Jan. 20, 2010
Columbia, Mo. -
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Mizzou Basketball News and Notes 2009-10
University of Missouri Tigers (14-4, 2-1 Big 12) vs.
University of Nebraska Cornhuskers (12-6, 0-3 Big 12)
2009-10 Regular Season Game 19 - January 23, 2010 - Columbia, Mo.
Tip-off: 5 p.m. CST
Arena: Mizzou Arena - Columbia, Mo. (15,061)
TV: Big 12 Network - (Mitch Holthus play-by-play; Jon Sundvold analyst)
Radio: Tiger Radio Network (Mike Kelly play-by-play; Gary Link analyst)
Rankings: Mizzou: RV/RV, Nebraska: NR/NR in Associated Press / USA Today Coaches polls
Series: Missouri leads 123-91 all-time; last - MU won 70-47 on Feb 14, 2009 in Columbia
Coaches:
Missouri: Mike Anderson (Tulsa '82); 168-80 overall (8th season); 79-39 at Mizzou (4th)
Nebraska: Doc Sadler (Arkansas, '82); 235-103 overall (11th season); 67-46 at Nebraska (4th)
For Openers
> Missouri returns home for the first time since the Big 12-opener to face Nebraska inside Mizzou Arena ... The Tigers played back-to-back road games in league action and then did not have a midweek contest leading into Saturday's game ... Missouri was one of the Big 12's busiest clubs, playing nine games (8-1) over the holiday break, so the “bye” week came at a great time.
> Of course you can't talk about the Tigers and not mention Missouri's 30-game winning streak inside Mizzou Arena, which dates back to the home finale of the 2007-08 campaign against Iowa State … The Tigers rank #3 nationally with regards to home court winning streaks, one game behind Siena (31) and tied with Pittsburgh and Dayton ... Kansas leads the country in consecutive home wins with 52 ... Missouri's current home win streak is the second longest in school history ... The school mark is 34 straight set from 1988-90 ... That run was actually broken by an Arkansas club in which Mike Anderson was an assistant coach for Nolan Richardson.
> Two of the Big 12's youngest teams will square off Saturday, but no league club has gotten better production from its youth then Missouri ... The Tigers have 11-of-13 players in their first or second season playing for Mike Anderson ... Missouri is getting more than half of its 82.3 points per game from the sophomore class alone ... The second-year Tigers are logging 44.1 points per game ... If you add the freshman class, Mizzou is getting 68 percent of its scoring (55.7 ppg) and 9.0 assists from underclassmen this season ... Oh and for good measure, Missouri is welcoming in the nation's #7 recruiting class next year (per USA Today).
> One of those young Tigers, Laurence Bowers, has been on an absolute tear since the start of Big 12 play and leads the club in several statistical categories ... Bowers is second in scoring in league games (12.7), but is first in rebounding (9.0), tops in blocked shots (3.0), tops in field goal percentage (.609), tops in three-point percentage (.667) and fifth in steals (1.3) ... Bowers recently enjoyed his first career double-double at Oklahoma with 15 points and a career high 10 boards ... He also added two assists, three blocks, two steals and zero turnovers.
> Another impressive number since the start of league play is 13 assists and just two turnovers from Zaire Taylor ... The Staten Island, N.Y., dished a career high eight assists and failed to commit a turnover at Oklahoma last week and boasts a 6.5-to-1 assist/turnover ratio during Big 12 action.
Mizzou Quick Hitters
> Missouri Basketball returns home for the first time in two weeks to face the Nebraska Cornhuskers ... Missouri hasn't played within the friendly confines of Mizzou Arena since opening the Big 12 with a 74-68 win against Kansas State.
> The Tigers have been involved in a number of close games in league play as all three league contests have been decided by six points or less (2-1).
> Missouri has played two of its three Big 12 games away from home and gets three of its next four contests inside Mizzou Arena.
> Missouri has been very good vs. league opposition over the last two seasons ... The Tigers are 16-4 in their last 20 games vs. Big 12 foes, including three wins in the Big 12 Tournament last year ... Only Kansas' 17-3 mark is better than Ol' Mizzou.
> It will be a quick turnaround for the Tigers ... After Saturday's game vs. Nebraska, Mizzou faces Kansas on ESPN Big Monday in Lawrence.
> Missouri is being led in scoring by THREE underclassmen, Kim English (15.3), Marcus Denmon (11.6) and Laurence Bowers (11.1) ... The last time that happed was during the 1999-2000 campaign when Keyon Dooling (15.3), Kareem Rush (14.7) and Clarence Gilbert (13.7) paced the Tigers in scoring ... Missouri's #5 scorer this year is freshman Michael Dixon (8.4 ppg) ... The Tigers have NEVER had four underclassmen rank among the top five scorers in school history.
> Missouri itself has been downright inhospitable at home this year ... The Tigers are 11-0 with a +30.2 ppg scoring margin inside Mizzou Arena ... The Tigers are also shooting 51 percent from the floor, 42 percent from three-point range and are turning teams over 22.7 times a game.
> The Tigers have won 10 consecutive home games vs. Big 12 opposition ... Missouri topped both #16 Kansas (62-60) and #4 Oklahoma (73-64) inside Mizzou Arena last season and defeated #10 Kansas State to start league play in 2009-10.
> The 10 consecutive Big 12 home wins is a school record and the last time the Tigers beat 10 straight league opponents at home came during the 1987-88 through 1990-91 seasons when MU topped 19 consecutive league foes.
> Missouri ranks #11 nationally with 17.2 assists per game … However the perfect illustration for the Tigers' unselfishness is that Mizzou has ZERO players ranked among the Top 250 nationally in assists … No one player dominates that basketball and that fuels Missouri's quick-strike offense … However nine different Tigers have 19 or more assists this season, led by Zaire Taylor (54), J.T. Tiller (44) and freshman Michael Dixon (42) ... And as a reminder, Missouri led the nation in assists last season with 18.4 dimes per contest.
> Missouri has topped 20 assists six times, including 28 dimes in the 106-69 win against Oregon and 25 vs. Georgia.
> Conversely the Tigers lead the nation in steals per game (12.5) and are the only club in America with three players ranked among the Top 100 nationally in steals per game … Zaire Taylor (#82 - 1.9 spg), Kim English (#98 - 1.8 spg) and Keith Ramsey (#98 - 1.8 spg) are leading the way, while J.T. Tiller continues to play the type of on-ball defense that could help him repeat as Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year.
> Missouri is #2 nationally in turnover margin at +7.3 … With that great turnover margin and assist/turnover ratio (+1.2) the Tigers have taken 127 more shots then their opponents this year … That statistic certainly helps to offset rebounding margin … In a crazy stat that speaks to great ball-security, the Tigers already have 111 more steals this season than their opponents through just 18 games.
> Did you know the Tigers actually turn their opponent over a nation-leading 30 percent of the time during a game? What does that mean? Well it means nearly one out of every three defensive possessions ends in a turnover.
> With that great turnover percentage Missouri is forcing 21.4 turnovers a game and is averaging 26.1 points per game off of those turnovers.
> It's certainly early, but the Tigers sport excellent depth on their roster ... Nine different players have reached double figures in scoring and 10 different Tigers are averaging at least 10.3 minutes per game ... In addition, that depth fuels Missouri's pressure and has allowed the Tigers to reach double figures in steals in 15-of-18 contests, including a school record 24 thefts vs. Chattanooga on Nov. 24.
> Missouri continues to be outstanding at the free throw line this season ... The Tigers are hitting at a 72.0 percent clip on the year, compared to 67.2 percent shooting last season.
> It's hard to argue with the production of Missouri's bench ... The Tigers are getting 37.0 of their 82.3 points per game from the reserves ... Missouri's bench has actually outscored their starters five times this season and are outscoring their opposition's bench 37.0-to-16.6.
> Mizzou has had a double-figure scorer off the pine in 15 games this season, including a season high three players in the wins against Texas Tech, Oregon and UMKC.
> One thing about Mike Anderson's clubs, they are built for the long haul ... Over his tenure “Coach A's” teams have averaged 26.7 points per game off the bench... That's over 118 career games.
> It's nothing new to have the reserves outscore the starters either ... Including five games this season, the reserves have dropped in more tallies than the “initial five” 17 times (in 118 games) in Anderson's tenure ... It just goes to show you, when the man says he has eight or nine starters, it means he has eight or nine starters!
> To help illustrate that point even further, Missouri has had seven different starting lineups this year.
> Missouri has typically played some tough schedules over the years and that trend will continue in 2009-10 ... Mizzou has 15 games against teams that have been ranked / receiving votes in the Top 25 this season ... Included in that list are some impressive non-conference games against, Illinois, Old Dominion, Vanderbilt, Oregon, Georgia and Richmond.
> Missouri has faced eight teams in the RPI Top 100 and is 5-3 in those games ... In each of those three losses the Tigers were in a one-possession game in the final minute of play.
Tiger Tidbits
J.T. Tiller, 6-4, 200 Pounds
> J.T. Tiller has earned mention on virtually every preseason All-Defensive Team in 2009-10 … Tiller is of course the reigning Co-Defensive Player of the Year in the Big 12 Conference and was named to All-Defensive Teams by Sports Illustrated and ESPN prior to the start of his senior season.
> Tiller has been hobbled by a bone bruise in his left foot, but has still reached double figures in 7-of-15 games played.
> Tiller has notched seven assists in a game three times this year, including seven dimes at Vanderbilt, seven in a win against Old Dominion and seven in a home win against Georgia.
> The Marietta, Ga., native has 275 career assists and needs just 55 more dimes this year to move into the career Top 10.
> He also owns 140 career steals and 11 more thefts would push him into the Top 10 in that category as well, surpassing former teammate Jason Horton (2004-08), who had 150 … In fact his career steals per game average of 1.2 already ranks in Mizzou's career Top 10.
Zaire Taylor, 6-4, 189 Pounds
> Zaire Taylor has been one of America's top defensive players so far in 2009-10 and is #2 in the Big 12 and ranked among the Top 100 nationally with 1.9 steals per game this season.
> Taylor ripped a career high seven steals vs. Fairleigh Dickinson in just 18 minutes of action ... Taylor was in the game for 31 defensive possessions and stopped FDU 26 percent of the time with either a steal or a blocked shot.
> The seven steals are tops in the Big 12 this year, tied the Mizzou Arena record and are the second most in school history ... Had he played all 40 minutes vs. the Knights he was on pace to record 15.6 steals in the game.
> Not only is Taylor excellent at swiping the basketball, he is one of the country's best at protecting the rock as well ... Last year he ranked among the Top 5 nationally with a 3-to-1 assist/turnover ratio ... This season he is #36 nationally with a 2.5-to-1 ratio.
> Taylor has wasted little time picking up his assist totals this year and has dished 54 dimes while committing just 19 turnovers in his last 17 games, including a career-best eight assists and zero turnovers at Oklahoma.
> Of course its hard to talk about Taylor and not mention his “Big Shot” monicker ... Taylor hit game-winners last year vs. #16 Kansas and at #16 Texas and then broke a 66-66 tie vs. #10 K-State on Jan. 9 with a deep triple with just 33 seconds remaining ... All three of those game-winners were vs. ranked teams.
> Not only do Taylor and Tiller form one of America's best backcourts, but the pair is incredibly visible in the community and volunteered with the Children's Miracle Network Radiothon, which supports the University of Missouri Children's Hospital ... The duo answered phones on the phonebank and made special visits to patients.
Laurence Bowers, 6-8, 205 Pounds
> Laurence Bowers is one of Missouri's most efficient players this season and is third on the team in scoring (11.1), second in rebounding (6.0) and tops in blocked shots (1.8) in just 20.8 minutes a game.
> Bowers scored a career high 23 points in the Jan. 2 win against Georgia, hitting 11-of-14 FGs for his first career 20-point night and has now reached double figures in four of his last five games, including 13 points and eight boards vs. K-State and 10 points and nine boards at Tech.
> Bowers is averaging 9.0 rebounds a game during Big 12 play and is second in the league with 4.7 offensive rebounds a night during that stretch.
> He is also shooting 61 percent from the floor and averaging 12.7 tallies since the start of league play.
> Over his last six games Bowers is a combined 32-of-46 from the floor (.700) and is averaging 14.2 points a night, including his first career double-double at Oklahoma (15 pts, 10 boards).
> Don't be surprised by Bowers' efficiency ... That's part of his game ... The Memphis native maximizes his minutes played ... Last season as a freshman he was the team's most efficient rebounder and shot-blocker in just 6.9 minutes a game.
> The Memphis native has blocked at least one shot in 15-of-18 games this season, including a career high four swats in the wins against Austin Peay and Tech.
Kim English, 6-6, 200 Pounds
> Kim English was named one of the nation's Top 5 Most Improved Players by Dick Vitale in USA Today.
> English leads Missouri with 13 double figure scoring games this season, including seven 20-point efforts.
> English has scored 20+ in four of his last 10 games, including 24 tallies in the win against Illinois and 20 more at Texas Tech.
> English grabbed a career high 10 boards for his first double-double at Texas Tech.
> He also grabbed a six rebounds and ripped two steals vs. the Fighting Illini ... English has at least one steal in 16-of-17 games this season, including 18 steals in his last nine contests.
> English was named the Big 12's Player of the Week on Dec. 28 after leading the team to wins against Illinois (24 points) and Austin Peay (23 points).
Marcus Denmon, 6-3, 185 Pounds
> Marcus Denmon is nearly full strength after off-season knee surgery and has reached double figures 11 times this year.
> Denmon has been one of Mizzou's most consistent scorers with those 11 double-figure efforts and poured in a career high 20 points in the win at Texas Tech.
> In fact Denmon has reached double figures in six of his last seven games and is averaging 13.9 ppg during that run.
> The team-leader in three-point field goals, Denmon is shooting 47 percent from three over his last 11 games, hitting 29-of-62 triples, including 10-of-11 games with multiple three-point makes.
> Denmon has been very good late in games recently ... The Kansas City native is coming off a 14-point effort against #10 Kansas State where he scored eight of his team-high tying 14 points in span of 3:43 late in the second half to hand the Tigers their 30th consecutive home court victory ... The Tigers were down 55-49 at the 5:37 mark when Denmon nailed back-to-back treys and then hit a baseline runner off glass that had “Old Skool Basketballers” reminiscing.
> During the win at Texas Tech Denmon scored five points in overtime, including the first bucket of the extra frame and a 24-foot trey to break an 85-85 tie.
> Denmon currently ranks among the Big 12 leaders in three-point field goals per game (2.3) and three-point percentage (.438).
Steve Moore, 6-9, 264 Pounds
> Fans will notice a slimmed down version of Steve Moore this year … Since his arrival Moore had dropped 40 pounds and has now began to regain the weight in the form of muscle … Moore credits Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning David Deets with adjusting his eating habits, allowing the “Extreme Makeover”.
> Moore turned that weight loss into production, as he has recorded career highs in virtually every statistical category this season.
> “Big Steve” is averaging 3.0 rebounds over his last two games, while logging 11.0 minutes per contest, giving the Tiger frontline added bulk in the middle.
Michael Dixon, 6-1, 175 Pounds
> Michael Dixon has been one of the Big 12's top freshmen this season and is averaging 8.4 points on 46 percent shooting this year.
> Dixon has reached double figures in eight of his last 13 games and was excellent in “high major” non-conference games, averaging 11.2 in contests against Illinois, Oregon, Georgia and Vanderbilt.
> The rookie showed his moxie in Missouri's recent road win at Texas Tech, hitting four free throws in the final :17 seconds of OT for the win.
> The Kansas City native leads Mizzou in FT percentage at 87.5 percent and has hit 25 consecutive free throws dating back to the Dec. 5 game against Oregon.
> Dixon was recently named the Big 12's Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 28, the first league honor of his young career.
Miguel Paul, 6-1, 172 Pounds
> Miguel Paul leads Missouri in assists per minute this year and is dishing 2.4 dimes in just 13.5 minutes a contest.
> Paul is second on the club in assists and his 2.7-to-1 assist/turnover ratio is the best on the club (40 dimes, 15 turnovers).
> Paul has 17 assists and just five turnovers in his last nine games, an assist/turnover ratio of 3.4-to-1.
About The Nebraska Cornhuskers
Nebraska (12-6, 0-3 Big 12) comes to Mizzou Arena after a week away from game action ... The Cornhuksers have lost three consecutive in Big 12 play after winning their final three non-conference games in convincing fashion ... The Huskers are 1-3 on the road in 2009-10, with a great 51-48 win at Southern California in late November ... Nebraska has also lost on the road at Saint Louis, at Creighton and at Texas A&M in the Big 12-opener ... Ryan Anderson leads Nebraska with 11.1 points per game ... The senior is playing more on the perimeter for Doc Sadler's team this year and is second on the club with 23 three-point field goals ... Freshman Brian Jorge Diaz is second on the team with 8.8 points, while point guard Brandon Richardson logs 8.6 tallies a contest for a balanced Nebraska squad boasting nine players that average better than 11 minutes a game.
Missouri Boasts Great Record vs. Big 12 Foes
The Missouri Tigers have one of the best records vs. Big 12 foes over the last 20 games, just one game behind the Kansas Jayhawks during that stretch ... Mizzou is 16-4 vs. league opposition, which includes three wins in last year's Big 12 Tournament.
Team Last 20 vs. Big 12 Foes
Kansas 17-3
Missouri 16-4
Oklahoma 15-5
Oklahoma State 12-8
Texas 12-8
Kansas State 11-9
Texas A&M 10-10
Baylor 9-11
Nebraska 8-12
Iowa State 5-15
Texas Tech 4-16
Colorado 2-18
Quick Starts For Mizzou
Missouri is enjoying one of its fastest starts this century as it looks to improve to 15-4 on Saturday vs. Nebraska.
> Below is a look at some of Missouri's fastest starts through 18 games over the last 30 years.
Season Start Finish
1981-82 18-0 27-4
1989-90 17-1 26-6
1993-94 16-2 28-4
2008-09 15-3 31-7
1979-80 15-3 25-6
1988-89 15-3 29-8
1982-83 15-3 26-8
1991-92 15-3 21-9
1994-95 15-3 20-9
2009-10 14-4 ???
2001-02 14-4 25-11
1980-81 13-5 22-10
Dixon One Of Mizzou's Best Frosh Point Guards
Michael Dixon has made a huge splash for Mizzou early in his Tiger career and below is a quick look at how the Lee's Summit freshman compares to some other Tiger point guards during their freshman campaigns.
Tiger Year PPG APG TPG A/T Ratio
**Michael Dixon 2009-10 8.4 2.3 1.0 2.3
Keyon Dooling 1998-99 8.7 3.0 2.0 1.5
Melvin Booker 1990-91 8.3 3.5 2.7 1.3
Travis Ford 1989-90 6.4 3.5 1.8 1.9
Lee Coward 1986-87 6.5 1.7 1.4 1.3
Prince Bridges 1981-82 6.8 3.3 2.2 1.5
**Jon Sundvold 1979-80 6.3 2.1 1.9 1.1
**Larry Drew 1976-77 6.9 2.8 N/A N/A
** Kansas City natives
Bench Making The Difference
Missouri is known for using its deep, effective bench to help fuel the Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball and the Tiger reserves have outscored their opposition's bench in all-18 games this season ... In fact, Missouri's second wave has outscored its starters five times this season, including recent games against UMKC and Georgia.
> Seven times this season the Tiger bench has scored 40+ points in a game and owns a 37.0-to-16.7 scoring margin against its opponents in 2009-10.
> Missouri has had six different Tigers come off the bench to score in double figures this season: Kim English, Laurence Bowers, Marcus Denmon, Michael Dixon, Zaire Taylor and Miguel Paul.
Top Bench Scoring Totals of 2009-10
Opponent Bench Scoring
vs. Texas-Pan American 57
vs. UMKC 57
vs. Georgia 54
vs. Oregon 50
vs. Chattanooga 49
vs. Tennessee-Martin 45
at Texas Tech 41
Noting Mizzou's 30-Game Home Winning Streak
> Missouri has won 25-of-30 games by double figure margins.
> Has won 19 of 30 games by 20+ points, 11 games by 30+, six games by 40+ and two games by 50+.
> Own an average margin of victory of 22.2 points per game and is scoring 87.7 points in those 30 wins, while allowing just 65.8 points.
> Has topped 100 points five times and 90 points 12 times.
> Has won 10 consecutive games vs. Big 12 opposition during the run.
> Has defeated three ranked foes (#4 Oklahoma, #10 Kansas State and #16 Kansas).
> Own an average margin of victory of 32.0 points in a pair of Big 12 / Pac-10 Hardwood Series wins against California (93-66) and Oregon (106-69).
> During the streak the Tigers are shooting 48.6 percent from the floor, 39.0 percent from three-point range, are averaging 19.4 assists, 12.6 steals, have just 13.2 turnovers and own a 1.4 assist/turnover margin.
English, Dixon Sweep Big 12 Honors
A pair of Missouri Tigers earned recognition from the Big 12 Conference last week, as sophomore guard Kim English and freshman point guard Michael Dixon were named the league's Player and Newcomer of the Week (respectively) on Dec. 28.
> English led Missouri to two victories over Illinois and Austin Peay, averaging 23.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game ... The 6-foot-6 guard shot 50 percent (8-of-16) from three-point distance and 55.2 percent (16-of-29) from the floor.
> Dixon averaged 14.0 points, 4.5 assists, 3.5 steals and just 0.5 turnovers in two starts ... The Kansas City native was magnificent in Missouri's win against Illinois, scoring a career high 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting ... He later dropped in 12 points and ripped a career high four steals vs. Austin Peay.
The Future Is Bright For Mizzou
Missouri's freshmen and sophomores are scoring 55.7 points per game for the Tigers this season, which accounts for 68 percent of the team's 82.3 total points per outing and is the top underclassmen scoring total in the Big 12.
> Those 55.7 points becomes incredibly promising since MU is welcoming the nation's #7 overall recruiting class in 2010-11.
> Oklahoma is second in the Big 12 in underclassmen scoring at 54.7 points per game, while the Kansas Jayhawks rank third with 54.3 tallies a night.
With A Tiger Win ...
> Missouri would improve to 15-4 on the season and move to 80-39 all-time under Mike Anderson.
> Overall, Anderson would improve to 169-80 in his eight seasons as a head coach.
> The Tigers would extend their Mizzou Arena winning streak to 31 games, the longest in the history of the building and the second longest in school history.
> Missouri would have its 10th win in 11 games dating back to early December... That surge would be the second best under Mike Anderson.
> The Tigers would win their second consecutive game against Nebraska.
> Missouri would start the Big 12 season off 3-1 for the second consecutive year.
Congrats To Mizzou's Graduate, Zaire Taylor
Congratulations are in order for senior guard Zaire Taylor … The Staten Island, N.Y., native graduated Dec. 19 the same day the Tigers took on Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Mizzou Arena … In fact Missouri Basketball pushed up its normal shoot-around time allowing Taylor to walk across the stage to receive his diploma in Sociology.
Sweet English
Kimmie English has been much more than a scorer for Missouri over the last 10 games (9-1) ... While he is averaging a team-best 15.3 ppg during the run, he has also provided improved rebounding and defense.
> Defensively, English has multiple steals in seven of the last 10 games, including a career high four rips in the win against Fairleigh Dickinson.
> He has also been an improved rebounder, highlighted by his first career double-double vs. Texas Tech, with 20 points and 10 boards.
> During his offensive surge English has enjoyed four 20-point efforts and narrowly missed a fifth with 18 points in 25 minutes in the win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff ... Two of those 20-point nights (24 vs. Illinois and 23 vs. Austin Peay) helped English earn Big 12 Player of the Week honors on Dec. 28 and he recorded his first 20-point game in league action in the Jan. 13 win at Texas Tech.
Old Skool, New School
Michael Dixon brings an old skool flair to his new school of Mizzou, as the freshman is averaging incredibly consistent numbers of 8.4 points, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals this season for the Tigers ... While the rookie thrives in the open floor, the “throwback” guard is most comfortable unleashing his array of floaters and mid-range jumpers on opponents.
> Dixon has stepped his play up to another level over the last 13 games (eight double-figure scoring games), as the Kansas City native is averaging 9.3 points, 2.4 assists and 1.2 steals for the Tigers ... The 6-foot-1 guard has also turned the ball over just 12 times in those 13 games and has a 2.4-to-1 assist/turnover ratio during that span.
> Dixon was recently named the Big 12's Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 28 after leading the Tigers to wins against Illinois and Austin Peay.
Rip City
Mike Anderson has his youngest team as a head coach with 11-of-13 players in just their first or second year of competition in the program, but he also may have his fastest club at Mizzou yet to date … The Tigers are averaging an outstanding 12.5 steals per game this season, which ranks #1 nationally … Those 12.5 “Rips” per game are the most ever at MU through 18 contests.
Year Steals SPG
2006-07 214 11.9
2007-08 166 9.2
2008-09 196 10.9
2009-10 225 12.5
Trey-Mendous Shooting
With an array of improving young guards Missouri has one of its best perimeter shooting teams in school history (with all due respect to the teams playing before the implementation of the three-point line) … The Tigers are shooting 39 percent from three-point land this year (#37 nationally), including a remarkable 42 percent as a team within the friendly confines of Mizzou Arena.
> Mizzou has made double-figure treys in seven games this year, with a season high of 18 coming in the 99-56 win against Chattanooga … The 18 treys were a Mizzou Arena record and the second most in school history, just behind the 20 three-pointers Mizzou hit at Colorado on Feb. 23, 2002.
> Mizzou recently connected on 10 treys against Illinois at the annual Braggin' Rights Game in St. Louis and 10 more in Wednesday's win at Texas Tech.
Denmon Delivering
Marcus Denmon has continued to be one of the club's most improved players and is one of the Big 12's hottest shooters hitting 33-of-72 treys over his last 12 contests.
> Denmon poured in a career high 20 points in the win against Texas Tech and has now reached double figures in six of his last seven games.
> Denmon is now second on the team in scoring at 11.6 points per game and ranks fourth in the Big 12 in three-point field goal percentage (.438) and fifth in three-point makes per game (2.3).
> He has also shown a flair for the dramatic, scoring five-overtime points vs. Texas Tech and eight points in a span of 3:43 vs. K-State late in the second half.
Balancing Act
Mike Anderson calls Missouri the “Ultimate Team” and MU's incredible balance perfectly illustrates his point.
> The Tigers have had nine different players tie or share for the team lead in assists this season.
> MU has had seven different players tie or share the team lead in steals.
> Six different players have led the club in rebounding and four different players have led the club in scoring.
> And last but not least the Tigers have enjoyed incredible balance in playing time, which will pay huge dividends with experience down the road, as nine different players average at least 13.5 minutes per game.
Mizzou Arena - Now A Home Court
With Missouri Basketball unleashing the Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball and the Tiger crowds responding, Mizzou Arena is now one of the nation's toughest home court venues ... Missouri ranks #3 nationally with its active 30-game home court win streak, one game behind Siena (31) and tied with both Pittsburgh and Dayton (30).
> Kansas leads the nation with 52 consecutive home wins.
> The MU record for home court wins is 34, which was set during the 1988-90 seasons ... The 1980-82 teams won 29 consecutive, while the 1974-76 teams won 23 in a row.
All-Time Mizzou Basketball Home Court Winning Streaks
1. 1988-90 34
2. 2007-09 30
3. 1980-82 29
4. 1974-76 23
5. 1919-21 22
6. 1987-88 21