| Opponent | Location | Day/Time (CT) |
|---|---|---|
| No. 22 Oklahoma | Lloyd Noble Center - Norman, Okla. | Friday, Dec. 5 / 8:30 p.m. CT |
| Game Media | ESNPU  | | Live Audio | Twitter: @MizzouHoops |
|
LAYUPS...
• Mizzou Men's Basketball (4-3) next heads to No. 22 Oklahoma (4-2), an old, familiar foe from earlier in the Tigers' conference history. The Tigers tip off against the Sooners for the SEC/Big 12 Challenge inside the Lloyd Noble Center on Friday, Dec. 5, at 8:30 p.m. on ESPNU.
• First-year head coach Kim Anderson's squad is 1-0 already this season on ESPNU after its 74-60 defeat of Chaminade at the EA Sports Maui Invitational on Nov. 26.
• Mizzou enters the matchup with Oklahoma coming off a 65-61 win over SEMO on Tuesday, Dec. 2.
• The Tigers are 97-112 all-time vs. Oklahoma, with Mizzou seeking a fourth-straight win in the series. Mizzou's latest victory came on Feb. 6, 2012, in Norman by a score of 71-68.
LAST TIME OUT...
• Mizzou rallied late to defeat the visiting Southeast Missouri Redhawks, 65-61, on Tuesday, Dec. 2. The Tigers second half comeback was keyed by hot shooting from behind the arc, as Mizzou hit 6-of-7 three-pointers in the last 20 minutes of action.
• Johnathan Williams, III and Montaque Gill-Caesar each recorded their team-best fifth games scoring in double figures. Williams totaled a career-high 18 points, while Gill-Caesar recorded 15.
• Williams also nabbed 11 rebounds, the most for any Mizzou player so far this season. Williams' double-double was the first for any Tiger this season, and the fourth of Williams' career.
• Eight different Tigers recorded a field goal in Tuesday's win. Three of the eight different Tigers hit at least four from the floor, led by Johnathan Williams, III and Montaque Gill-Caesar who each had five. Williams' five FGs match a career-high.
• Mizzou improved to 3-0 when making more free throws than its opponent. The Tigers made 13 free throws to the Redhawks' five.
A LOOK AT THE OPPONENT... No. 22 OKLAHOMA
• No. 22 Oklahoma has played to a 4-2 record thus far in the 2014-15 season, with junior guard Buddy Hield leading the way for the Sooners with an average of 16.7 points per game. Following up Hield with a double-digit scoring average is junior guard Isaiah Cousins with an 11.7 mark.
• The Sooners' two defeats have come at the hands of strong teams, the first being Creighton on the road by a score of 65-63 (Nov. 19). OU was also downed by No. 2 Wisconsin, 69-56, in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament's championship game on Nov. 28.
• To advance to that championship game, head coach Lon Kruger's group toppled No. 22 UCLA (Nov. 26), 75-65, followed up by a 59-46 victory over Butler (Nov. 27).
• Oklahoma is 2-0 at the Lloyd Noble Center this season, first defeating Southeastern Louisiana, 78-53, on Nov. 11, then beating Northwestern State, 90-68, on Nov. 16.
• Mizzou has claimed seven of the last 10 matchups vs. Oklahoma, including wins in the last three games. In the final game of the Tigers' regularly scheduled conference matchups with OU, Marcus Denmon led fourth-ranked Mizzou past the Sooners with 25 points in a 71-68 road victory.
• Earlier that season, the then-No. 7 Tigers routed the Sooners with an impressive 87-49 result in Mizzou Arena. Kim English was Mizzou's leading scorer with 23 points, while Denmon added 20. The Tigers hit 12 three-pointers and outrebounded OU by a 38-23 margin.
• Friday's matchup marks just the third all-time meeting between Mizzou and Oklahoma not in a conference regular season or tournament setting (NCAA: March 11, 1940; March 23, 2002).
FROM COACH ANDERSON'S PERSPECTIVE
• Head coach Kim Anderson's playing days saw Missouri do favorably well against the Sooners, with legendary Tiger leader Norm Stewart's club posting a 7-4 mark vs. OU from 1973-77. The Tigers went 1-2 against the Sooners in 1973-74, with Anderson not appearing in the win (73-70 in Kansas City on Dec. 26, 1973), but later contributing two and five points in the two setbacks.
• As a sophomore, Anderson and the Tigers went 3-0 against Oklahoma, with the future Mizzou head coach scoring zero, 15 and 18 points in the victories.
• Anderson had the biggest game of his career against the Sooners on Jan. 28, 1976 in Columbia, recording 20 points in a 72-58 win. The junior netted 11 points later that season in a Tiger defeat.
• En route to earning Big Eight Player of the Year in 1977, the senior Anderson helped Mizzou to a 1-1 mark against Oklahoma, scoring 11 and 14 in the two games. Mizzou claimed a second win against OU on March 3, 1977 at the Big Eight Tournament in a game in which Anderson did not appear.
• As an assistant coach (1982-85; 1991-99), Anderson and Mizzou went 10-14 against Oklahoma.
