Saturday, February 23
Gainesville, Fla.
3 PM
University of Missouri
at
Florida
@MizzouHoops Set to Face Florida in Gainesville on Saturday
2/22/2019 10:39:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Tip is set for 3 p.m. CT on ESPNU
| Mizzou Set to Face Florida in Gainesville on Saturday | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPPONENT | LOCATION | DAY | TIME (CT) | WATCH | LISTEN | STATS | Game Notes |
| Florida | Gainesville, Fla. | Saturday, Feb. 23 | 3 p.m. | ESPNU | KTGR | Stats | Notes |
Storylines
- Mizzou and Florida meet for the ninth time in their program histories and for the fourth time in Gainesville.
- Mizzou is looking for its third win over Florida in the all-time head-to-head series and its first victory over the Gators since Feb. 24, 2015, after last year's heartbreaking 77-75 loss in Columbia. The Tigers have never won in Gainesville. Head coach Cuonzo Martin is 3-4 all-time vs. Florida.
- Florida and Mizzou are two of the league's stingiest defensive teams. Both rank first and second, respectively, in 3-point field goal percentage defense in the SEC and both are holding teams to 69 points or fewer this season (two of only five teams in the league).
- Mizzou is coming off an eight-point loss to No. 4 Kentucky. Mizzou outscored the Wildcats 35-25 in the second half and outpaced them on the glass (34 to 28) and in the turnover battle (12 to 14).
- Since Nov. 18, senior point guard Jordan Geist is averaging 15.2 points and 4.9 rebounds while shooting 38.7 percent from 3-point range and boasting a 1.5 assist-to-turnover ratio. He has reached double figures 19 times in the last 22 games. He has scored 15+ points 10 times this season after notching 15+ just six times in his previous two seasons combined. Geist reached double figures for the eighth consecutive game with 11 points vs. No. 4 Kentucky.
- The Tigers have outrebounded their opponent 18 times in 25 games this season, including in five of the last six contests. Mizzou is limiting opponents to 32.5 rebounds per game during league play, which ranks second in the SEC behind only Kentucky. Mizzou has snagged at least 31 boards in all but four games this season.
- Mizzou has held opponents under 70 points 34 times in the Martin era, which amounts to 58.6 percent of the games with him at the helm. When the Tigers have done so this season, they are 11-2.
Attacking the Glass
- Mizzou outrebounded Kentucky 34-28 on Tuesday, marking just the fourth time this season the Wildcats were outrebounded in a game and the second time during league play.
- Mizzou grabbed 16 offensive boards, corralling 13+ in three straight games for the first time since 2012.
- After outrebounding Ole Miss 37-21, Mizzou has a +22 margin on the glass over its last two games.
- Mizzou has snagged 10+ offensive boards 15 times this season.
- The Tigers top the SEC in league play in defensive rebound percentage (72.8) and rank fourth in rebounding margin (+1.9).
Suggs' Emergence
- After scoring just three points in Mizzou's first 16 games combined, junior Ronnie Suggs has scored 20 points in Mizzou's last three outings.
- The redshirt junior walk-on, who transferred from Bradley, was granted a scholarship for his hard work in recent weeks.
- Suggs scored a season-and team-high 13 points vs. No. 4 Kentucky in 24 minutes.
- Suggs has been considered one of Mizzou's go-to defensive stoppers during his recent emergence. He was key in the Tigers' last victory over Arkansas, scoring five points in the final six minutes and getting the game-winning deflection on Mizzou's final stop with the Tigers clinging to a 1-point lead.
- A Washington, Mo., native, Suggs' family has a long relationship with Coach Martin, who recruited his older brother Scott as an assistant at Purdue.
Geist Scoring in Bunches
- Senior guard Jordan Geist reached double figures for the 19th time in past 22 games and for the eighth consecutive game after scoring 11 points vs. Kentucky. Over the last eight outings, Geist is averaging 14.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
- Geist ranks 12th in the league in scoring (14.1 PPG). He is one of four players in the SEC ranking among the league's top 12 in scoring and top 10 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.5) alongside Jared Harper, Tremont Waters and Grant Williams.
- Geist has scored 352 total points in 25 games this season, surpassing his 2017-18 total (242 points).
- Geist has committed just 37 turnovers in his last 647 minutes played. That's one turnover every 17.5 minutes in that span.
- Geist has reached double figures in 76 percent of games in 2018-19 after doing so in just 30.3 percent of games last season.
- Geist has improved his scoring average from 7.3 PPG to 14.1 PPG in one season.
Players Mentioned
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