Nov. 17, 2000
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Missouri (0-0) vs. Savannah State (0-0)
Game #1 -- Nov. 17, 2000 -- Columbia, Mo.
TIPOFF: 8:00 p.m. (central).
ARENA: Hearnes Center (13,300). MU is 354-63 alltime at Hearnes (.849), including 191-20 (.905) in 28 years there vs. non-conference opponents.
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: Mizzou Sports Network. Chris Gervino (play-by-play), Jon Sundvold (color).
RANKINGS: MU is receiving votes in ESPN/USA Today and Associated Press polls.
SERIES: This will be the first-ever meeting between MU and Savannah State.
COACHES: Missouri: Quin Snyder (Duke `89), 18-13 at MU (2nd season), 18-13 overall (2nd season). Snyder is 0-0 vs. Savannah State.
Savannah State: Jack Grant (Savannah State `88) at Savannah State (1st season), 0-0 overall (1st season).
OFFICIALS: Will be announced prior to tipoff.
TIGERS OPEN 2000-01 CAMPAIGN FRIDAY VS. SAVANNAH STATE
The University of Missouri Tigers begin their first full season under the new millenium Friday evening, as they take on the Savannah State Tigers at the Hearnes Center.
Missouri went a perfect 2-0 in pre-season play, as they downed Team Fokus by a score of 110-79 on Nov. 12th, and followed with a 98-63 shellacking of Lincoln University on Nov. 14th.
Savannah State, a Division II school from Savannah, Ga., will be playing its first game of the season, as they did not play an exhibition schedule.
MISSOURI TIGERS (0-0) (Probable Starting Lineup/Just an SID's best guess)
P NO NAME HT WT YR HOMETOWN +PPG RPG F 21 Kareem Rush* 6-6 215 So. Kansas City, Mo. 16.0 9.0 F 31 Johnnie Parker*** 6-6 230 Sr. St. Louis, Mo. 5.5 4.0 C 33 Tajudeen Soyoye* 6-9 240 Sr. Lagos, Nigeria 11.5 6.5 G 12 Brian Grawer*** 6-0 170 Sr. St. Louis, Mo. 16.0 3.0 G 4 Clarence Gilbert** 6-2 199 Jr. Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. 13.0 3.5 +-2000-01 Pre-Season NumbersSAVANNAH STATE TIGERS (0-0)
(Probable Starting Lineup/Just an SID's best guess)
P NO NAME HT WT YR HOMETOWN ^PPG RPG F 35 Toyian Williams 6-4 -- Jr. Augusta, Ga. 12.3 3.9 F 50 Levi Williams 6-4 -- Jr. Sebring, Fla. 3.5 2.2 F 33 Tywan Gonzalez 6-7 -- Sr. Federal Way, Wash. 9.0 7.1 G 11 Darris Kelley 6-0 -- Jr. Maywood, Ill. 10.4 2.3 G 25 Vincent Lynn 6-3 -- Jr. Atlanta, Ga. 9.9 3.2 ^-1999-2000 Numbers
ABOUT THE TIGERS
Missouri opens its 2000-01 season after winning its two exhibition games by an average margin of 33.0 points per game. Head Coach Quin Snyder and his staff have emphasized pushing the ball up the court in transition, and it showed, as the Tigers averaged 104.0 points in the two practice contests. Missouri looks to be quicker and more athletic overall than last year, when the Tigers averaged 74.3 points per game.
Passing the ball is of the utmost importance in Snyder's open offense, and the Tigers showed they had a firm grasp on the concept. Missouri had 26 assists in its opener vs. Team Fokus, which was more than it notched in any game last season. MU followed with 17 assists in the second game vs. Lincoln.
While it may not be the sexiest subject for fans, defense is also a priority for Snyder's Tigers. He believes in pressuring the opponent and creating chaos, which should ideally lead to turnovers and instant offense. MU's defensive efforts were pretty good in the pre-season, as the Tigers held their two foes to just 37.8% shooting, and forced an average of 21.5 turnovers per game.
CATCH `EM WHILE YOU CAN
Missouri's game vs. Savannah State will mark the Tigers' only home contest in the month of November. Shortly after Friday's game, the Tigers will pack the parkas and head to the Great Northwest, where they'll participate in the Safeway/Carrs Great Alaska Shootout, set for Nov. 22-25, in Anchorage, Ak.
Missouri will leave Sunday afternoon for Alaska, and won't return to Columbia until the following Sunday (Nov. 25th). In between, they'll take on Rhode Island on Wednesday in the tournament opener, followed by a second-round matchup on Friday with either Valparaiso or Alaska-Anchorage, and a third game on Saturday vs. the likes of DePaul, Florida State, Syracuse or Ohio State.
If the Tigers reach the championship game Saturday, they'll play on ESPN.
A NICE BALANCING ACT
Missouri showed a nice offensive balance in its two exhibition games, as seven Tigers averaged double figures in scoring. As a team, the Tigers averaged 104.0 points in two outings, and gave up an average of just 71.0 points per game. We're going to make a bold prediction here, and say that if those averages stand up for the 2000-01 season, Missouri might win a few games. We'll also make a prediction and say that those numbers won't stand up for the 2000-01 season.
Freshman Rickey Paulding led the way with a team-best 17.5 average in the two games. He opened with 13 points in MU's 110-79 win over Team Fokus, and followed with a team-high 22 points in a 98-63 win over Lincoln University.
A trio of Tigers expected to lead the charge offensively were next on the scoring chart. Sophomore sensation Kareem Rush averaged 16.0 ppg in the two exhibition games. He scored 23 in the opener, hitting 10-of-19 field goals and grabbing 13 rebounds, as well in just 27 minutes. Rush was a bit off his last time out, as he managed just nine points and five rebounds on Tuesday vs. Lincoln.
Senior guard Brian Grawer also averaged 16.0 points in his only game vs. Team Fokus. It was nice to see his long-range stroke working well, as the St. Louis native connected on 5-of-8 three point field goals on the day. After an off shooting year as a junior, Grawer is confident that he's got his stroke back that saw him rank third in the nation as a sophomore in three-point shooting (49.6%). Grawer banged up an ankle late in that game, and was held out of action on Tuesday vs. Lincoln. He is expected to return to the lineup for Friday's season opener.
Junior guard Clarence Gilbert scored 13 points in each of MU's exhibition wins. Not surprisingly, the MU single-season three-point field goal record holder led the team with six treys over the two games. What was slightly unexpected was the fact that he dished out six assists in each of the two contests, as well. Gilbert showed that he can play some point guard when called upon, and he performed admirably.
Freshman Wesley Stokes averaged 11.5 points in the exhibition season, and led the Tigers with an average of 7.0 assists per game. Stokes had 10 assists (compared to just one turnover) in his first live game action as a Tiger, and added eight points vs. Team Fokus. He followed with 15 points and four assists vs. Lincoln, drawing the starting assignment in place of the injured Brian Grawer.
MU's big men, senior T.J. Soyoye and freshman Arthur Johnson, rounded out the contingent of Tigers in double figures. Soyoye poured in 11.5 points in the two games, and shot a solid 62.5% from the floor while pulling in 6.5 rebounds per game. Johnson averaged 10.5 points and 7.0 rebounds.
As a team, the Tigers shot a solid 55.3% from the floor in the two games, and held opponents to just 37.8% shooting. The Tigers, who will depend on improved rebounding this season, out-boarded their foes by an impressive 50.0-to-33.0 margin.
POLLING DATA
The Sports Illustrated college basketball season preview issue is on newsstands, and the publication has Missouri well-represented.
For beginners, the magazine has Missouri ranked No. 22 in its pre-season poll.
Secondly, and more interestingly, the magazine conducted an informal poll among Big 12 Conference players this summer, and several Tigers won their own election, of sorts.
Head Coach Quin Snyder was voted as the "Opposing Coach You'd Most Like to Play For." We won't mention who was named the "Opposing Coach You'd Least Like to Play For."
Senior guard Brian Grawer was named as the best shooter in the league.
Junior guard Clarence Gilbert was named as the biggest trash-talker in the league. Since he's from the state of Florida, Gilbert is going to ask for a hand re-count.
TOEING THE LINE WITH THE BEST
One year after playing what was rated as the nation's 16th-toughest schedule, Missouri will once again take on an impressive slate of foes that will likely rank high again this year on strength of schedule.
Awaiting Mizzou on the 2000-01 schedule is a virtual who's who of top-notch basketball programs.
Among MU's non-conference highlights include bouts against Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, DePaul, Saint Louis and Virginia. Mizzou will also participate in the Great Alaska Shootout, where they will take on Rhode Island in the first round, and possibly face the likes of Syracuse, Ohio State, Florida State and Valparaiso, among others in later rounds.
Never one to back down from a challenge, Quin Snyder believes in playing a tough schedule to become the best. That strategy paid off last season, when his Tigers received a #9 seed in the NCAA Tournament with an 18-12 regular-season record.
CALIFORNIA DREAMIN'
Missouri has had a program of national prominence for some time now, and has benefitted from that notoriety by being able to recruit talented players from all over the country.
However, a quick scan of the media guides shows that Tiger freshman Wesley Stokes will be the first native Californian to letter at MU in 36 years.
Incredibly, not since 1965, when John Loyear (Fresno, Calif.) played in 16 games during the 1964-65 season, has a Californian lettered at MU.
The only other close call since then was back in 1982, when Lenny Wechsler played in seven games during the 1981-82 season. The Los Angeles native did not receive a letter, however, after playing a total of 13 minutes. Fellow freshman Rickey Paulding tested out as MU's best leaper, and those who get to see him perform in the open court this year will certainly not be surprised by that finding. Paulding can touch 11-foot-4 inches with just a one-step vertical jump.
RECRUITING COUP
Quin Snyder and his staff has put together what experts believe is one of the nation's top recruiting classes for next year. Four of the nation's elite prep players signed with Missouri during the early period, which ran from Nov. 8-15.
The class of Najeeb Echols (Chicago, Ill.), Jeffrey Ferguson (Benton Harbor, Mich.), Duane John (Toronto, Ontario), and Robert Whaley (Benton Harbor, Mich.) has been ranked as high as fourth-best in the nation, according to HoopScoop.
Here's a brief look at each of the future Tigers.
The 6-foot-7, 220-pound small forward is considered one of the nation's top prospects, and has been ranked as high as No. 20 in the country by ESPN.com. He averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists per game as a junior at Chicago Whitney Young High School, and led his school to second place in the Chicago Public League playoffs. An all-state special mention in 2000, Echols will attend Chicago's Morgan Park this season.
Echols chose Missouri over Illinois, DePaul and Houston primarily, and also considered Duke, Michigan State, Kansas, Michigan, UCLA and Cincinnati, among others. He is the son of Jim and Shirley Echols.
Jeffrey Ferguson, a 6-foot-10, 215-pound forward from Benton Harbor, Mich., is considered among the nation's top-50 prospects by most recruiting analysts. Ferguson averaged 12.2 points, 10.1 rebounds and 2.8 block per game as a junior at Benton Harbor High School. Ferguson helped lead Benton Harbor to a Big 8 Conference title and a Class A championship last season.
Ferguson is a Toronto native who moved to Benton Harbor for high school. He selected the Missouri program over Michigan State, North Carolina, Kentucky, Stanford and Michigan, among others. He earned first-team all-conference honors as a junior, and was selected honorable mention all-state. He is the son of Ms. Carol Ferguson.
The University of Missouri men's basketball program picked up Canada's top prep player when Duane John, of Toronto, Ontario, signed a national letter of intent to attend Mizzou.
John is a 6-foot-6, 195-pound forward who was rated by many analysts as the top prospect in all of Canada. He averaged 32.5 points, 12.1 rebounds and three assists as a junior at Boylen High School in Toronto. He was named to the Toronto Sun's All-Star Team, and later averaged 18.3 points a game this summer playing AAU basketball for Team Toronto Elite, under coach Rowan Russell.
A native of the West Indies, John moved to Canada prior to high school, to be with his mother, Aldona Fosu. He chose Missouri over Michigan State, Syracuse, Louisville and Pittsburgh, among others. He moved to Homestead, Fla. over the summer, and will attend Berkshire High School for his senior season.
ROBERT WHALEY
Whaley is a 6-foot-9, 250-pound power forward who is considered by many recruiting services as one of the nation's top prospects, and is ranked by ESPN.com as the No. 10 prep player in the country. He averaged 17.2 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.2 blocks, 3.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game last year at Benton Harbor, and helped lead his team to a Big 8 Conference title and a Class A district championship. He received honorable mention on USA Today's high school all-American team, and was a consensus first-team all-state selection.
Whaley plays at Benton Harbor for Head Coach Paul Wilhite and Assistant Coach Lou Harvey, who is the father of MU Associate Head Coach Tony Harvey. He picked Missouri over Michigan State, Michigan, Kentucky, Georgetown, Syracuse, Cincinnati and Connecticut. He is the son of Ms. Sonya Whaley and John Barnes.
MU IN SEASON OPENERS
Missouri will look to extend one streak and start another in Friday's opener vs. Savannah State.
Missouri has won 26 consecutive home openers, and 27-of-28 overall, at the Hearnes Center. The only loss in a home opener at Hearnes came during the 1973-74 season, when the Tigers fell to SMU, 77-73. A current Tiger Radio Network color analyst who will remain nameless was part of that team.
The Tigers will look to win its season opener after dropping last year's opener to eventual Final Four team Wisconsin. MU opened the 1999-2000 season with a 66-55 loss to the Badgers, in what was Quin Snyder's first game as a head coach at MU. That broke a string of seven consecutive season opening wins.
From an historical perspective, Missouri's biggest margin of victory in season and home openers was a 65-5 thrashing of Central Methodist, way back on Jan. 12th, 1907. That was MU's first-ever game.
NEW ARENA APPROVED BY CURATORS
Missouri received some rather exciting news on Nov. 9th, when the MU Board of Curators approved a presentation by Chancellor Richard Wallace to build a new arena, which will house the Tiger men's and women's basketball teams.
Wallace's proposal called for a $75-million facility to be built, most likely in time for the 2004-05 season. He announced a $25-million donation by an anonymous donor to go toward the arena - the largest gift ever in the history of the University.
That $25 million, along with $2 million more already raised for the arena, gives MU $27 million up front to help fund the arena. Dr. Wallace then asked the Curators to seek $35 million from the Missouri Legislature in general obligation bonds. Other donations/gifts, up-front seat payments and interest income would make up the remaining $13 million for the project.
The Board voted a unanimous 9-0 in favor of the project, and the next step is to get the appropriations from the state.
The arena would be located South of the Hearnes Center, and would seat anywhere from 15,000-to-17,000 people. The Hearnes Center would remain open to house the needs of MU Olympic sports such as volleyball, gymnastics, wrestling and indoor track and field.
RUSH HOUR BEGINS FRIDAY AT 8 P.M.
Sophomore Kareem Rush, who has earned pre-season all-America mention by one publication, begins a follow-up campaign to his smashing freshman season, in which he averaged an MU-freshman record 14.7 points per game, and was named the Big 12's co-freshman-of-the-year.
The silky-smooth lefty lived up to his pre-season billing as one of the league's top players in MU's exhibition opener vs. Team Fokus. The Kansas City, Mo. native scored 23 points and added 13 rebounds on the day. He hit 10-of-19 field goals, including 3 3-pt. field goals. Rush was a bit off in his next game vs. Lincoln, as he managed just nine points and five rebounds.
The second-leading returning scorer in the Big 12 Conference, Rush carries a streak of 18 straight games scoring in double figures into Friday's regular-season opener vs. Savannah State.
ESPN the Magazine was in town earlier this week to work on a feature on Rush. The story is scheduled to run in two weeks.
GILBERT MAKING A NAME FOR HIMSELF
For many years, junior guard Clarence Gilbert has been tied together with his childhood friend, Keyon Dooling. They played together beginning in junior high, and continued that bond through the past two seasons at MU.
But when Dooling became the 10th pick in the 2000 NBA Draft after his sophomore year at Missouri, some people wondered how Gilbert would fare without his high-profile friend around.
Don't worry about Clarence. He showed during the pre-season that he'll be just fine. Gilbert averaged 13.0 points a game in MU's two exhibition games, shooting a solid 55.6% from the floor. He also had an opportunity to run the point for the first time, and showed he will be a capable leader when Brian Grawer or Wesley Stokes aren't running the offense. Gilbert had six assists in each of the two exhibition contests, to just five turnovers.
Naturally, the long-range shot hasn't left the Fort Lauderdale, Fla. native's mentality. Gilbert, who broke the MU single-season three-point field goal record last season (88 treys) led MU with six three pointers in the pre-season. In just two years, he already ranks 9th on the MU career 3-point field goal chart, and needs 79 more to break the career record of 190 set by former Tiger Jason Sutherland.
The 3rd-leading returning scorer in the Big 12 Conference, Gilbert earned 3rd-team all-league honors last season as a sophomore. He was tabbed as high as 2nd-team all-league by several publications this fall.
THE QUIN-TISENNTIALS The 15th head coach in Missouri basketball history, Quin Snyder is 18-13 in his second season as a head coach. He was named the national rookie coach-of-the-year by Basketball Times last season after leading the Tigers to an NCAA appearance.
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 previous 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 and finished as NCAA runners-up.