Saturday, December 12
Columbia, Mo.
7 PM
University of Missouri
vs
#6 Illinois
Mizzou Men's Hoops Set for Braggin' Rights Saturday at Mizzou Arena
12/11/2020 1:08:00 PM | Men's Basketball
No fans will be in attendance at the rivalry clash
| Mizzou Men's Hoops Set for Braggin' Rights Saturday Night | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OPPONENT | LOCATION | DAY | TIME (CT) | WATCH | SAFETY GUIDELINES |
| No. 6 Illinois | Columbia, Mo. | Saturday, Dec. 12 | 7 PM | ESPNU | Safety Central |
Mizzou Basketball Game Notes
STORYLINES
- After gutting out a 69-60 win over Liberty on Wednesday, Mizzou is 4-0 to start the campaign for the first time since 2013-14 (10-0) and seeks its 27th 5-0 start in program history on Saturday night.
- Mizzou is seeking its third consecutive win over Illinois in the annual Braggin' Rights clash for the first time since winning four straight from 2009-2012. Head coach & East St. Louis native Cuonzo Martin is 2-1 in the rivalry.
- Mizzou is 28-37 all-time vs. AP Top 10 opponents in Columbia, and has lost three-straight such games on its homecourt since registering a 63-60 win over No. 5 Florida Feb. 19, 2014. On Dec. 10, 1956, Mizzou knocked off No. 8 Illinois in Brewer Fieldhouse, 74-73, to secure its second-ever victory at home over a Top 10 foe after losing its first six such games.
- Unranked Mizzou is 3-6 all-time against AP-ranked Illinois teams with wins during the 1955-56 (74-73), 1994-95 (76-58) and 1999-2000 (78-72) seasons. The Illini were ranked 8th, 23rd and 15th at game time in those contests.
- Saturday marks the first Braggin' Rights game held away from St. Louis since Mizzou beat Illinois, 67-66, in overtime on Dec. 4, 1979. This is the first ever meeting at Mizzou Arena and sixth all-time in Columbia between the Tigers and Illini. It's the first matchup in CoMo since Dec. 5, 1978 at the Hearnes Center.
- Mizzou has won five straight dating back to its season-ending win over Alabama a year ago, and a win over Illinois would give it six-straight victories for the first time since a six-game streak during the 2018-19 season. MU has now fashioned four win streaks of five or more games under Martin. Prior to Martin's arrival, Mizzou's last win streak of at least five games came with its 10-0 start to the 2013-14 season.
- Mizzou is now 17-2 in December during the Cuonzo Martin era. Martin was recently named ESPN's National Coach of the Week after the key victories over No. 21 Oregon and Wichita State away from home.
- As a team Mizzou is shooting 49.6 percent from the field, a marked improvement over last year's season-ending 41.0 percent clip. Seven of Mizzou's 11 players are shooting 50.0 percent or better on the season, led by senior Jeremiah Tilmon's 68.2 percent effort. Mizzou hit 51.0 percent from the floor in its win over Liberty, and in two home games, has connected on 52.2 percent of its field goals while averaging 80.0 points on Norm Stewart Court.
- Martin brings back one of the most experienced rosters in all of college basketball. Mizzou welcomes back 88.13 percent of its scoring from a season ago, which ranks third among all Power 5 conference teams, trailing only Texas and UCLA. The returners are responsible for 99.4 percent of Mizzou's points through three games. Seven Tigers are averaging 16 minutes or more thru four games, with six contributing at least 6.5 points on the young season.
- The veteran roster features three players with 700+ career points (Dru Smith, Jeremiah Tilmon and Drew Buggs) and five with 500+ career points (Smith, Tilmon, Buggs, Xavier Pinson and Mark Smith). Mizzou's 12-man roster features nine players with at least junior eligibility standing and one of the remaining three players entering his third season on campus in Parker Braun, making Mizzou the SEC's oldest team.
DEPTH
- Mizzou has been impressive at both ends of the floor in the second half of every game this season. Offensively, Mizzou is averaging 42.3 points in the second stanza, while shooting 62.2 percent from the field and 42.1 percent from 3-point range; while holding their its to 34.0 ppg and 34.7 percent shooting from the floor in the final 20.
- In the offseason, head coach Cuonzo Martin also bolstered his backcourt with the addition of Hawaii transfer Drew Buggs, who set the Rainbow Warriors' all-time career assists record with 437 dimes. Buggs dished a season-high five assists with just one turnover vs. Liberty. He has multiple assists in three of four appearances. He came to Mizzou largely because he wants to coach for a living after college, and thought there was no one better to learn from than Cuonzo Martin. Martin said of Buggs "I wouldn't be surprised if he is someone's coach some day."
- In its current 5-game win streak, Mizzou has had at least three players in double figures every game while averaging 76.8 points per game.
- The Tigers were +16 on glass vs. Liberty, their largest rebound margin since a +17 advantage against Arkansas Feb. 8, 2020. Mizzou is 21-7 in Martin-era when holding a rebound advantage of +10 or more; including 10-2 over the last two seasons (2-0 in 2020-21, 8-2 in 2019-20).
- Thru four games, junior Javon Pickett who has produced a pair of double-figure scoring efforts. Pickett had 11 points in 20 minutes vs. ORU in the season-opener, then netted 13 in 21 minutes against No. 21 Oregon. Mizzou is 9-1 over the last two seasons when Pickett scores in double figures. He is shooting 64.7 percent from the field over the last three games.
- With so many weapons and a knack for sharing the ball, Mizzou has 62 assists already through four games. That 15.5 assist-per-game clip as a team is already much higher than the Tigers' 11.4 assists per game clip last season. Mizzou has an assist to turnover ratio of 1.3 thru four games, which leads the SEC and ranks 27th nationally. Mizzou is 24-8 in the Martin-era when having a positive assist to turnover ratio in a game.
Players Mentioned
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