Jan. 31, 2006
Columbia, Mo. -
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Missouri (10-8, 3-4 Big 12) will look to halt its season-long three-game losing skid on Wednesday when it welcomes No. 7 / No. 8 Texas to Mizzou Arena for an ESPN2 contest ... The Tigers are a perfect 3-0 vs. ranked foes in the brief history of Mizzou Arena, including a 72-68 win over No. 7 Kansas to round out the 2004-05 campaign ... Defeating Top-10 foes at home is nothing new for Head Coach Quin Snyder and the Tigers ... Mizzou is 6-2 at home vs. Top-10 opposition and have defeated at least one Top-10 team each season with Snyder at the helm ... In fact, Mizzou has won a minimum of two games vs. Top 25 teams each of Snyder's previous six campaigns and can keep that streak alive with a win on Wednesday ... Missouri earned its initial Top 25 win of 2005-06 on Jan. 10 at Oklahoma, when the Tigers defeated the No. 22 Sooners 71-69 in Norman ... Incidentally, it was an Austin, Texas, native that led Mizzou to that victory ... Sophomore forward Marshall Brown scored a career high 21 points in the win, including the game-deciding free throws with 1.8 seconds remaining and the score tied at 69-69 ... Wednesday's game will mark the second meeting for Brown, a former prep standout at Austin's Lyndon B. Johnson High School and his hometown university ... Last season Brown scored five points and grabbed five boards in his Austin, Texas, return ... Junior guard Thomas Gardner was named to the John R. Wooden midseason All-America watch list ... Gardner was one of three Big 12 players on the list, joining UT's LaMarcus Aldridge and P.J. Tucker ... Speaking of Aldridge (9.5 rpg.) and Tucker (8.8 rpg.), the duo ranks 1-and-2 respectively in rebounding in the Big 12 Conference ... Mizzou's Kevin Young (8.2 rpg.) ranks third ... Gardner needs just seven three-point field goals to move into Mizzou's single-season Top 10 ... Gardner has a career high 64 triples already this season, with Mark Atkins (1993-94) and Brian Grawer (2000-01) standing 10th with 71 makes ... Senior guard Jimmy McKinney scored his 1,000th career point vs. Iowa State to become the eighth player in school history to record 1,000 points and 300 assists ... McKinney now needs just 20 rebounds to reach 400 for his career (only four other Tigers have accomplished the 1,000-400-300 feat).
Gardner Named To Wooden Award Midseason List
College basketball's version of the FDA gave Mizzou junior guard Thomas Gardner its stamp of approval over the weekend when the John R. Wooden Award committee named the Portland, Ore., native to its midseason All-America listing.
l Gardner was one of three Big 12 players named to the grouping, along with Texas representatives LaMarcus Aldridge and P.J. Tucker.
l Gardner currently leads the Big 12 and ranks among national leaders in scoring (21.3) and three-point field goals per game (3.6).
l Gardner is the first Tiger to be selected to the Wooden Award midseason list since Kareem Rush in 2001-02.
McKinney Closing In On A Milestone
Jimmy McKinney's versatility has the Tiger senior closing in on a milestone ... After scoring his 1,000th career point against Iowa State on Jan. 25, the former Vashon High School standout needs just 20 rebounds to become the fifth player in Missouri history to record 1,000 points, 400 rebounds and 300 assists during his Mizzou playing career ... McKinney has already topped 300 assists and currently has 330 heading into the contest with Nebraska ... Once McKinney tops 400 boards, the St. Louis, Mo., native will join Doug Smith (1987-01), Anthony Peeler (1988-92), Melvin Booker (1990-94) and Greg Cavener (1981-85) as the only Tigers to accomplish the 1,000-point, 400-rebound, 300-assist feat.
Tigers Tend To Tame Top-10 Teams
Top 10 foes have fallen on hard times in Columbia as the Tigers have racked up a 6-2 record at home vs. top-flight opposition under Quin Snyder ... The Tigers have beaten at least one Top-10 team each season under Snyder, including four wins over Kansas, one against Oklahoma and one against Oklahoma State:
Top-10 Wins For Mizzou Under Snyder:
Date W/L Opponent Score
1-22-00 W No. 7 Kansas 81-59
1-29-01 W No. 3 Kansas 75-66
2-3-02 W No. 8 Virginia 81-77
3-3-02 L No. 1 Kansas 95-92
2-26-03 W No. 3 Oklahoma 67-52
3-9-03 L No. 4 Kansas 79-74
2-24-04 W No. 6 Okla. St. 93-92
3-6-05 W No. 6 Kansas 72-68
Against Top-10 opposition overall under Snyder Missouri is 8-16 including a 76-55 loss at No. 3 Texas on Jan. 25, 2002.
Snyder's Tigers vs. the Top 25
Missouri has defeated a minimum of two Top 25 teams each season under Quin Snyder and the Tigers will look to extend that streak this evening with a win over No. 7/ No. 8 Texas ... The Tigers already own a 71-69 road win at No. 22 Oklahoma this season as they face their third ranked foe of 2005-06 ... Mizzou lost to No. 6 Illinois in St. Louis ... Overall, Missouri is 18-40 vs. Top 25 teams under Snyder, but is 10-11 at home, including a perfect 3-0 mark at Mizzou Arena.
Getting To Know Today's Foe
No. 7 / No. 8 Texas is coming off its first Big 12 loss of the season following an 82-72 defeat at Oklahoma over the weekend ... Prior to that setback, UT had won nine consecutive games, including wins against Top-Five programs Villanova and Memphis ... Texas is led by sophomore forward LaMarcus Aldridge, who paces the club in scoring (16.7), rebounding (9.5) and blocked shots (2.0) and was recently named one of 30 midseason candidates for the John R. Wooden All-America team along with fellow front-court mate P.J. Tucker and Mizzou standout Thomas Gardner ... Daniel Gibson (15.3) and Brad Buckman (11.3) round out UT's double-figure scorers ... While Texas' offensive productivity is hard to deny, don't overlook the Longhorn defense, which is holding foes to a Big 12 best 59.0 points per game on just 36.7 percent shooting.
Mizzou Series With Texas
Wednesday's game marks the 18th all-time meeting between Missouri and Texas ... The Longhorns own a slight 9-8 series lead, but have won seven consecutive in the series dating back to a 66-63 UT win on Feb. 12. 2000, in Columbia ... Head Coach Quin Snyder has never beaten the Longhorns (0-7) and is 0-3 at home, with each of those three games being decided by six points or less ... In fact, since the inception of Big 12 play (11 meetings), the two clubs have had seven games decided by seven points or less and Missouri is 3-8 during that stretch.