@MizzouHoops Falls Just Short, But Raises $1.75 Million at Showdown For Relief
10/22/2017 6:03:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Tigers led in scrimmage vs. Kansas with 21 from Porter, Jr., 19 from Barnett
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Mizzou Men's Basketball and Kansas traveled to the Sprint Center on Saturday for the Showdown for Relief charity exhibition game, where the two schools proceeded to raise $1.75 million for hurricane relief. On the court, Kansas just outlasted the Tigers, 93-87, in a thrilling game which featured 14 lead changes.
TOP TIGERS
- Freshman forward Michael Porter, Jr. (Columbia, Mo.) led the Tigers, scoring 21 points (6-of-20 FG, 2-of-9 3PT, 7-of-8 FT), while grabbing eight rebounds and dishing out two assists. Porter, Jr. played 23 minutes in the game and recorded two blocks and one steal.
- Barnett contributed 19 points (7-of-10 FG, 5-of-7 3PT) in the game while grabbing three rebounds in 31 minutes, the second-most of any Mizzou player in the game. Barnett was solid near the end of the game, as he scored seven points in the final six minutes of the game to cut Kansas' lead back down to single digits.
- Freshman forward Jeremiah Tilmon (East St. Louis, Ill.) threw down two thunderous putback dunks in the second half that energized the Sprint Center crowd and kept the game close. Tilmon finished the game with 10 points (5-of-5 FG, 0-of-3 FT) and grabbed four rebounds while also turning away one Kansas shot with a block.
- Freshman forward Jontay Porter (Columbia, Mo.) was a force on the glass for the entire game, snagging 12 rebounds. Porter scored nine points (4-of-12 FG, 1-of-5 3PT) in the game and grabbed three steals.
- Graduate transfer guard Kassius Robertson (Toronto, Ontario) registered the most minutes played for Mizzou (33). The super senior was efficient during his time on the floor, scoring 13 points (5-of-9, 3-of-5 3PT) while guarding Kansas' ball handler for a majority of the contest.
QUOTABLES
Mizzou Head Coach Cuonzo Martin
Opening statement
"Obviously [we're] excited to play in a game like this. To raise money for hurricane relief, I think, is tremendous for everyone involved, not only for the states of Kansas and Missouri, but for the country. So, this is a great gesture. We really appreciate the support of the fans, to jump on board. I think it was a great night for the city of Kansas City. I thought both teams played hard, but we came up short."
On how this measured up to what he'd hope to see…
"Well, I thought the effort was there, but I thought we had a lot of breakdowns defensively. There were some areas where we had a breakdown because we hadn't spent a lot of time on it, and I'm ok with that, but the box-outs, hands-up closeouts, communication and switching, I thought we didn't do a great job with that until the last five or six minutes of the game. But that's fine, because in a game like this, there is a lot to film to look at, which is really great for both teams. A lot of things to learn and also things that we as a staff, when we watch film, say we need to spend more time on this. Because, again, in practice there are a lot of things that you're building up to and it's not as if we practice to say, we play a team tomorrow. We practice because we're a program, these are the things that help us become a great program. Again, great film to learn from, we'll continue to push forward."
On how such an intense game can benefit them for the season…
"It was good. I think it's great for both teams to be able to play a team of that caliber on this stage. I don't think you'll find a better venue than this one, with the atmosphere and the energy behind it. For young guys that hadn't played on this stage, I mean Michael Porter, Jr. is a talented guy, but he hasn't been on a stage like this. Also Blake Harris, Jeremiah Tilmon, the energy and passion, to be able to go through that and feel that, so now as you move forward you understand what that feels like. I'm not so consumed with the atmosphere as opposed to what is going on the floor. So, I think it will really help us as a team. We have some older guys that have been in settings like this, but I think this was a win-win. Obviously, we didn't win the game, but I think we can only get better from it."
Mizzou freshman forward Michael Porter, Jr.
On how his brother, Jontay, played…
"Jontay is very good on the offensive end and the defensive end and he showed that a lot today. He's just going to continue to get better."
On opportunity to play KU…
"Kansas is an establish program. They're a great team, so it was a fun game to play. One thing I take away from this game is just how much better we can get. I feel like we are a very talented team and we had spots in the game where we showed that. But I feel like if we keep working hard, and every day in practice work hard, then the sky is the limit for this team."
On team expectations and motivation…
"We knew it was an opportunity. Kansas being a great team who is always at the top, but at the same time, we felt like we didn't play as well as we should have. There was a lot more we could have showed, but you've just got to keep getting better. You're not going to perform your best every game."
Mizzou senior forward Jordan Barnett
On the Kansas matchup and his expectations…
"We expected it to be a really good game. We know we have the opportunity to have an extremely talented team, and we are a talented team. This was a great opportunity to see how we stacked up against the best of the best and to see what we need to work on. We knew it would be a challenge, but we came up short. We played with them for a large part of the game and that feels good in some way."
On the intensity of this exhibition game…
"The atmosphere here was crazy. It felt like a tournament game. It was amazing to hear the energized fans and it just made it that much more fun to play. I hope to play a lot of games like that in the future."
On the rivalry between Kansas and Mizzou…
"I already knew this rivalry was a huge deal. Even back when I was being recruited by Mizzou as a high schooler, I remember seeing some really epic Kansas-Mizzou games. It was insane, the atmosphere. Just being a part of something like this helps us get ready for an atmosphere we know is going to be neutral. It will be electric on both sides."
NOTES
- The Showdown for Relief generated more than $1.75 Million for natural disaster relief.
- The three ball was working for Mizzou, as the Tigers hit 14 of their 32 attempts (44%) from downtown.
- Mizzou pounded the offensive glass, out-rebounding the Jayhawks, 19-10, in that category. This resulted in 26 second-chance points.
- The game was competitive throughout, featuring 14 lead changes.
- The Black & Gold also moved the ball well, tallying 20 total assists to Kansas' 16.
UP NEXT
Mizzou will officially begin its season on Friday, Nov. 10, when the Tigers host old Big 12 Conference foe, Iowa State, at Mizzou Arena. Tipoff time for the contest is scheduled for 8 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on the SEC Network.
For all the latest on Mizzou Men's Basketball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team at @MizzouHoops (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook).
