however, MU has actually equalled its opponents on the offensive glass, 88-to-88. That's no small feat (no pun intended), given MU's lack of size, and the fact that they routinely send only two people to the offensive glass in order to get defensive balance.
For the season, the smallish Tigers have held their own on the offensive glass, with 300 offensive rebounds, to 314 for their opponents.
MU's last big day on the glass came against then-#18 Texas on Feb. 12th, as MU outrebounded the Longhorns by a 45-36 margin. All 10 Tigers who played in the game had a rebound, and they were led individually by Jeff Hafer, who grabbed a season-high nine boards. MU had been 7-0 on the year when outrebounding their opponents, but fell to 7-1 on the year, as the Longhorns claimed a 66-63 win.
But the Tigers came up big on the glass during MU's earlier seven-game winning streak, as they outrebounded opponents by a 35.9-to-35.7 margin per game. That doesn't seem like much, but consider the fact that prior to the streak, the Tigers were being outrebounded by a 37.8-to-32.8 margin by their opponents.
PICK YOUR POISON
During the Big 12 Conference season, Quin Snyder's bunch exhibited an impressive balance offensively, making it hard for opponents to focus on one person.
Three Tigers, led by freshman Kareem Rush (18.2 ppg), averaged double figures in scoring in conference play. Others in double figures included Keyon Dooling (14.4 ppg) and Clarence Gilbert (14.8). Additionally, three other Tigers, Tajudeen Soyoye (9.1 ppg), Brian Grawer (8.5) and Jeff Hafer (8.7) were just shy of giving MU six people averaging double digits.
Here's a quick look at a few numbers which told the story during MU's 10-6 record in the conference season:
| Big 12 Season | Non-Conference | |
| MU Points Per Game | 78.9 (1st) | 67.4 (12th) |
| Scoring Margin | +4.9 (6th) | +3.8 (9th) |
| Rebounding Margin | -3.3 (10th) | -4.2 (12th) |
| MU FG Percentage | 44.0% (6th) | 40.3% (12th) |
| Opp. FG Percentage | 46.5% (10th) | 44.7% (12th) |
| MU 3-pt. FG Percentage | 38.6% (3rd) | 35.2% (7th) |
| Opp. 3-pt. FG Percentage | 33.5% (4th) | 32.5% (7th) |
| MU Assists Per Game | 14.6 (8th) | 12.8 (12th) |
MORE POISON
To illustrate just how improved MU's offensive attack was during conference play, here's a quick look at how several Tiger individuals did scoring-wise in league play, compared to non-league play:
| PPG | PPG | |
| Tiger | Big 12 | Non-Conf. |
| Kareem Rush | 18.2 | 10.9 |
| Clarence Gilbert | 14.8 | 10.4 |
| Keyon Dooling | 14.4 | 16.4 |
| Jeff Hafer | 8.7 | 5.8 |
| Brian Grawer | 8.5 | 6.0 |
MORE SCORING FACTS
Missouri scored 80 or more points in 10-of-16 conference games (62.5%).
That's a pretty heady feat, given the fact that in the previous years of Big 12 Conference play, MU had scored 80 or more points in just 13 of 48 league contests (27.0 percent).
Missouri won the team scoring title in Big 12 Conference games, averaging a league-best 78.9 points per contest.
SCORING EXPLOSION
Missouri earned its 84-78 comeback win at Nebraska on Feb. 5th thanks in large part to a monster 2nd-half offensive performance that saw MU score a whopping 60 points.
The Tigers shot 53.1 percent from the floor in the second half, after making just 9-of-30 shots in the opening 20 minutes (30.0%), and hit 9-of-19 three pointers (47.4%) after making just 2-of-10 in the first half (20.0%).
MU also got it done at the foul line, as they hit 17-of-22 freebies in the second half (77.3%), including 12-of-16 in the final two minutes to seal the win.
rush one of league's best rookies
After missing nine games due to an NCAA-mandated suspension, one had to wonder how long it would take freshman Kareem Rush to get back into the flow, when he returned to game action Jan. 29th vs. Texas A&M.
Well, it took the unflappable rookie from Kansas City, Mo. about as long as it takes a politician to flip-flop a position - no time at all.
Rush showed no signs of rust that day, as he scored a team-high 16 points, on 6-of-10 shooting. He followed up with 15 more points at Colorado, and added a career-high 21 at Nebraska. He was named Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week last week on Feb. 7 for his efforts at CU and at NU. He scored 10 of his team's 24 points in the first half at Nebraska, keeping the Tigers within striking distance.
After scoring 17 points against #17 Iowa State and adding a team-best 12 more against #18 Texas (including scoring seven of MU's final eight points), Rush exploded for a career-high 31 points at Texas Tech, exploits of which we've discussed in detail previously.
He followed up with 19 more points at Kansas State, and was named Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week on Feb. 21st, for the second time in three weeks.
Rush missed games from Dec. 18 through Jan. 22, 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.
Rush is now averaging 15.1 points and 4.0 rebounds a game, numbers which rank 2nd and 3rd on the team, respectively. His scoring average ranks him 2nd among Big 12 freshmen, and 11th overall in the league, but he hasn't played in enough games to qualify for the statistics leader board.
Additionally, he would rank 3rd in scoring in league games (18.0 ppg), behind only Marcus Fizer of Iowa State and Jaquay Walls of Colorado. He would also lead the league in 3-pt. field goal percentage in Big 12 games (51.7%) and would rank among league leaders in the other following categories: field goal percentage (5th - 56.8%), free throw percentage (8th - 77.8%) and 3-pt. field goals made (7th - 2.82).
Because he's a smooth lefty who hails from Kansas City, Rush draws natural comparisons to former Tiger all-American Anthony Peeler ... Though there's still some ball yet to played, Rush is having arguably the best year ever by an MU freshman - and the Tigers have had a pretty good history of outstanding freshmen talent. Here's a quick look at how other prominent Tigers fared as freshmen:
| Tiger | Fresh. Year | Pts. | Rebs. |
| Kareem Rush | 1999-00 | 15.1 | 4.0 |
| Steve Stipanovich | 1979-80 | 14.4 | 6.4 |
| Derrick Chievous | 1984-85 | 13.1 | 5.3 |
| Kelly Thames | 1993-94 | 12.2 | 7.1 |
| Jevon Crudup | 1990-91 | 12.0 | 7.1 |
| Nathan Buntin | 1986-87 | 11.8 | 4.9 |
| Doug Smith | 1987-88 | 11.3 | 6.6 |
| Anthony Peeler | 1988-89 | 10.1 | 3.7 |
| Melvin Booker | 1990-91 | 8.3 | 2.2 |
| Curtis Berry | 1977-78 | 6.8 | 4.7 |
| Larry Drew | 1976-77 | 6.9 | 2.8 |
| Jon Sundvold | 1979-80 | 6.3 | 1.7 |
YET MORE RUSH TIDBITS
Just when you thought you'd heard all the facts you could stand about Kareem Rush, the crack MU Sports Information staff came up with the following bits of info:
With 15 straight games in double figures entering Thursday's contest, Rush has the longest freshman double-figure scoring streak ever at MU. The previous long for a Tiger freshman was 12, set by Nathan Buntin in 1986-87.
Additionally, his streak is the longest by any Tiger since Paul O'Liney did the trick in 17 straight games during the 1994-95 campaign. Doug Smith, with 30 straight games in double figures in 1990-91, holds the single-season record in the category.
Rush led MU in scoring during league play, with an 18.2 per-game average. It's the first time that a freshman has ever led MU in scoring in league play, and his average is the highest in league play by any Tiger since Paul O'Liney averaged 20.6 points a game during the 1995-96 Big Eight season.
DOOLING IS MU'S 'KEY'
Sophomore guard Keyon Dooling is one of the Big 12 Conference's top playmakers, and he's arguably one of the league's most valuable players.
Dooling currently leads MU in scoring (15.2 ppg), assists, blocked shots (at just 6-foot-3 inches tall) and free throws made and attempted.
Dooling was recently named to the NABC District 12 First Team, which means he's one of 150 players to be eligible for NABC all-American honors. He also was named 2nd team all-Big 12 on Monday by the Associated Press.
He's coming off a solid game at Kansas, where he scored 13 points and added four assists and four rebounds. Also last week, against Nebraska, he scored 13 points, and dished out a season-high seven assists.
Previously, he turned in a gritty offensive performance at Oklahoma, where he missed his first start of the season due to a sprained right ankle he suffered against Oklahoma State on Feb. 21st. Dooling came off the bench to play 28 minutes in Norman, and scored 10 points in relief work.
Against Oklahoma State he scored a team-high 19 points, despite spraining his right ankle. He had a hard time getting his shot to fall (5-of-15 FGs), but he remained aggressive offensively, as his constant penetration resulted in seven free throw attempts, of which he was perfect.
Dooling is one of the hotter shooters in the league from the foul line, of late. In his last eight games, Dooling has connected on 86.7% of his freebies (39-of-45).
He helped guide MU to a pair of crucial road wins, at Texas Tech and at Kansas State. Dooling tallied 19 points, seven assists and three steals at Tech, and followed with 20 points and six assists at K-State.
Dooling had a stellar performance at Nebraska, when he scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half, leading MU to a come-from-behind win. He also added seven assists and six rebounds on the day to complete an excellent line.
On Jan. 12th 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.
THE MICROWAVE'S HEATING UP
When he's hot, he's one of the most dangerous and explosive scorers in the Big 12 Conference. And Tiger fans hope that with last week's performances against Kansas and Nebraska, sophomore guard Clarence Gilbert is ready help MU make a deep run into the postseason.
Gilbert broke out of a recent shooting slump by averaging 18.5 points a game last week. He hit for 18 points Sunday at Kansas, hitting 4-of-10 from three-point range. Earlier in the week, he went for 19 points vs. Nebraska. He hit 5-of-11 three pointers vs. NU, which is the most he's made in a game since scoring a career-high 27 points (including 7-of-10 three pointers) on Jan. 22nd vs. Kansas.
Gilbert ranked as the 11th-leading scorer in Big 12 Conference games, scoring at a 14.8 points per game clip. He had been leading the league in scoring through five games (22.4 ppg), but was held to an average of just 9.7 points a game in nine games from Jan. 29 through Feb. 26. In that stretch, he hit just 26.2% of his FGs (28-of-107) and just 25.8% of his 3-pt. FGs (17-of-66).
On Feb. 19th at Kansas State, he got the Tigers off to a flying start, as he nailed three straight three-point bombs in the game's opening four minutes. He ended the day 4-of-11 from three-point range, and finished with 15 points.
Gilbert turned in a performance against Kansas on Jan. 22nd 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 the 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. He's now scored 25 or more points in three league games - 26 points (at Iowa State), 25 points (vs. KSU), and 27 points (vs. Kansas).
Gilbert's feats in conference play were 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 ranked 2nd in league games with an average of 3.30 three-pointers made per game, and was 10th in three-point shooting percentage (39.1%). His season scoring average of 12.9 currently ranks 17th in the league.
HAFER LEADS THE CHARGE
Senior Jeff Hafer was instrumental in Sunday's near-comeback win at 23rd-ranked Kansas, as he tallied 14 points, 11 of which came after halftime.
Hafer nailed a career-high 4-of-7 three pointers on the day, including three straight during a stretch that saw MU cut a KU lead of 14 down to four with three minutes left.
Hafer averaged 8.7 points a game during conference play, up from his non-conference scoring average of 5.8 points per game.
GOOD THINGS COME IN THREES
Missouri has used the three-point shot to its advantage this year. The Tigers enter the Texas Tech game as the top three-point outfit in the Big 12 Conference. Through 28 games, Missouri has hit 270-of-723 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 15 times on the year, and hit 14-of-33 threes at Kansas State on Feb. 19th (just one make shy of the single-game school record of 15). MU torched the Wildcats in the first half by making 12-of-19 three pointers, which tied a single-game Big 12 Conerence record for threes made in a half. Mizzou cooled off in the second half, making just 2-of-14 threes, but still made 14 threes for the second straight game.
Ironically, however, when MU scored a season-high 100 points against Colorado, the 15 three-point attempts were the fewest they've tried this season.
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.
Another amazing fact that no-one has probably read this far to see, is that MU has made 11 or more three pointers in a game 11 times this year. In the previous 13 years since the three-point shot was brought about (1986-87 season), the Tigers had made 11 or treys just 12 times total!
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."
FOUR FORMER TIGERS HONORED
Four former Tiger basketball standouts were honored last weekend, as they were inducted into the MU Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame.
Joining the Hall this year were former players Kim Anderson, Melvin Booker, Ricky Frazier and Woody Hatfield.
MIZZOU SETS ATTENDANCE RECORD
Missouri has broken single game attendance records twice in Quin Snyder's first year as head coach.
On Jan. 22nd 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. | 13,469, 2-9-00 vs. Iowa State |
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.
MU BIG 12 TOURNAMENT HISTORY
1999
QUARTERFINALS
#7 Kansas St. 84, #2 Missouri 74
1998
FIRST ROUND
#6 Missouri 74, #11 Iowa St. 55
QUARTERFINALS
#3 Oklahoma 58, #6 Missouri 53
1997
FIRST ROUND
#10 Missouri 78, #7 Nebraska 72
QUARTERFINALS
#10 Missouri 80, #2 Texas 75
SEMIFINALS
#10 Missouri 89, #6 Oklahoma 80
FINALS
#1 Kansas 87, #10 Missouri 60
MU RECORD BY SEEDS
| #2 | 0-1 |
| #6 | 1-1 |
| #10 | 3-1 |
MU RECORD VS. SEEDS
| #1 | 0-1 |
| #2 | 1-0 |
| #3 | 0-1 |
| #6 | 1-0 |
| #7 | 1-1 |
| #11 | 1-0 |
MISCELLANEOUS
| As the higher seed (lower #) | 1-1 |
| As the lower seed (higher #) | 3-2 |