Tigers Host Nebraska In Big 12 Opener
1/5/2001 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Jan. 5, 2001
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
SECOND SEASON BEGINS AS TIGERS HOST HUSKERS IN BIG 12 OPENER
It's back to the nitty gritty, as the University of Missouri (9-3) begins its 2001 Big 12 Conference season by hosting the University of Nebraska (7-6) Saturday afternoon. Tipoff at Hearnes is set for 6:00 p.m.
Missouri has won two straight, and six of its last eight, and is coming off a 75-61 win over Coastal Carolina Tuesday evening. Four Tigers scored in double figures in the game, led by Kareem Rush, with 21. The game will be MU's last of a three-game homestand. From here, the Tigers will play four out of their next five games on the road.
Nebraska has lost three straight games since winning five straight in December, including a title at the San Juan Shootout. The Huskers' six losses have come by an average of only 6.5 points a game, with three coming by four or fewer.
THE QUIN-TISENNTIALS
The 15th head coach in Missouri basketball history, Quin Snyder is 27-16 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 18-13 record and 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 in 1998-99 and finished as NCAA runners-up.
TIGERS IN CONFERENCE PLAY
Missouri opens Big 12 Conference play against Nebraska for the 3rd time in the past seven years. Nebraska visited Columbia to tip off Big 12 play in 1999, and the Tigers came away with an 80-57 win. In 1995, MU visited Lincoln in the next-to-last year of the old Big Eight, and earned an 82-74 road win.
MU is looking to reverse a trend that has seen the Tigers open league play with a win just once in four tries since the inception of the Big 12 Conference. MU is 1-3 in league openers, with the sole win coming in the 1999 game vs. Nebraska. That win propelled MU to a 3-0 league start, and the Tigers went on to tie for 2nd in the conference with an 11-5 record.
Other Big 12 openers include: Iowa State defeated MU 68-65 in Columbia in 1997, the Tigers lost a 111-56 squeaker at Kansas State to open the 1998 season and MU dropped a tough 86-81 game at Iowa State last season.
COASTAL CAROLINA NOTES
MU-NEBRASKA SERIES
Missouri and Nebraska will meet for the 193rd time Saturday, and MU holds a 110-82 series lead. The Tigers hold a 22-6 advantage over the Huskers at the Hearnes Center, but six of the last eight games played here between the two schools have been decided by five points or fewer (including two overtime games).
Missouri earned a season sweep last year over Nebraska, marking the first regular-season sweep since MU's perfect 14-0 Big Eight season of 1993-94. The Tigers have won six of the last eight meetings overall, and 12 of the last 20.
Quin Snyder and Nebraska Coach Barry Collier will square off against each other for the first time.
MU's Kareem Rush averaged 22.0 points in two outings last year against Nebraska, scoring 21 in Lincoln and 23 in Columbia. He hit 15-of-24 FGs (62.5%), including 7-of-12 3-pt. FGs (58.3%).
Clarence Gilbert has averaged 12.5 points in four career outings vs. Nebraska.
T.J. Soyoye will look to get untracked vs. the Huskers, as he was held to an average of 3.5 points and 3.5 rebounds in two appearances vs. NU's Kimani Ffriend.
HUSKERS CLOSE 3-GAME HOMESTAND
Saturday marks the end of a three-game homestand for the Tigers. They'll look to make it a perfect 3-0 homestand vs. Nebraska, and build some important momentum for an upcoming stretch which will see them play four of their next five games on the road. Included in that are two games vs. ranked opponents (at home vs. #23 Iowa State and at #8 Virginia).
As expected, MU has performed better statistically in amassing a perfect 6-0 home record thus far.
The most glaring numbers that jump out relate to shooting percentage and free throw attempts. MU is shooting a solid 49.2% from the floor at home, compared to just 39.9% away from home. MU recently turned in its best shooting game of the season, as they fired in 56.5% of their shots (35-of-62) against Stetson last Saturday. That mark was also the 2nd-highest under Quin Snyder.
Additionally, Tiger opponents are getting an average of 29.2 free throw attempts per game away from Hearnes, but are being held to 16.8 attempts on average at Hearnes.
Also, the Tigers have controlled the glass with authority at home, posting a rebounding margin of +10.2 at Hearnes, as opposed to a deficit of -2.3 on the road.
Individually, Kareem Rush is averaging 24.2 points and 9.3 rebounds per game at home, and is shooting a solid 53.1% from the floor and 48.5% from 3-pt. range. Other Tigers averaging double figures at home include Clarence Gilbert (15.0 ppg), Arthur Johnson (11.3) and T.J. Soyoye (11.2).
Clarence Gilbert is shooting 44.2% from 3-pt. range at home (19-of-43), compared to a mark of 29.3% away from home (17-of-58).
A STREAK OF MODEST PROPORTIONS
A Tiger win Saturday would give MU its seventh straight win at Hearnes. That might not seem earth-shattering, but it would tie the longest such streak for Mizzou since winning seven straight here from Nov. 23 to Jan. 2 during the 1998-99 season.
MU went 10-5 at home last season, and is looking for its first undefeated home campaign since going 15-0 there in 1993-94.
The longest home winning streak at Hearnes is 34 games, from 1987-88 to 1990-91.
MU NO. 36 IN POWER RANKINGS
Missouri enters Saturday's game ranked 36th in the latest RPI power poll (www.collegerpi.com). The Tigers have played the 42nd-toughest schedule in the land to this point.
Nebraska enters the game ranked 98th in the power rankings, with a strength of schedule rating of 57th.
Two of MU's losses were to ranked teams (at #22 Iowa and vs. #5 Illinois), while the other loss came to Syracuse, which is now ranked 9th in the latest Associated Press poll.
RUSH, GILBERT DYNAMIC DUO
Missouri's top two scorers, sophomore forward Kareem Rush and junior guard Clarence Gilbert put on quite a show Dec. 16th on national television at Iowa.
The duo combined for 64 points against the Hawkeyes, as they scored 32 points apiece -- both career-high totals.
They combined to score 34 of MU's 41 second-half points, as the Tigers rallied to force overtime.
It was speculated here originally that it was believed to be the first time that two Tigers went for 30 or more points in the same game. Alas, we jumped the gun, however. Back on Feb. 25, 1961, Tigers Charles Henke and Bob Reiter did the trick at Kansas State.
Ironically, like Rush and Gilbert, the duo scored an identical 32 points apiece. Unfortunately for MU, Henke and Reiter got little support from their teammates, as they scored 64 of the team's 71 points in a 91-71 loss to the 8th-ranked Wildcats.
Gilbert, who ranks 10th in the Big 12 in scoring, and Rush (the league's top scorer) are in fact the top point-scoring duo in the league.
TAKING A SECOND CHANCE
Missouri has been an impressive second-half team early in the 2000-01 season. That's been important, given the fact that the Tigers have trailed at halftime in five of 12 outings (winning all but two of those).
In addition to coaching adjustments made in the lockerroom by Quin Snyder and his staff, Mizzou has simply played better after halftime. The Tigers are scoring more, shooting better, and handling the ball better.
Recently versus Stetson, MU broke open a 39-31 halftime game by outscoring Stetson 50-33 in the second half. The Tigers shot a scintillating 60.6% from the floor in the second half, and held the Hatters to a maddening 28.6% shooting.
A prime example of this second-half superiority came during the Great Alaska Shootout, when the Tigers turned strong second-half performances into wins over Rhode Island and Valparaiso.
Against URI, Missouri shot just 29.0% from the floor in the first half, and trailed 31-19 at half. Undaunted, the Tigers regrouped and shot a solid 53.1% in the second half, and outscored the Rams 51-29 to post the 70-60 win.
Similarly, against Valpo, the Tigers fell behind early by 10 points, but bounced back into the game. MU trailed by two points at half, but blitzed the Crusaders 44-26 in the second half. Mizzou held Valpo to a miserable 19.4% shooting effort in the second half (6-of-31 FGs), and turned a 26-12 rebounding deficit in the first half to a 24-14 edge on the glass after intermission.
IT'S ALWAYS RUSH HOUR AT MIZZOU
It's only halfway through the season, but MU sophomore forward Kareem Rush is quickly establishing himself as an all-America candidate, as well as a leading candidate for Big 12 Player-of-the-Year honors.
The Sporting News recently released its all-American team to this point in the season, and Rush was listed as a first-teamer at small forward. He was also listed as one of 30 mid-season candidates for the prestigious Wooden Award, as announced by the Wooden Award Foundation last week.
The top scorer in the Big 12 Conference (21.6 ppg), Rush is coming off a "routine" 21-points, 9-rebound outing vs. Coastal Carolina. He previously had a 25-point, 12-rebound outing vs. Stetson. He sank 10-of-16 shots on the day, including 3-of-6 from three-point range. He also added a career-high five assists in the game, and notched the third double-double of the season.
Rush turned in an outstanding performance recently at #22 Iowa, as he tallied a career-high 32 points. He also added 11 rebounds, marking the second double-double of the season.
Rush scored 24 of his points after halftime, and was a perfect 10-of-10 from the foul line, including 8-of-8 in overtime.
Prior to that, Rush had a huge week when he averaged 28.0 points and 6.5 rebounds in leading MU to comeback wins over DePaul and Saint Louis. He scored 31 points in MU's 99-84 win over DePaul, and followed with 25 more vs. SLU, including a gutsy fall away jumper in the lane that gave MU the lead for good, at 71-70 with just 1:33 left in the game.
For his efforts, Rush was named national player of the week by ESPN.com, FoxSports.com, CNN/SI.com and was also named Big 12 Player-of-the-Week.
Rush averaged an MU-freshman record 14.7 points per game last year, and was named the Big 12's co-freshman-of-the-year.
He leads the Big 12 Conference in scoring currently, and ranks among the conferencce leaders in several categories.
Rush carries a streak of 30 straight games scoring in double figures into Saturday's game vs. Nebraska.
GILBERT THE GREAT
Junior guard Clarence Gilbert has emerged as one of the Big 12's top scorers this season, and his presence gives MU the luxury of having one of the deadliest 1-2 perimeter scoring combos around.
Gilbert is coming off an 11-point, 6-assist game vs. Coastal Carolina. His scoring is down in the last two games, but he's getting others involved, as he's averaged a team-best 6.5 assists in those two contests.
Previously, he had perhaps one of his best games of the year, despite the fact that his 13 points vs. Stetson were four below his scoring average coming into the game. Gilbert had a great all-around game, as he dished out seven assists (one shy of his career high) and added four rebounds and two steals. He made 5-of-10 shots on the day.
Gilbert previously had a 23-point outing vs. Illinois. Despite making just 8-of-23 FGs on the night (4-of-13 3-pt. FGs), he was forced to carry the load offensively while his teammate Rush was on the bench with foul trouble. Gilbert did his best to play hero, though, as he hit a runner in the lane with 1:03 left in regulation that gave MU its last lead of the game, at 72-70, before Illinois sent it into overtime.
Gilbert is one of the hotter players in the Big 12 Conference. In his last seven games, Gilbert is averaging 19.3 points per game (after averaging 12.4 in his first 5 games), and has made 26 three pointers (an average of 3.7 a game).
Gilbert turned in a career-high 32 point outing at #22 Iowa. He hit 5 three pointers on the night (and tied an MU record with 16 three-point attempts), and added 3 rebounds and 2 assists, playing 46 of 50 minutes.
Gilbert had 26 points vs. DePaul, going for 17 second-half points. He hit 6-of-9 3-pt. field goals on the day -- a performance that reminded many of his 27-point outing last year that helped sink then-No. 7 Kansas. He sank 7-of-10 threes in that contest.
He scored 17 points vs. Saint Louis, a game in which he struggled from the floor, connecting on just 5-of-16 FGs. But he was money when the chips were down, as Gilbert made two straight long three-pointers which helped key the Tigers to a comeback win.
His first trey, with 2:44 left, cut the SLU lead to 69-66, and his second bomb just 40 seconds later made it 70-69. He had been 0-of-6 from long range prior to his late-game heroics.
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) already ranks 5th on the MU career 3-point field goal chart (148 entering the Coastal Carolina game), and is on pace to break the career record of 190 set by former Tiger Jason Sutherland. He needs 4 treys to tie Mark Atkins for 4th on the list.
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.
COMEBACK KIDS
In just 43 games under Head Coach Quin Snyder, Missouri has shown a propensity to comeback from precarious situations, as the Tigers have already won four games this year in which they've trailed opposition by 10 or more points. In Snyder's rookie season, MU won four games under similar circumstances.
Recently, the Tigers won a pair of ballgames despite trailing by as many as 10 points in each.
On Dec. 9th, Missouri led Saint Louis for a grand total of just 2 minutes, 20 seconds in the game -- 47 seconds in the first half and the final 1:33 of the game. SLU led by 10 points with 10:44 remaining in the game, and had the Tigers down by eight (69-61) with just 4:14 left. But MU out-excecuted the Billikens down the stretch, and outscored them by a 16-4 count the rest of the way.
Earlier in the week, Missouri rebounded from a 10-point first half deficit to DePaul, and went on to a solid 99-84 win. Previously, MU cameback from a 14-point second-half deficit against Rhode Island, followed by a comeback from a 10-point deficit the next game vs. Valparaiso.
ARTHUR, KING OF SWAT
You can call him A.J., or you can call him Arthur, or you can call him Dock. Through the early going this season, though, opponents are calling Arthur Johnson a handful.
The affable freshman came to MU as a highly-touted recruit out of Detroit, Mich., and he's not disappointed anyone in the Tiger camp.
Johnson is laying claim to Big 12 Freshman-of-the-Year candidacy, as he's averaging 10.1 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. He leads Big 12 freshmen in four categories, including field goal percentage, rebounding, blocks and steals, and is currently 3rd in scoring.
Johnson is coming off a 14-point outing vs. Coastal Carolina. He also blocked 7 shots during the game, marking the second straight game he surpassed the old school record of 5 blocks.
Last Saturday, Johnson blocked a school-record 8 shots vs. Stetson. That shattered the old MU single-game mark of 5, which was held by seven former Tigers. He also added 10 points and 6 rebounds on the day.
Johnson previously had a solid 15-point, 12-rebound performance vs. the strong front line of Illinois, which marked his 4th double-double since being inserted into the starting lineup seven games ago. He's averaging 10.5 points and 8.8 rebounds a game as a starter.
Johnson hit 7-of-10 FGs against the Illini, and displayed a nice array of moves on the post, including a soft-as-a-babies'-bottom jump hook. His rebounding total marked a career high.
Johnson scored a career-high 16 points and added 10 rebounds vs. DePaul in December.
A.J. was possibly MU's MVP of the game, as he kept the Tigers in the game during a first half when DePaul led by as many as 10 points. With primary scorers Kareem Rush and Clarence Gilbert struggling to find the mark, Johnson collected 7 offensive rebounds in the first half, and scored 14 points. He ended the game with 9 offensive boards.
Johnson was a vital cog in MU's comeback win over Rhode Island, scoring 12 second-half points (all 12 coming during a decisive 33-6 run) to lead the charge. He ended with 14 points, and added seven rebounds.
A.J. reported this fall a bit overweight, tipping the scales at around 300 pounds. But he worked hard in pre-season conditioning, and is now down to 265.
SOYOYE GRABBING THE BOARDS
Senior center Tajudeen Soyoye has continued his solid contributions in the middle for MU, despite being outsized most nights.
The 6-foot-9 center/forward is averaging 9.1 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, and has played well together with freshman Arthur Johnson. That combo has helped MU claim an advantage on the boards in 7-of-12 games this season, a year after MU won the battle of the boards just 8 times in 31 games.
Soyoye is coming off his second double-double of the season, as he scored a season-high 16 points vs. Coastal Carolina and added 12 rebounds. He ranks 5th in the Big 12 in rebounding, and is averaging 10.2 rpg in his last 5 games. Soyoye made 11-of-16 FGs in MU's last two games (68.8%), and has his season mark up to 50.8% from the field.
T.J. turned in an outstanding game vs. Indiana recently, when he grabbed a career-high 15 rebounds and added 5 points. Seven of his boards were of the offensive variety. Five of those came in the final 11 minutes of the game, and they led to five all important second-chance points for the Tigers in their five-point victory.
At Iowa, Soyoye scored 10 points and added 10 rebounds before fouling out in overtime. That marked thre first double-double of the season for the Lagos, Nigeria native.
Soyoye has improved dramatically from the foul line. He's made 35-of-45 overall in his last 9 games, including a perfect 9-of-9 vs. Texas-Pan American.
His season free throw percentage of 76.8% is up significantly from a mark of 63.1% last season, and Soyoye ranks 13th in the Big 12 Conference in that category.
RETURN OF GRAWER POWER
Following MU's Dec. 9th win over Saint Louis, MU Head Coach Quin Snyder called senior guard Grawer one of the best leaders he's been around.
"He's the guy that holds us together," said Snyder. "I feel like I've been around some pretty good leaders. I thought Steve Wojciechowski was a great leader. I thought Trajan Langdon was a great leader. Tommy Amaker, when I played, was a great leader. Brian Grawer right now is as good a leader on a team that I've ever been a part of," he said.
Grawer scored six points in MU's comeback win against the Billikens. Again, not flashy numbers, but consider the value of his exploits: All six points of his points came after halftime. One was a key three-pointer that cut a SLU nine-point lead to six, and 3-of-4 free throws in the game's final 24 seconds. The final two provided the winning points in the 77-73 win.
Grawer was held to a season-low 2 points in his last outing, but he had his most efficient outing of the year just two games ago vs. Stetson, as he scored 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting, all from three-point land. It was the most threes he's hit in a game since going 4-of-7 from deep last year at Colorado.
Grawer didn't pick up a ball from the time between MU's Dec. 21 game with Illinois and the Tigers' first practice on Dec. 27th after returning from the holiday break. The rest must have helped, because in that first practice back, he hit 10 three pointers in MU's 30-minutes scrimmage that night.
Previously at Indiana, he scored 7 points, and added 4 assists (with no turnovers) and 2 steals in 26 minutes. He also sank a pair of free throws to give MU a 66-63 lead with 14 seconds left.
Grawer scored a season-high 13 points in MU's win vs. Valpo, and added 5 rebounds, 3 assists and 1 steal. He also sank 6-of-7 free throws in the second half to salt away the win.
As a sophomore, Grawer led the Big 12 Conference, and ranked 3rd in the nation, in three-point shooting percentage, hitting at a school-record 49.6% clip.
Grawer ranks 3rd on the alltime MU career three-point field goal chart, with 158 entering the Nebraska game. The alltime leader is Jason Sutherland, with 190.
Grawer also needs 1 more steal to catch former Tiger Mike Sandbothe for 4th on the career steals chart.
REBOUNDING REPORT
Missouri struggled mightily last season to hold its own on the boards. Playing with a lineup that featured a front line of 6-foot-9, 6-foot-6 and 6-foot-6, MU was vastly undersized virtually each time out.
That disadvantage was difficult to overcome, and MU found itself outrebounded by a 5.0 margin per game. The Tigers were outrebounded in their last nine games last season, including a huge 55-30 deficit in the NCAA Tournament against North Carolina.
This year, the Tigers aren't exactly mammoth in size, but in the early going, rebounding is the area in which the Tigers have likely improved most.
MU ranked last in the Big 12 last season in rebounding, with a per-game average of 33.5. Through 12 games this season, the Tigers rank 4th in the league with an average of 42.2 entering Saturday's contest.
Mizzou is rebounding opponents by a +3.9 margin through 11 games, and they recently held their own against one of the nation's best front lines. Fifth-ranked Illinois held a slight 49-45 rebounding edge over the Tigers in their overtime triumph on Dec. 21st.
MU recently had an impressive performance on the glass vs. the tall and athletic DePaul Blue Demons.
The Tigers outboarded DePaul by a 38-26 margin, including an eye-popping 20-to-9 advantage on the offensive end. The Tigers turned those rebounds into 27 second-chance points. The Tigers enter Tuesday's game as the top offensive rebounding team in the Big 12 (15.0 p/g).
MU outrebounded Savannah State by a 54-27 margin to open the season. The biggest margin MU held last year was 14. The Tigers followed by outboarding Rhode Island by a 44-37 margin, holding URI to just 12 rebounds in the decisive second half.
On Nov. 25th vs. Valpo, the Crusaders jumped out to a 10-point lead, and held a massive 26-12 rebounding edge in the first half. But the Tigers regrouped to get control of the game in the second half -- largely due to a 24-14 advantage on the glass after intermission.
HITTING THE FREEBIES
If a game comes down to the foul line, early indications show that Mizzou should be right at home.
The Tigers enter Saturday's game with a success rate of 68.4% as a team from the line, which ranks 5th in the Big 12.
MU had ranked near the top of the league however, but they're looking to regroup after shooting a combined 53.3% from the line in their last three games (40-of-75), including a season-low 51.7% effort from the line against Illinois, as the Tigers connected on just 15-of-29 freebies. Factor into that equation that MU's top two shooters -- Kareem Rush and Brian Grawer -- didn't get an attempt between them.
The Tigers improved on getting to the line their last time out, as they held a 32-10 edge in free throw attempts over Coastal Carolina. That reversed a trend that had seen opponents attempt a combined 133 foul shots (including a massive 50 by Iowa), to only 88 for the Tigers in the previous three games.
MU has been sharp from the line in the game's final moments. Thus far, the Tigers have made 77.7% (66-of-85) of its free throws in the final four minutes of games (including overtime), and 77.6% (52-of-67) in the final two minutes (including overtime).
STOKES FANS THE FLAMES
Freshman point guard Wesley Stokes is really coming into his own of late. He of the unmistakeable coiff was possibly MU's MVP in a recent win at Indiana.
At Bloomington, Stokes provided a huge spark off the bench, as he scored a career-high 11 points and added an assist and a steal in 15 minutes of play.
Stokes hit 4-of-7 FGs on the night, including a gutsy floater in the lane over IU's 6-foot-9 Jeff Newton with 1:06 left in the game that gave MU a 62-61 lead.
That performance was preceded by an equally-clutch outing in MU's double overtime affair at #22 Iowa. He scored 8 points vs. the Hawkeyes, with all of them coming after regulation.
Stokes hit 6-of-7 FTs in overtime, including 2-of-2 with just 29 seconds left in the 1st overtime to force a second extra period. He also added 3 assists and 3 rebounds in 11 minutes of action.
Stokes added 9 points, 4 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 assists in 24 minutes vs. #5 Illinois. Seven of his points came in the second half, as he helped MU rally from an 8-point deficit to force overtime.
Stokes has averaged 7.2 points a game in the last five outings, after averaging 2.3 in MU's first seven contests.
The owner of the best hair-do in the Big 12 Conference, Stokes has the support of his head coach. "I like it (his hair)," said Quin Snyder. "I just told him that `If you're going to have that hair, you'd better be a player.'"
OH RICKEY, YOU'RE SO FINE
Freshman forward Rickey Paulding is a very quiet and humble young man. After helping lead MU's comeback win over Valparaiso with a career-high 16 points, he didn't want to go to the interview room after the game because he was timid about speaking in front a group of people.
Paulding acquitted himself just fine in the interview room, as he did on the court. You wouldn't know he was a shy person by the way he attacks the rim. The high-flying rookie is one of the Big 12's most exciting finishers around the basket, and continues to develop into a vitally important player off the bench for the Tigers.
Paulidng is looking to bounce back from his first scoreless of the season, as he was held to 0-of-5 shooting vs. Coastal Carolina in 16 minutes of play.
He previously had a solid 8-point, 2-rebound and 2-assist outing vs. Stetson. Included in his point total was an eye-popping alley-opp dunk from Clarence Gilbert that will likely make quite a few highlight reels this season.
Paulding had a stellar performance Dec. 9th vs. Saint Louis, when he scored 13 points in 15 minutes and added a team-high 6 rebounds.
The Detroit, Mich. native was a key to MU's comeback win vs. Valparaiso, as he ended the game with a career-high 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting (including 2 rim-rocking dunks). He also sank 4-of-5 free throws and added 3 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 assist to the cause.
Through 12 games, Paulding is averaging 7.6 points a game, which is 6th-best on the squad.
MU MAKES HISTORY AT INDIANA
MU became just the 9th non-conference team to claim a win at Indiana's Assembly Hall when the Tigers claimed a 68-63 win on Dec. 18th.
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.
NAJEEB ECHOLS
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
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.
DUANE JOHN
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.
POLLING DATA
The Sports Illustrated college basketball season preview issue had 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.
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.
