SCORING EXPLOSION
Despite being ice cold in the first half of Saturday's game vs. Grambling, Mizzou managed to topple the 100-point plateau for the second straight game when reserve guard Ryan Kiernan hit a three-pointer from the left corner at the buzzer. Mizzou opened the game by making just 34.3% of its first half shots (12-of-35) en route to a slim 36-29 halftime lead. The Tigers came out firing cleanly in the second half, as they shot 55.0% (22-of-40) on the way to 64 points after intermission - the most scored in any half under Quin Snyder.

Missouri scored 106 points Thursday vs. Jackson State in its 106-68 victory at Hearnes. The back-to-back 100-point games marked the first time since 1990 that the Tigers have scored 100 or more in consecutive games.

The last time MU accomplished that scoring feat was during a 106-87 win over Southern (Jan. 10, 1990) and a 111-95 win over Nebraska (Jan. 13, 1990).

MU-SLU SERIES HISTORY
Missouri and Saint Louis have met 39 previous times, and the Tigers hold a slight 20-19 edge.

The teams have split games the last two years, with the home team winning each time since the series resumed for the 1999-2000 season.

Monday's game will mark the first time that MU and SLU have met in the Savvis Center, as the 1999 game won by SLU (75-72) was contested at the then-TWA Dome.

Career stats for current Tigers vs. Saint Louis can be found later in this release.

LAST YEAR: MU 77, SLU 73
Kareem Rush scored 25 points and Missouri rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit with free throw shooting in a 77-73 victory over Saint Louis.

Brian Grawer clinched the comeback for the Tigers when he made two free throws with five seconds to go. Missouri was 20-for-25 at the line in the second half and 26-for-33 overall.

Saint Louis, which got 16 points from Marque Perry, was 8-for-16 from the line in the second half. With Missouri ahead 75-73, Perry turned the ball over in the lane with about six seconds to go. His basket off the drive had cut the gap to 74-73 with 16.7 seconds to go.

Clarence Gilbert overcame 5-for-16 shooting with strong play down the stretch, scoring seven of his 17 points in the final 4:16. Saint Louis led 69-61 at that point before Missouri scored 12 of the next 13.

Rush, who entered with a Big 12-leading 21-point average, made eight of 15 shots and was 8-for-9 at the line.

Rickey Paulding added 13 points for Missouri in an efficient 15 minutes of play.

Missouri trailed most of the game, but took the lead for good when Gilbert made a 3-pointer with 2:02 left and Rush drove the lane with 1:33 to go for a 71-70 lead. Two free throws by Rush with 38.4 seconds to go made it 73-70.

Missouri twice cut the gap to two points early in the second half, the second time at 44-42 on two free throws by Arthur Johnson with 13:08 left. Saint Louis answered with a 10-2 run.

Saint Louis also finished the first half on a 12-4 run, capped by Drew Diener's 3-pointer with 13 seconds to go, for a 38-31 lead.

RUSH EARNS BIG 12 AWARD
Missouri junior forward Kareem Rush was named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week last Tuesday by the league office for averaging 19.6 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in leading MU to a 5-0 start to the season. This marked the first week for the award.

Rush, who led the Big 12 last season with a scoring average of 21.1 points per game, had perhaps his best all-around performance in a Tiger uniform Nov. 24th when he led MU to a solid victory over Xavier in Indianapolis, with 24 points, 12 rebounds and 3 assists in 39 minutes. He also played excellent defense, holding one of Xavier's top scorers, Romain Sato, to a 4-of-13 shooting night.

He's coming off a 17-point performance Saturday vs. Grambling in a game in which he sat out the final 8 minutes after the game was in hand for MU. He entered the game with 994 career points, and became the 33rd member of MU's 1,000-point club. He's now ranked 31st alltime among Tiger scorers with 1,011 points, and needs 6 more to surpass Ray Bob Carey for 30th on the chart.

The league award marked the fifth time the that Rush claimed a Big 12 weekly honor. A pre-season first team All-American, Rush was named Big 12 Player of the Week twice last season, and earned the league Freshman of the Week honor twice during his freshman season of 1999-2000.

Rush led the way last Thursday vs. Jackson State with a game-high 24 points, on the strength of a 6-of-8 performance from 3-pt. Range. Rush has now scored in double figures in 51-of-55 games in his Tiger career.

GILBERT movin' on up
Senior guard Clarence Gilbert enters Monday's game at Saint Louis ranking 24th on the MU career scoring chart, with 1,204 points. His 20-point outing Saturday vs. Grambling moved him past former Tigers Bob Reiter, Jason Sutherland and Don Tomlinson into 21st place on the school scoring chart.

Gilbert needs just 6 points to pass Jim Kennedy for 20th place on the chart. He stands 69 points behind Lee Coward for 19th place, and if he gets all of that in Monday's game, this SID will buy the first round for the entire media contingent. Here's a look at the chart entering Monday's game:

THE QUIN SNYDER FILE
In only his third season at Missouri, Head Coach Quin Snyder has his Tigers achieving heights not seen at MU in years.

At 7-0 on the season, Mizzou found itself ranked #3 in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll. That marks the highest an MU team has been ranked since the 1993-94 season. Additionally, when MU won the Guardians Classic last week with its miraculous comeback vs. Iowa, it gave the school its first in-season tournament championship since 1989.

The 15th head coach in Missouri basketball history, Snyder is 45-26 in his third season as a head coach.

Snyder guided Missouri to a 20-13 record in 2000-01, including the schools' first NCAA Tournament win since 1995, when MU defeated Georgia in the opening round.

He was named the national rookie coach-of-the-year by Basketball Times after leading the Tigers to an 18-13 record and an NCAA appearance in the 1999-2000 campaign.

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).

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 strong out of the gate
Missouri is off to its first 7-0 start to a season since the 1991-92 squad won its first 11 games.

Only 10 times previously in modern school history has MU won its first 7 games to begin a season. The current bunch has a ways to go to match the best start in school history, as the 1981-82 team won its first 19 games on its way to a #1 national ranking and eventual 27-4 record and Big Eight championship.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
Missouri is taking quite good care of the ball thus far, as Quin Snyder's group is averaging just 13.4 turnovers per game. That's just slightly more than the school record of 13.3 turnovers per game set in the 1999-2000 season.

Mizzou had been averaging just 12.0 miscues per game prior to Saturday's game with Grambling, but the Tigers committed a season-high 22 turnovers to raise the average.

REBOUND THAT BASKETBALL
It's certainly way too early to determine much statistically, but in MU's first 7 games, the Tigers appear to be an improved rebounding squad.

Just ask Air Force. Missouri held the Falcons to just 12 rebounds in its 86-58 win on Nov. 12th. That's right, 12 rebounds total. MU outrebounded Air Force 31-12 on the night, and had more offensive boards (17) than the Falcons had overall (12).

Part of the disparity had to do with the fact that both teams shot the ball well, (MU was 58.9% on the night, with USAF going 52.6%), but the fact remains that the Tigers appear to be improving a year after being outrebounded by an average of 0.1 rebounds per game last season.

Records show that the 12 rebounds by Air Force is a new record single-game low for an opponent against MU.

Missouri has enjoyed a huge 104-49 rebounding advantage in its last two games, outrebounding Grambling 50-23, preceded by a 54-26 edge over Jackson State on Thursday.

Mizzou was dominant on the offensive glass in those games, holding an eye-popping 46-8 advantage in offensive rebounds.

Sophomore postman Arthur Johnson has led the way in the last 2 games, as he's recorded 10 rebounds in each game. All of his 10 rebounds Saturday vs. Grambling came on the offensive end. He's leading MU with a per-game average of 6.7 rebounds.

The rebounding margin of +28 in Thursday's game marked the largest such margin for Missouri under Quin Snyder. It eclipsed the previous best of +27 set last year vs. Savannah State (54-27). Missouri improved to 20-3 overall under Snyder in games in which it outrebounded its opponent.

LONG RANGE EFFICIENCY IS AN MU KEY
The past two seasons have seen undersized Tiger squads depend heavily on the three-pointer, and too often it was a feast-or-famine situation - if MU was on, it was tough to beat, and if it wasn't, wins could be tough to get.

The long-ball is still a vital weapon of the Tigers, but they're showing a greater efficiency in using the shot this season. After averaging 8.5 threes made per game in 22.2 attempts last year, MU is averaging more makes in fewer attempts through 7 games in 2001-02.

MU enters Monday's game at Saint Louis averaging 9.0 three-pointers made per game in 22.6 attempts. They hit just 33.3% of their long-range attempts vs. Grambling (9-of-27), but on Tuesday, MU had its best performance of the year from 3-pt. range. Versus Jackson State on Tuesday, MU connected on a season-best 52.4% from 3-pt. range (11-of-21). Kareem Rush led the way by drilling 6-of-8 attempts from downtown.

MU had been averaging just 20 three-point attempts in its first 3 games, but the Tigers scraped to a win over Iowa on Nov. 21st in a game that saw them launch a season-high 32 treys, connecting on a season-best 12.

The Tigers hit their first two threes against Iowa, but went into a funk from long distance, as they made just 5-of-20 while Iowa built a double-digit lead with a little over 7 minutes left to play.

Just when things started to look bad for the good guys, MU found its range, and hit 5-of-10 treys in the game's final 6:53, including bombs from Najeeb Echols (his first career trey), Clarence Gilbert, Wesley Stokes and Kareem Rush, before Rickey Paulding's dramatic game-tying three with 24 seconds left.

Numbers bear out that efficiency from long distance has been a key to success under Quin Snyder. When MU attempts 20 or fewer three-pointers, Mizzou is a sterling 18-3 in Snyder's two-plus seasons.

During the same time, they are just above .500 (26-23) when trying more than 20 treys in a game.

KNOCKING THEM BACK

Shots, that is, but not the kind that have you feeling foggy in the morning. We're talking about blocked shots, and the Tigers have had plenty of them in their first 7 games.

MU has blocked 36 shots thus far (a school-record pace of 5.1 blocks per game), including 10 in the opener vs. UT-Martin. That was just one block shy of the single-game school record of 11, accomplished twice (most recently Jan. 24, 1999 vs. Kansas).

Opponents have blocked only 21 shots against Mizzou thus far.

The blocks certainly played a factor in MU holding UT-Martin to just 29.2% from the floor - the 2nd-lowest total for an opponent in the Quin Snyder era (the low is 28.6% last season by Valparaiso). Missouri established a single-season blocks record last year, when it swatted 132 shots (an average of 4.0 per game). Arthur Johnson, who had 5 in the UT-Martin game, set a single-season record with 65 blocks. He is already 6th on the alltime career blocks chart entering Monday's game at Saint Louis, with 82 career swats.

WHERE'S THE CHARITY?
Missouri got a quality 72-60 win on Nov. 24th over Atlantic-10 Conference favorite Xavier, despite the fact that the Tigers didn't get much love from the foul line.

MU went to the foul line just 3 times vs. Xavier, and made 1 of those attempts. According to a quick scan of the record books, that marked the first time that Mizzou had ever won a game when making so few free throws. The previous low coming in a win was a win at Old Dominion during the 1989-90 season when Mizzou went 3-of-3 from the line.

In case you're curious, Missouri has made zero free throws in a contest before. That came in a loss at Colorado during the 1983-84 season, when MU went 0-of-7 from the charity stripe.

GILBERT GETS BETTER WITH AGE
Like a fine wine that gets better with age, senior guard Clarence Gilbert is playing the best ball of his Tiger career, and he's a huge reason why Mizzou is off to a 7-0 start and a No. 3 ranking nationally.

Gilbert is averaging a career-high 18.6 points per game, and is adding 3.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals a contest. Often taken to task by outsiders for his shot selection in the past, he's looking to shed his image of a gunner, and the numbers point to the fact that he's playing at an alltime best efficiency rate.

Gilbert has improved his numbers from last year, showing that he's working hard to become more efficient with his offensive attack.

Gilbert led MU with 20 points Saturday vs. Grambling, despite missing his first 8 shots on the day. He worked his way through the mini-slump by getting to the foul line, where he hit 10-of-12 free throws. He scored 18 of his points in the second half, and finally found the mark, going 4-of-8 after intermission. He also added 7 assists, and now has dished out 18 assists to just 5 turnovers in MU's last 3 games.

Nov. 24th against Xavier, the Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. native couldn't find his shot consistently vs. Xavier, but still played a key role in leading MU to the big 72-60 win.

He went scoreless (on 0-of-4 FGs) in the first half of the game, but had 4 assists and 2 steals to help MU to a 36-34 halftime lead. In the second half, Gilbert connected for 10 points, and finished the game with 6 assists (to just 1 turnover), 4 steals and 2 rebounds in 32 minutes of play.

Prior to that, Gilbert was the hero vs. #9 Iowa in the NABC Guardians Classic championship game, as he had a 27-point outing. He hit the game-winning free throw after being fouled with just :00.8 seconds left in the game. He was named the tournament MVP for his performances in Kansas City, where he averaged 22.5 points against two ranked teams.

Gilbert's game-winning free throw against Iowa got the headlines, but it was his leadership down the stretch that was really evident, as he helped will his team to the title.

He's been getting the job done in so many ways thus far. For example:

Gilbert was one of the Big 12's top players last season, as he led the league in three-point field goals (3.19 per game), ranked 4th in scoring (16.5 ppg) and was 13th in assists (3.5 apg). Despite that, he was named only to the honorable mention All-Big 12 team.

Those in the Tiger program believe Gilbert is possibly the most underappreciated player in the league, as he is one of the Big 12's most dangerous scorers (he set a league scoring record with 43 pts. last year vs. Iowa State in Columbia) as well as being the team's top individual defender.

MORE ON GILBERT
To help illustrate just what a solid overall player Clarence Gilbert has been in his career, consider the fact that he is on pace to end his Tiger career in the top-10 in scoring, 3-point field goals, assists and steals. He would join former All-American Melvin Booker as the only Tiger to rank in the top-10 of each of those categories.

a comeback for the ages
The evening of Nov. 21st saw Missouri stage an incredible rally to gain an improbable 78-77 comeback win over 9th-ranked Iowa in the championship game of the NABC Guardians Classic in Kansas City, Mo.

The Tigers trailed Iowa by 11 points (73-62) with just 2:15 remaining, but a frantic series of events took place quickly, and when the dust settled, the game was tied with :00.8 seconds left on the clock, and MU's Clarence Gilbert was standing at the foul line to shoot two free throws. He missed the first after a series of three Iowa timeouts, but got the second one home and MU knocked away a desperation full-court heave to get the dramatic win.

All told, Mizzou outscored Iowa 14-4 over the last 2:11, and forced three turnovers.

MU SIGNS THREE PROSPECTS DURING EARLY PERIOD
Missouri signed three high school student-athletes to national letters of intent this past week. Here's a look at the information that was released on each:

Jimmy McKinney - St. Louis, Mo.
The Missouri men's basketball program added one of the nation's top prep players to its roster for next season, as Jimmy McKinney of Vashon High School in St. Louis, Mo., signed a national letter of intent to attend Mizzou.

McKinney, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound guard, has been a proven leader and an unquestioned winner on Coach Floyd Irons' Vashon squads that have won consecutive Missouri Class 4A state championships. McKinney averaged 23.4 points, four assists and four rebounds per game as a junior, and led Vashon to a 28-1 record last season, and a final ranking of No. 3 in the nation by USA Today. Widely regarded as one of the nation's top 30 players entering this season, McKinney is a pre-season candidate for the prestigious McDonald's All-American Game.

"We're very pleased that Jimmy will be a part of the Missouri family," said MU Head Coach Quin Snyder. "Jimmy comes from a very strong family and super parents. He's an outstanding young man with tremendous character. In terms of the game of basketball, Jimmy has tremendous scoring and passing ability, but of even greater significance is his feel for the total game. He should be an impact player in the Big XII." McKinney's signing is viewed as important to Snyder in another realm, as well.

"I'm personally excited to have an opportunity to work with one of Coach Irons' young men," said Snyder. "I have great respect for Coach Irons. Vashon is one of the finest programs in the country, and it's important that the top kids in Missouri see our program as one where they can come and grow as players and as young men," he said. McKinney selected Missouri over Illinois, North Carolina, Kentucky, Cincinnati and Oklahoma, among others. His parents are Jimmy Sr., and Ema McKinney of St. Louis.

Kevin Young - Kingston, Jamaica
The University of Missouri men's basketball team has plenty to be thankful for during Thanksgiving week, as Head Coach Quin Snyder announced the signing of top prep prospect Kevin Young to a national letter of intent.

Originally from Kingston, Jamaica, the 6-foot-9, 270-pound center is in his second year at Berkshire Academy in Homestead, Fla., where he plays for Coach Rolando DeLaBarrera. He is a consensus top-100 prospect by recruiting analysts, and has been ranked among the top-10 post players in the country by one service.

"Kevin is a very talented young man who has a tremendous passion for the game of basketball," said MU Head Coach Quin Snyder. "We're very pleased that he has chosen to come to Missouri to further develop his skills. He is a strong, agile and physically imposing inside player who can impact the game in a number of areas. He will be a good fit with our team," said Snyder.

Young played his junior season at Berkshire with current MU freshman guard Duane John. Together, they helped guide their squad to a 17-2 record and a national ranking by USA Today. He chose Missouri over Kentucky and Miami, Fla., among others.

Giedrius Rinkevicius - Kaunas, Lithuania
Missouri added the tallest player in MU history today, as they announced that 7-foot-2 center Giedrius Rinkevicius has signed a national letter of intent to attend Mizzou.

Rinkevicius, a native of Kaunas, Lithuania, was a member of the Lithuanian 19-and-under junior national team this past year. He is attending Bridgton Academy this season, a prep school located in North Bridgton, Maine, where he plays for Coach Whit Lesure.

"Giedrius is a quality young man with a tremendous upside to his game," said MU Head Coach Quin Snyder. "We see him as someone who can come to Missouri and develop into a complete player. He has good athleticism, and can run the floor well, and when he develops his strength, he can be quite a talent," said Snyder.

Tom Konchalski, a top east coast recruiting analyst, has seen Rinkevicius play, and has good things to say about the big man. "I was impressed when I saw him," he said. "Giedrius runs and catches extremely well, and he has nice hands and feet. He's a good passer, and has a solid feel for the game. His best basketball is ahead of him, and Missouri will be a great environment for him to learn the game. He's got to get stronger, but if he is patient and stays the course, I believe he's got the potential to play in the NBA one day," said Konchalsky.

At 7-foot-2, Rinkevicius will equal the tallest Tiger to ever wear the black and gold uniform, matching former player Tom Dore, a 7-foot-2 post who played for MU from 1979-80.

rush hour continues DESPITE BROKEN NOSE
Mizzou All-American forward Kareem Rush played Wednesday night vs. Iowa with a broken nose and pretty severe swelling above his left eye due to separate elbows he received the night before by Alabama's Demetrious Smith.

Rush got knocked out of Tuesday's game with Alabama at the 7:50 mark in the second half due to a blow to the head he received from Smith.

Rush got a nasty contusion, with considerable swelling above his left eye after the altercation. He was taken to a local hospital after the game for precautionary tests, and the Cat Scan came back negative, meaning there was no concussion.

Tests did reveal, however, that Rush has a broken nose. That injury didn't actually happen in the second half, however. The broken nose occurred in the first half, when he got an elbow in a similar situation from Smith again. Rush left the game momentarily to gather himself, then returned to play the rest of the game with the injured nose. It was not known at the time that he had the break. Before leaving the game in the second half, Rush ended with 16 points and 7 rebounds in just 28 minutes.

Despite the broken nose, and some blurred vision due to the swelling of his eye, Rush played on Wednesday vs. #9 Iowa. He played 33 minutes, but wasn't able to find a rhythm offensively, as he was held to a season-low 11 points. In the post-game, Rush didn't use his injury as an excuse (but this SID will!!), but he clearly wasn't completely himself out there.

Despite the off night, Rush came up big in crunch time, as would be expected of an All-American. With MU trailing 77-71, Rush grabbed a defensive rebound, came down the court and drained a long three-pointer with 36 seconds left that was key to MU's comeback win.

WHAT A WEEK FOR RUSH
MU's All-American candidate Kareem Rush had quite an eventful few days of late.

First, he led MU to a pair of wins in the first and second rounds of the Guardians Classic in Columbia. Last week, he was named the MVP of Missouri's regional after averaging 23.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game vs. UT-Martin and Air Force, including a sterling 28-point night in the opener.

The Thursday evening after MU's game with Air Force, Rush was driving along Columbia's Nifong Boulevard after practice, and virtually totaled his truck after hitting a big deer that jumped out in front of him. Rush was fine, the deer got up and ran off, and the truck came in a distant third.

Throw in the broken nose and nasty bump he got in Tuesday's game vs. Alabama, and you have quite a week for the Tiger forward.

Rush was named a pre-season first-team All-American prior to the season by the Associated Press. He's believed to be the first Tiger to win such acclaim prior to a season.

Rush blossomed into the Big 12 Conference's top offensive player last year as a sophomore, and became the first Tiger to win a conference scoring title since Anthony Peeler led the Big Eight in 1991-92 (23.4 ppg).

He did so despite missing seven games late in the year due to a broken thumb on his shooting hand. He returned in time for the post-season, and led MU to the second round of the NCAA Tournament with superb play despite a cumbersome cast/splint on his shooting hand. Rush scored 31 points in the Big 12 Tournament vs. Oklahoma, and netted 29 more in the NCAA vs. eventual national champ Duke.

Big 12 coaches and media tabbed Rush as the league's pre-season player of the year. He would become MU's first player to win that honor since Melvin Booker was named Big Eight player of the year in 1994.

Rush has been listed on the pre-season candidate list for both the Wooden Award and the Naismith Award, honors given to the nation's top collegiate player.

Rush is completely healthy from the thumb injury last year, and worked hard in the offseason to become stronger physically in MU's new strength and conditioning program.

more improbabilities
Missouri handed Iowa its first loss of the season Wednesday despite a few statistical deficiencies.

MU VS. RANKED TEAMS

MU NABS TOP-10 RANKING
Missouri is a top-ten team, according to both key national polls. When the pre-season Associated Press top-25 poll was released, MU found itself perched at number eight, just one spot below its initial No. 9 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today poll. It is the first time since 1995 that MU has started the season ranked (#14 prior to the 1995-96 season). The #8 ranking equals the highest an MU team has received to begin the season, matching the 1987-88 squad, which was ranked eighth in the initial poll. MU is now ranked #5 in the A.P. poll, which marks the highest ranking by a Tiger team since the 1993-94 squad finished the season in that same position.

MORE RANKING RANTINGS
The last time MU was ranked in the A.P. top ten came in February of 1995, when the Tigers were ranked No. 9 prior to enduring a four-game losing streak that dropped them to No. 23 by the end of the 1994-95 season.

The highest MU has ever finished a season in the rankings in the A.P. poll is No. 5, accomplished by the 1981-82 and 1993-94 teams. The first squad began the season ranked 16th and won the third of four consecutive Big Eight Conference titles for Norm Stewart, and finished the year with a 27-4 record. The '93-94 team started the year unranked but eventually climbed to as high as No. 3 after going a perfect 14-0 in the Big Eight. That squad finished with a record of 28-4.

IT'S A YOUTH MOVEMENT
The lofty expectations thrust upon Missouri this pre-season are a welcome challenge to all those in the Tiger program. Not that we're trying to temper expectations, but to be a top-10 team like many are predicting, will be indeed a tall challenge for a squad that is very young overall. Eight of MU's top 11 players in the rotation are freshmen or sophomores, and a ninth - junior college transfer Uche Okafor - is in his first year in the program.

MU STOKED BY STOKES' PLAY
Sophomore point guard Wesley Stokes served as an understudy last season to senior point guard Brian Grawer. After Grawer's departure, some people wondered if Stokes would be ready to take over the reins of the MU offense, but early indications show that there's no need for concern.

Stokes is averaging 9.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game in helping guide MU to its 4-0 start to the year.

Stokes opened the season by connecting at a 58.3% clip from the floor in MU's first two games at home. His shot wouldn't fall consistently this week in Kansas City (6-of-21 FGs), but he still was a key to MU's wins that led to the Guardians Classic championship.

On Tuesday vs. #22 Alabama, Stokes - the smallest player on the court, at 5-foot-10 -was held to 4 pts., but grabbed a game-high and career-best 12 rebounds, while adding four assists.

The next night vs. #9 Iowa, he scored a season-best 17 points, and helped lead MU's comeback win. He had a hand in 9 of MU's final 19 points of the game's final 3 minutes which began with the Tigers trailing by 10. Before fouling out with 50 seconds left, Stokes made his presence felt by knocking down a three-pointer, going 4-of-4 from the foul line and getting a steal and assist on a Clarence Gilbert dunk.

Known for his stylish coif and on-court panache, Stokes was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team last season after averaging 6.4 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. He started six games during Kareem Rush's absence, and really stepped to the forefront, as he averaged 12.6 points in that stretch, after averaging 4.7 ppg in his first 21 outings.

A.J. IS A-OKAY
Sophomore postman Arthur "A.J." Johnson has been quite solid in his efforts. The Detroit, Mich. native is averaging 10.0 points and 5.8 rebounds through 4 games, and is shooting 60.7% from the floor.

He began the season by grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking five shots vs. UT-Martin. He was held in check offensively, as he tallied three points, but he came back the next night to score a career-high 19 points vs. Air Force, on the strength of an 8-of-11 shooting night.

Johnson turned in a 12-point outing Tuesday vs. #22 Alabama. He was held to 6 points Wednesday vs. #9 Iowa, but he added a game-high 4 blocked shots.

A candidate for All-Big 12 honors, Johnson, who was ranked among the nation's top-10 centers by Lindy's pre-season publication, averaged 9.0 points and led MU with 7.8 rebounds per game last season. He set the MU single-season (65) and single-game (8) blocked shots records, and was named honorable mention All-Big 12 and to the Big 12 All-Freshman team by league media.

Johnson worked hard over the summer to get in better physical condition, and his efforts in MU's new strength and conditioning program paid off. His work with strength coach Jeff Watkinson knocked his weight from 281 in April to 262 in October, and his body fat percentage dropped from 23% to 15% during the same time period.

PAULDING HITS THE BIG SHOT
Sophomore forward Rickey Paulding has a "glass half empty or glass half full" situation, depending on how one chooses to look at things.

If you're of the "half empty" camp, you'll offer that he plays the same position as MU All-American forward Kareem Rush.

The "half full" crowd would counter that this means he improves every day by going against the best in the country in practice. Being the Pollyannas we are here, we believe the latter is most definitely the case.

The early numbers show that Paulding is developing nicely. He's averaging 9.0 points per game this year. Okay, not exactly eye-popping figures, given his 7.0 average last season.

However, the key numbers to examine are his shooting percentages, because he's improved quite significantly there.

Through 4 games, Paulding is shooting 55.0% from the floor, a year after shooting just 42.1%. Perhaps more importantly, he's shooting 57.1% from 3-pt. range (4-of-7), a drastic improvement from his mark of just 21.4% last season (12-of-56).

His hours spent shooting from long distance this summer and fall paid off quite nicely Wednesday vs. #9 Iowa, as he calmly sank a three-pointer with just 24 seconds left to tie the game at 77 apiece.

If you'll recall, Paulding was snake-bitten from three-point range early on last year, as he went 0-of-22 from long distance before making his first college trey. Once he got off the schnied, he settled in to make 40.0% of his threes the rest of the year.

BRYANT CAN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN PERFECT
Sophomore forward Travon Bryant committed himself to MU's strength and conditioning program over the summer, and the results are paying off.

Bryant is a perfect 7-of-7 from the floor thus far during the season, and he's averaging 7.5 points per game off the bench, compared to 3.0 per game last year as a freshman. Included in his shooting total was his first career three-pointer, which he sank in the opener vs. UT-Martin.

The Long Beach, Calif. native, who joined the Tigers last year after the first semester, came in on unequal terms with his teammates, in terms of conditioning, and he spent most of the season trying to catch up.

This summer, Bryant dropped his weight from 251 in April to 240 in October, and during the same time period, dropped his body fat percentage from 23% to 15%.

AWAKEN THE ECHOLS
Freshman guard/forward Najeeb Echols was quite impressive during the Tigers' exhibition season, and the Chicago, Ill. native showed that he's got the skills to be an immediate contributor.

Echols averaged 5.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in MU's two practice contests, playing 21.5 minutes per game. He snagged a game-high 12 rebounds (including 7 on the offensive glass) Nov. 3 vs. EA Sports.

Echols has started each of MU's first two games at the power forward spot, and has been solid in finding his way around the court. He's averaged 2.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game thus far, playing an average of 21.5 minutes per game. His rebounding total is 2nd-best on the squad through two games.

Projected as the Big 12 freshman of the year by one ESPN.com analyst, Echols is returning to action after taking a year off due to a knee injury suffered prior to his senior year of high school. As a junior at Whitney Young High School, he averaged 25 points, 12 rebounds and 8 assists per game for the perennial Windy City power.