Mizzou Basketball Opens Pre-Canadian Practice Session
8/23/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Aug. 23, 2008
Columbia, Mo. - Missouri Basketball opened its first of 10 preseason practices on Saturday afternoon, as Head Coach Mike Anderson and six returning Tigers, along with transfer Zaire Taylor, worked out inside Mizzou Arena.
The preseason practices are coming in advance of Missouri's three-game Canadian Tour, which opens next weekend, Aug. 30, vs. the Ontario All-Stars in St. Catherines, Ontario. The Tigers will then face Brock University on Aug. 31 in St. Catherines, before concluding the trip against the Southern Ontario All-Stars on Sept. 1.
Saturday's workout lasted approximately two hours and Coach Anderson and his staff focused heavily on skill development and shooting. As you would expect with Mizzou's fast-paced style, conditioning played a big role in the workout and the Tigers finished the day with sprints and other numerous fast-paced drills that are staples of a Mike Anderson practice.
"There'll be some soreness with that first workout, but we'll get back together tomorrow to work some of that out," Anderson said. "Our guys were here this summer, so they have stayed in condition and are familiar with one another.
"It was good to get them back today, working out in a structured setting to get them focused on the opportunities ahead of them," Anderson continued. "We only had the seven guys here today, so we had to keep that in mind while we worked them out, but overall it was a good first day."
Participants in the opening practice included seniors Michael Anderson, Jr., DeMarre Carroll, Matt Lawrence and Leo Lyons, juniors Zaire Taylor and J.T. Tiller and sophomore Justin Safford.
Newcomers Keith Ramsey, Laurence Bowers, Marcus Denmon, Kim English, Steve Moore and Miguel Paul will begin working out with the team on Monday.
"I think everyone is excited to get back out here and go to Canada," Lyons said. "Not many people have been there before, so there's a lot to look forward too."
Missouri will return to the practice floor on Sunday afternoon. The Tigers then begin with full-squad workouts on Monday morning at 6 a.m. Monday is the first day of the fall semester at MU and will be the first practice for the Tiger newcomers.
For more information on the University of Missouri Men's Basketball program, please visit our website at MUTigers.com.
