- I am very pleased with Missouri's 3rd place finish and while initially being disappointed by getting blown out by Louisville, I can see where a game like that will be a good learning experience. Louisville gave full effort for all 40 minutes while Missouri seemed to give up in the latter stages and the final score clearly reflects that.
- It's great experience to have close games like the Stanford and VCU games. Winning does not come naturally and some of these players frankly don't know the first thing about winning games at the college level. While I would have rather have blown these teams out of the water, I think there are lots of positives that can come from pulling out close games like what we saw.
- When Pressey took that step-back three, I was thinking "What the...?" When it splashed through the net, I yelled "What a great shot!" While I did not care for the shot selection, I LOVE the level of confidence that he has in his own game. The fact that he made that shot and the next one...there's a player who knows how to win at this level.
- Laurence Bowers is going to drive me crazy this year. He has been the most inconsistent player on the team so far. Against Louisville, he played scared and was a waste of space for most of the game. Against VCU, he took over at times. It's great that he has some range on his shot, but in my opinion, he needs to stay down low as much as possible. So many times, Pressey would drive and Bowers would be perched behind the 3-point line instead of cutting to the basket where there was open space. As a result, Pressey would either have to take a shot or pass outside where the shot was taken and Bowers was in no position to get an offensive rebound.
- Pressey has been creating opportunities for the other guys, but none of them seem to understand the importance of cutting to the basket. Even on the brilliant behind-the-back pass in the Stanford game, Bowers almost wasn't there as he took his time cutting to the open space. My hope is that this bunch learns to do this which will really help this offense take off. Pressey is going to force players to collapse on him and he is great at getting the ball to the man cutting to the basket.
- 1-2-3...Keion Bell. Bell was awful against Stanford, good against Louisville and great against VCU. From the first game of the tournament to the third game, Bell improved drastically. It looked to me like a light bulb went on and he learned from his previous mistakes. He can be such an incredible weapon with his leaping ability and free-throw shooting. Not only that, he's one of the few players on the team that actually looks okay playing defense.
- Haith's use of Rosburg and Jankovic has me completely befuddled. Some people believe that those small doses of playing time actually help in their development. However, I felt like whatever small benefits were accrued by their time on the court were more than offset by their ineffectiveness while in the games. Both of these guys are the worst defenders on the team...for a team that plays poor defense, that is quite an indictment.
- Defense. I learned two things about Missouri's defense in this tournament. One, they don't have a clue on how to play zone. Two, Ross, Pressey and Bowers are very weak defenders. Ross and Pressey are constantly out-of-position which leads to open looks from behind the arc while Bowers is very slow guarding his man and is frequently caught flat-footed which leads to lots of easy buckets inside. My hope is that this team can learn to play team defense. I actually think that Oriakhi, Bell and NWC have fairly good instincts when playing defense (though they have all been guilty at times as well). I am so tired of seeing guys leaping out to defend a three-point shot after the shot has already been released. It's almost pathetic how often that happens with this team.
- Again, very happy to get two wins in this tournament. I hope the guys had fun as the resort looked pretty nice (from the hundreds of commercials that I saw over the last three days).
Random Thoughts on B4A
Game 6: Virginia Commonwealth
This was a very nice win for the Tigers. They made it a little more interesting than they needed to, but fought hard and pulled out the win. Pressey made some huge baskets and seems to have a lot of confidence in his shot as he is knocking down his outside shots at a pretty nice clip. Despite some ugly performances, coming out of this tournament with two wins and a third place finish is a great thing.
Phil Pressey
I thought Phil played most of this game more out of control than he has in any other game. However, he came up big with the game-winning baskets. He finished the game 5-9 from the field (3-5 from 3), 8 assists and 5 turnovers. For the second game in a row, he did not get to the line once. For whatever reason, Missouri hasn't been getting too many breaks from the refs. Grade: 6/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers is so inconsistent and it can be maddening at times at how he disappears for periods and then goes through a stretch where he plays at a much higher level. 14 and 11 is nice, but his defense really needs to get better. Grade: 6/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi had a fairly quiet game. He never got to the free throw line and missed a couple of gimmies. He really should dominate as big as he is, but just has no touch around the rim. Grade: 4/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan got his first start and played 36 minutes. Haith really likes the steadiness that NWC brings to the lineup. NWC might be the best defender on the team. He's got some work to do, but he seems to get beat less often than most of the other guys. Grade: 6/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross finally was able to knock down some shots, but is still a liability on defense as far as I am concerned. He just doesn't seem committed to stopping the opponent from scoring. His defense and rebounding were WAY overrated as this was the second game in a row where he only got one board. He is spending way too much time floating around the 3-point line. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Bell had his best as a Tiger I thought. I really liked what he brought in this game and hope that he can build off of this performance. Grade: 6/10.
Tony Criswell
Criswell is so active on the offensive boards and surely is racking up some impressive rebounding numbers per minutes played. He's still very awkward around the rim though and looks the most comfortable shooting straight on from the key area. Grade: 5/10.
Jankovic and Rosburg
Still have no idea why Haith chose to put these guys in during the first half. VCU made a nice little run as both of these guys were just running around with little to no purpose. Grade: 1/10.
Overall Thoughts
This team really struggles to play defense. I thought VCU got a lot of open looks and Mizzou was fortunate that they didn't shoot all that well. Bowers, Ross, Pressey and Criswell all struggle with staying with their man and NWC got caught sagging a couple of times as well. If this team could improve on that side of the ball, then I think they have a chance to be really good. I think their offense will come along as they start to get a better feel of playing together.
Phil Pressey
I thought Phil played most of this game more out of control than he has in any other game. However, he came up big with the game-winning baskets. He finished the game 5-9 from the field (3-5 from 3), 8 assists and 5 turnovers. For the second game in a row, he did not get to the line once. For whatever reason, Missouri hasn't been getting too many breaks from the refs. Grade: 6/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers is so inconsistent and it can be maddening at times at how he disappears for periods and then goes through a stretch where he plays at a much higher level. 14 and 11 is nice, but his defense really needs to get better. Grade: 6/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi had a fairly quiet game. He never got to the free throw line and missed a couple of gimmies. He really should dominate as big as he is, but just has no touch around the rim. Grade: 4/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan got his first start and played 36 minutes. Haith really likes the steadiness that NWC brings to the lineup. NWC might be the best defender on the team. He's got some work to do, but he seems to get beat less often than most of the other guys. Grade: 6/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross finally was able to knock down some shots, but is still a liability on defense as far as I am concerned. He just doesn't seem committed to stopping the opponent from scoring. His defense and rebounding were WAY overrated as this was the second game in a row where he only got one board. He is spending way too much time floating around the 3-point line. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Bell had his best as a Tiger I thought. I really liked what he brought in this game and hope that he can build off of this performance. Grade: 6/10.
Tony Criswell
Criswell is so active on the offensive boards and surely is racking up some impressive rebounding numbers per minutes played. He's still very awkward around the rim though and looks the most comfortable shooting straight on from the key area. Grade: 5/10.
Jankovic and Rosburg
Still have no idea why Haith chose to put these guys in during the first half. VCU made a nice little run as both of these guys were just running around with little to no purpose. Grade: 1/10.
Overall Thoughts
This team really struggles to play defense. I thought VCU got a lot of open looks and Mizzou was fortunate that they didn't shoot all that well. Bowers, Ross, Pressey and Criswell all struggle with staying with their man and NWC got caught sagging a couple of times as well. If this team could improve on that side of the ball, then I think they have a chance to be really good. I think their offense will come along as they start to get a better feel of playing together.
Next up: Appalachian State next Saturday.
Game 5: Louisville
What a great challenge it was going up against Louisville, one of the better defenses in college basketball. I was especially looking forward to the individual match-up of two of the nation's premier point guards -- Phil Pressey and Peyton Siva. As is so often the case, things don't turn out like you expect them to as Pressey and Siva rarely went head-to-head, and when they did, Siva inexplicably was the better of the two. I'll start with my overall thoughts before going into the individual breakdowns.
Overall Thoughts
Overall, I was pretty disappointed with the play of the team. I thought Mizzou played scared, tentative and overwhelmed to be playing an elite team. I was very confused with the coaching decisions made in this game and can only assume that either (a) Haith doesn't know what he is doing or (b) Haith knows exactly what he is doing and is willing to sacrifice November and December in hopes of reaping some dividends in February and March. Since the former does not seem to be the more logical choice, then surely the latter is what we saw this evening.
Unfortunately, this game highlighted what I've been alluding to all season and that is that Mizzou has two guys that are used to winning (Pressey and Oriakhi) and a bunch of players who have no idea what winning means. Bowers, Ross and Bell looked pathetic going up against elite competition and everyone else looked terrified (except for maybe NWC).
The other thing I have noticed with this team that has become the norm is the inexplicable inability to grab what should be easy rebounds and loose balls. I don't know if every player has bad hands or what, but time and time again there are loose balls that this team just can't seem to corral. Pressey is the only one who seems to be able to get a ball that is in his vicinity. Everyone else either doesn't give full effort or just doesn't have the ability.
Phil Pressey
Phil is a great player. Unfortunately, he is the only great player on this team. He carried Mizzou at points and was forced into having to do too much because NO ONE ELSE WOULD STEP UP. You can say all the bad things you want about him, but this team was a train wreck when he wasn't in the lineup. I completely agreed with him on the play where he zipped it to Ross and the ball went flying out of bounds. There was no defender on that side of the hoop and what did Ross do...went away from the basket and into the corner. Pressey had every right to be frustrated, while Ross continues to frustrate me. Grade: 6/10.
Laurence Bowers
There were numerous hints made that the loss of Bowers may have been a blessing in disguise last year and I'm worried that we may seem some confirmation of that when Mizzou goes up against good teams. He is not a consistent threat and is just terrible on the boards when it matters. Frankly, Bowers was horrible in this game. Grade: 1/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi played well, but was awful at the line. Grade: 6/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan plays hard, and usually plays safe, but ultimately is not the type of player that is going to strike fear in the heart of an opponent. Grade: 4/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross has quickly gone from a player that I like to a player that I don't know what to think. He is not fundamentally sound at all in the way that he plays. He's not a great passer and has looked terrible on defense so far this season. He committed a number of no-nos in this game and overall just didn't do a lick against Louisville. Grade: 3/10.
Keion Bell
Bell looked better tonight than he did last night. He drove into the lane a couple of times and made some nice passes. He played much more in control. However, he still plays as if he could care less whether he wins or loses. Grade: 4/10.
Tony Criswell
Criswell has a nice shot, but is a poor ballhandler and is one of those guys who I was referencing earlier who seems to have trouble keeping the ball in his hands. He had a fairly decent stat line with 9 points, 7 boards, 2 assists and a block (but also 3 turnovers). Grade: 6/10.
Jankovic and Rosburg
Jankovic and Rosburg were overmatched and I have no idea why they got the minutes they did in this game. Grade: 3/10.
Coach Haith
I felt like Haith coached this game as if it was a scrimmage with no care as to whether Mizzou won or lost. I thought he used too much of his bench early on at crucial points when I didn't think he necessarily needed to and I thought sticking with the zone defense was horrible strategy even though Louisville is not a great outside shooting team. The zone defense was horrible because this team doesn't know how to play it. Bowers and Ross were especially bad on defense tonight. Louisville basically got to pick where they wanted to shoot their open shot, because ALL of their shots were WIDE OPEN. They bricked a lot of open shots early which kept Missouri in the game, but then they started to fall at the same time that Missouri unraveled and at that point, the game was over. But that zone defense was horrendous and I have no idea why Haith stuck with it for so long if he really had any desire to win that game. I hope it was a learning lesson and that the team can improve.
Overall Thoughts
Overall, I was pretty disappointed with the play of the team. I thought Mizzou played scared, tentative and overwhelmed to be playing an elite team. I was very confused with the coaching decisions made in this game and can only assume that either (a) Haith doesn't know what he is doing or (b) Haith knows exactly what he is doing and is willing to sacrifice November and December in hopes of reaping some dividends in February and March. Since the former does not seem to be the more logical choice, then surely the latter is what we saw this evening.
Unfortunately, this game highlighted what I've been alluding to all season and that is that Mizzou has two guys that are used to winning (Pressey and Oriakhi) and a bunch of players who have no idea what winning means. Bowers, Ross and Bell looked pathetic going up against elite competition and everyone else looked terrified (except for maybe NWC).
The other thing I have noticed with this team that has become the norm is the inexplicable inability to grab what should be easy rebounds and loose balls. I don't know if every player has bad hands or what, but time and time again there are loose balls that this team just can't seem to corral. Pressey is the only one who seems to be able to get a ball that is in his vicinity. Everyone else either doesn't give full effort or just doesn't have the ability.
Phil Pressey
Phil is a great player. Unfortunately, he is the only great player on this team. He carried Mizzou at points and was forced into having to do too much because NO ONE ELSE WOULD STEP UP. You can say all the bad things you want about him, but this team was a train wreck when he wasn't in the lineup. I completely agreed with him on the play where he zipped it to Ross and the ball went flying out of bounds. There was no defender on that side of the hoop and what did Ross do...went away from the basket and into the corner. Pressey had every right to be frustrated, while Ross continues to frustrate me. Grade: 6/10.
Laurence Bowers
There were numerous hints made that the loss of Bowers may have been a blessing in disguise last year and I'm worried that we may seem some confirmation of that when Mizzou goes up against good teams. He is not a consistent threat and is just terrible on the boards when it matters. Frankly, Bowers was horrible in this game. Grade: 1/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi played well, but was awful at the line. Grade: 6/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan plays hard, and usually plays safe, but ultimately is not the type of player that is going to strike fear in the heart of an opponent. Grade: 4/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross has quickly gone from a player that I like to a player that I don't know what to think. He is not fundamentally sound at all in the way that he plays. He's not a great passer and has looked terrible on defense so far this season. He committed a number of no-nos in this game and overall just didn't do a lick against Louisville. Grade: 3/10.
Keion Bell
Bell looked better tonight than he did last night. He drove into the lane a couple of times and made some nice passes. He played much more in control. However, he still plays as if he could care less whether he wins or loses. Grade: 4/10.
Tony Criswell
Criswell has a nice shot, but is a poor ballhandler and is one of those guys who I was referencing earlier who seems to have trouble keeping the ball in his hands. He had a fairly decent stat line with 9 points, 7 boards, 2 assists and a block (but also 3 turnovers). Grade: 6/10.
Jankovic and Rosburg
Jankovic and Rosburg were overmatched and I have no idea why they got the minutes they did in this game. Grade: 3/10.
Coach Haith
I felt like Haith coached this game as if it was a scrimmage with no care as to whether Mizzou won or lost. I thought he used too much of his bench early on at crucial points when I didn't think he necessarily needed to and I thought sticking with the zone defense was horrible strategy even though Louisville is not a great outside shooting team. The zone defense was horrible because this team doesn't know how to play it. Bowers and Ross were especially bad on defense tonight. Louisville basically got to pick where they wanted to shoot their open shot, because ALL of their shots were WIDE OPEN. They bricked a lot of open shots early which kept Missouri in the game, but then they started to fall at the same time that Missouri unraveled and at that point, the game was over. But that zone defense was horrendous and I have no idea why Haith stuck with it for so long if he really had any desire to win that game. I hope it was a learning lesson and that the team can improve.
Next up: Virginia Commonwealth tomorrow (Saturday) at 6:00 PM CST.
Game 4: Stanford
Happy Thanksgiving!
Well, this was the first test for the Tigers and the one I was the most worried about just because I was so wanting to see the battle of the short, quick point guards...Pressey vs. Siva. I was afraid that the Tigers might be looking past the Cardinal looking forward to a possible second round game against the #2 team in the nation. Missouri did their job, now Louisville needs to win its game tonight in order to face Mizzou.
Phil Pressey
I thought Phil played a whale of a game. He is such a weapon on offense and the difference when he is not in the game is night and day. He hit all of his free throws, came up with 4 steals, knocked down some big 3-pointers in the first half, tallied 8 assists and 5 rebounds including a big one late in the game where he just went up over the taller Stanford players to grab the ball and control it. He looked like the nation's best point guard to me as Stanford just had no answer for keeping him out of the lane. The pass late to Oriakhi was huge and vintage Pressey. Grade: 9/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers finished the game with 19 and 10 and really came through at times in the second half with knocking down shots when the rest of the team went cold. I still get frustrated at times with him though because he still has trouble corralling rebounds when he is the only one there and for whatever reason is unable to control the ball. This seemed to happen a number of times in this game, but it's hard to argue with a double-double. Grade: 8/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi finally had some big bodies to go up against and Stanford did a pretty good job of containing him though Oriakhi still went to the free throw line 8 times. I had no idea that he was going to be such a solid free throw shooter. Oriakhi obviously had a bone-headed play when he got caught with the frustration foul in the second half after getting his shot blocked. Otherwise, he had a decent game. Grade: 6/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan hasn't been able to get the ball in the hoop of late but still provides all the other things that the team needs, mainly in the area of ballhandling. It was obvious in the second half that Haith trusts NWC more than Bell since bell spent almost the entire half on the bench. NWC's one made basket was the second-chance 3-pointer in which Ross kept the ball alive. Grade: 5/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross was 1-7 in the first half and 2-12 in the second half. He just could not make anything, including lay-ups. He did end up with a double-double though as he finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds. He needs to learn that when he gets those offensive rebounds to kick the ball out and reset the offense when there are defenders surrounding him. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Bell was a mess. He had as many turnovers as the rest of the team combined. He made a great move on the first possession of the game to drive the lane and pass to a cutting Bowers for an easy lay-up. But after that, he turned the ball over almost every time he touched the ball. If you watch Bell (and Ross does this too), when a pass is made to him, his first instinct is to see if he can shoot or score, NOT to see if someone else is open for a better shot. As a result, he appears to be a very selfish player and does not work well in a team context. Haith had enough of Bell when he turned the ball over both times he touched it in the second half, and Bell did not come back into the ball game until the waning seconds for defense. Haith just doesn't trust him. And he shouldn't. Grade: 2/10.
Overall Thoughts
I thought this was a very good win. Stanford was a decent opponent and were fundamentally sound. I was disappointed at times with the perimeter defense as Pressey and Bell got blown by a number of times by Randle who would then pull up for an easy shot at the free throw line. Stanford got A TON of open looks from outside and it was fortunate for Mizzou that they only made 23% of their 3s. Pressey was great and I thought Haith probably used the bench a little more than he needed to, but he was obviously wanting to give the guys some rest whenever he could since they will be playing 3 games in 3 days. Nice to see Oriakhi and Pressey knock down their free throws late. Very nice win. (And decent showing by the Tiger faithful.)
Well, this was the first test for the Tigers and the one I was the most worried about just because I was so wanting to see the battle of the short, quick point guards...Pressey vs. Siva. I was afraid that the Tigers might be looking past the Cardinal looking forward to a possible second round game against the #2 team in the nation. Missouri did their job, now Louisville needs to win its game tonight in order to face Mizzou.
Phil Pressey
I thought Phil played a whale of a game. He is such a weapon on offense and the difference when he is not in the game is night and day. He hit all of his free throws, came up with 4 steals, knocked down some big 3-pointers in the first half, tallied 8 assists and 5 rebounds including a big one late in the game where he just went up over the taller Stanford players to grab the ball and control it. He looked like the nation's best point guard to me as Stanford just had no answer for keeping him out of the lane. The pass late to Oriakhi was huge and vintage Pressey. Grade: 9/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers finished the game with 19 and 10 and really came through at times in the second half with knocking down shots when the rest of the team went cold. I still get frustrated at times with him though because he still has trouble corralling rebounds when he is the only one there and for whatever reason is unable to control the ball. This seemed to happen a number of times in this game, but it's hard to argue with a double-double. Grade: 8/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi finally had some big bodies to go up against and Stanford did a pretty good job of containing him though Oriakhi still went to the free throw line 8 times. I had no idea that he was going to be such a solid free throw shooter. Oriakhi obviously had a bone-headed play when he got caught with the frustration foul in the second half after getting his shot blocked. Otherwise, he had a decent game. Grade: 6/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan hasn't been able to get the ball in the hoop of late but still provides all the other things that the team needs, mainly in the area of ballhandling. It was obvious in the second half that Haith trusts NWC more than Bell since bell spent almost the entire half on the bench. NWC's one made basket was the second-chance 3-pointer in which Ross kept the ball alive. Grade: 5/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross was 1-7 in the first half and 2-12 in the second half. He just could not make anything, including lay-ups. He did end up with a double-double though as he finished with 10 points and 11 rebounds. He needs to learn that when he gets those offensive rebounds to kick the ball out and reset the offense when there are defenders surrounding him. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Bell was a mess. He had as many turnovers as the rest of the team combined. He made a great move on the first possession of the game to drive the lane and pass to a cutting Bowers for an easy lay-up. But after that, he turned the ball over almost every time he touched the ball. If you watch Bell (and Ross does this too), when a pass is made to him, his first instinct is to see if he can shoot or score, NOT to see if someone else is open for a better shot. As a result, he appears to be a very selfish player and does not work well in a team context. Haith had enough of Bell when he turned the ball over both times he touched it in the second half, and Bell did not come back into the ball game until the waning seconds for defense. Haith just doesn't trust him. And he shouldn't. Grade: 2/10.
Overall Thoughts
I thought this was a very good win. Stanford was a decent opponent and were fundamentally sound. I was disappointed at times with the perimeter defense as Pressey and Bell got blown by a number of times by Randle who would then pull up for an easy shot at the free throw line. Stanford got A TON of open looks from outside and it was fortunate for Mizzou that they only made 23% of their 3s. Pressey was great and I thought Haith probably used the bench a little more than he needed to, but he was obviously wanting to give the guys some rest whenever he could since they will be playing 3 games in 3 days. Nice to see Oriakhi and Pressey knock down their free throws late. Very nice win. (And decent showing by the Tiger faithful.)
Next up: Winner of Louisville/Northern Iowa tomorrow at 8:30 PM CST.
Game 3: Nicholls State
Nicholls State came into this game having played only one other game, losing to Vanderbilt by 15 last weekend. My hope/expectation was to see a convincing Missouri win (by 30 points) highlighted by another dominating performance on the glass. Alas, it was not to be. Mizzou started the game looking great on defense and awful on offense. There were just so many wasted possessions early in the game which I hope to see cleaned up once the competition gets better (next game!). Then in the second half they had numerous defensive breakdowns while looking a little better on offense. As will be my practice from now on, I'll go from best to worst.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi was a great defensive presence in this game. When he was in the game, Nicholls State really had trouble scoring. As soon as he went out, Nicholls State would make a run. He is as important to Mizzou's defense as Phil is to the offense. However, he still misses too many point blank shots. Twice he had the ball right at the rim and just hoisted it right over the rim missing the goal entirely. Very perplexing. Nice to see him knock down his free throws though. Grade: 7/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross had a nice first half and was really the only guy knocking down shots as the rest of the team was throwing the ball away. But he looked pretty sloppy in the second half as well. Grade: 6/10.
Phil Pressey
Phil seemed like a non-factor in this game other than the fact that when he was not in the game the offense really bogged down. Grade: 5/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers just can't get anything going in the first half of games. He looked pretty bad on both ends of the floor during the first period. He scored some buckets in the second half, but continue to look poor on defense as the Nicholls State bruiser seemed to out-muscle and out-quick Bowers on numerous occasions. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Bell just doesn't seem to have what it takes. He ended three early possessions with a brick from 3 and two turnovers. He seems so slow and so far has proven to be a very inefficient player on offense. I also caught him napping on a couple of plays where he was sitting in the corner and neither went for the offensive rebound nor got back to defend when a shot went up (see photo sequence below). His fundamentals just aren't there. I've seen enough of Bell to formulate an early opinion that he is not going to be one of the key players on this team. I did like his defense in the second half when he grabbed some steals and got in the passing lanes. Grade: 4/10.
Tony Criswell
Criswell needs to use his body and start making shots inside rather than settling for outside jump shots which have not been going down for him thus far in the season. He's not looking as impressive now as he was early on. Grade: 4/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan neither helped nor hurt the team in this game. I think his minutes are going to go down significantly in the Bahamas tournament as Mizzou will want Pressey playing as much as possible. Grade: 3/10.
Stefan Jankovic
Jankovic came back down to earth and unfortunately looked completely out of control in his few minutes in the game. When you have one of the nation's best point guards, you let him run the break. Grade: 2/10.
Ryan Rosburg
Nicholls State scored on almost every possession that Rosburg was in the game by either going right at him or getting an easy rebound where he should have been. Grade: 2/10.
Overall Thoughts
I apologize for the negative tone of this edition of the Report, but I was very disappointed in the team's performance tonight. Poor execution and fundamentals were on display as Mizzou made Nicholls State look a lot better than they really are. I expect the rotation to tighten up considerably when facing Stanford as I have to think that Haith will want Pressey and Oriakhi on the floor as much as possible as those two are very key to Mizzou's success. Hopefully, it was a good learning experience while still getting a win. It will be interesting to see how these guys do next week against much better competition.
Next up: Stanford on Thanksgiving Day at Noon.
Game 2: Alcorn State
The Tigers started the game really struggling as they didn't even get a shot off on their first two trips down the floor and didn't score their first basket until five minutes had run off the clock. I was encouraged with the intensity that they brought to the second half as things went much better after halftime, but shooting 38% for the game is pretty ugly. I will do my usual run-down of the players, but will now go in order from who I liked the best on down.
Stefan Jankovic
I have been Jankovic's biggest critic to this point, but tonight he finally won me over. Why? Because he led the team in assists. The tallest player on the team was also the best passer in this particular game. 5 boards, 3 blocks, 2 steals, 4 assists and no turnovers from a 6'11" freshman? Okay, I give up. Grade: 9/10.
Earnest Ross
Ross started off slowly but turned it on in a big way, finishing with a nice double-double stuffing the stat sheet with all sorts of ridiculous numbers (7-8 from the field, 10 boards, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block, 17 points). I especially liked the way he played in the second half where he was driving to the hoop and finishing. I hope to see more of this. Grade: 8/10.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi is a nice addition to this team. He is the anti-Ratliffe in that he has absolutely no touch around the goal, but he is a mean dude if there is a rebound to be had. I'll take 12 and 10 from him any day, every day. Grade: 7/10.
Negus Webster-Chan
I thought I might be the biggest Webster-Chan fan around, but I think Coach Haith may have me beat. He is loving his do-it-all freshman. Who doesn't mind a guy who can play three different positions and do all the little things that it takes to help a team? Webster-Chan led the team in both minutes played and rebounds though only connecting on 12% of his shots. I never would have believed that this guy would make it into the rotation, but he's looking like he belongs the more I see him play. Grade: 7/10.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers is developing a pattern of stinking it up in the first half and catching fire in the second half. In these first two games of the season, he has scored a total of 2 points in the first half and 32 points in the second half. While I liked his scoring spurt in the second half which all came in the first 6 minutes of the second half, he was pretty quiet and a non-factor in the other 34 minutes of the game. Grade: 6/10.
Phil Pressey
It's not very often when you can be slightly disappointed with a player's performance when he scores over 20 points, but this just wasn't one of Phil's better games. He forced way too many shots and I get the feeling that he is frustrated with his teammates for blowing too many gimmies and just would rather take things over himself. He ended the game with only 2 assists and 3 turnovers (though the statistician made a mistake and charged him for a turnover that was clearly Bell's on the first possession of the game). Grade: 6/10.
Tony Criswell
I like Criswell a lot and think that he has the potential to help the team in a lot of ways. However, this was not a good game for him. While he is a big body and does a great job on the offensive boards, he has struggled defending and finishing shots. Grade: 4/10.
Keion Bell
Those of us who expressed concerns about Bell before we even saw him play are even more concerned now because while talented, he just doesn't seem to fit anywhere. He only logged 16 minutes against Alcorn State and most of those minutes it was hard to tell what he was doing. I have previously praised Bell for his defense and felt like his defense was good in this game as well. But on the offensive end, he doesn't bring much. He seems to have a very slow (and long) first step which good defenders have no trouble stopping which puts him in a tough position since he hasn't shown that he has any type of jump shot. His passing and ballhandling skills also aren't very strong. As a result, I think Bell is going to be a niche player who will get lots of playing time against teams that he can exploit, but not so much time against others. Grade: 4/10.
Ryan Rosburg
Seven rebounds in 9 minutes of playing time is pretty impressive, but the rest of his game is pretty ugly. He just doesn't seem ready yet and is playing way too fast. Grade: 3/10.
Overall Thoughts
- I was hoping for a 40-point win and Mizzou won by 37. Alcorn State next faces Stanford on Thursday so it will be worth checking in on that game to see how they do since Stanford will be Missouri's first big test next Thursday.
- Not only were Denmon and English great shooters, but they were also great passers. I've noticed that the ball doesn't zip around the perimeter like we were used to seeing last year. While it's hard to let it go, we can't expect this team to be as efficient as last year.
- Mizzou will be so much better on offense once Dixon returns. I really hope he will able to play in the Bahamas. We need him.
Next up: Nicholls State on Friday.
Game 1: Southern Illinois - Edwardsville
The season has begun! Though the opponent was lowly SIUE, it was nonetheless a good start to the season, despite not having Dixon in the line-up. But my goodness, Mizzou came out out of the gate looking dreadful, especially on the defensive end. If this team is going to be good, they really need to improve on defense and rebounding because SIUE was consistently getting second and third looks early on. The first half was characterized by Mizzou unable to grab rebounds and missing way too many point-blank shots. Really concerning how poorly the Missouri players were able to finish right at the rim.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi is very limited offensively as he missed a number of point blank shots, including a wide-open dunk from right under the basket. My expectations were much higher for him as he just has not delivered at all on that end of the floor. However, he did a pretty good job keeping the defensive glass clean as he ended the game with 15 rebounds.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers was awful in the first half and during a stretch in the second half, dominated as Missouri took control of the game. It was nice to see some of the two-man game that Bowers and Pressey had going in the second half where Pressey would deliver and Bowers would finish. I hope to see more of that.
Phil Pressey
Phil is great, but really needs Dixon back in the lineup to take some of the pressure off. Phil tried to do everything in this game because no one else was able to do anything in the first half. Guys weren't catching his passes, they weren't finishing plays. He ended the game with a nice set of stats: 9 assists and 2 turnovers and looked like the great point guard that he is.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan is really a great addition to this team. He has really looked good in these early games and continues to impress with being solid in every phase of the game. Early on, he got hung up on a couple of screens but closed out well and was able to keep his man from getting a shot off. In the second half, he got stuck on some screens (as did a number of the Tigers late in the game) allowing some easy looks for SIUE.
Earnest Ross
Ross stunk. Didn't rebound. Couldn't guard. Missed layups. Threw airballs up from 3. When SIUE was getting all of those open looks from 3, Ross was usually in no man's land and then would fly at the shooter after the shot was released. It just wasn't his game. Ross needs to start playing better defense or he's going to see most of his minutes go to Jabari Brown in December.
Keion Bell
Bell was pretty quiet. After two early turnovers, he settled down and played much better in the second half. His outside shot sure hasn't looked good. He's a slasher and was able to get into the lane and pick up some nice assists.
Tony Criswell
Criswell looked good in the first half as he was very active on the boards and grabbed a number of offensive boards to keep possession with the offense. Unfortunately, he also had trouble finishing in close and seems very awkward on the left side of the goal. He really favors his right side and doesn't seem to be able to use his left hand even when it's the right move. He struggled defensively in the second half picking up four quick fouls which led to free throws for SIUE.
Stefan Jankovic
Jankovic continues to stroke it from the outside. That's where his bread will be buttered this year. He was a bit of a liability on defense I thought. He just lacks strength.
Overall Thoughts
Right now, this team plays worse defense than last year's team. I was just amazed at how easy a team like SIUE was able to get all the way to the basket time and time again. There was little help defense and overall the team just looked lazy on D like they just weren't willing to play tough. Even Oriakhi looked lousy on defense at times.
Dixon (assuming he returns) is going to cure a lot of the problems on offense as his quickness and reliability with the ball put additional pressure on opposing D's. Mizzou scored 83 points on 76 possession which is not very efficient considering the opponent. SIUE's zone defense late in the game really bogged Mizzou down, especially when Bowers wasn't in to man the high post.
Pressey, Webster-Chan and Jankovic were 7-9 from 3. Ross and Bell were 0-7. I know Ross lit it up in the first exhibition game, but he wasn't even close today.
Overall, it was a good early season game. The team has plenty to work on.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi is very limited offensively as he missed a number of point blank shots, including a wide-open dunk from right under the basket. My expectations were much higher for him as he just has not delivered at all on that end of the floor. However, he did a pretty good job keeping the defensive glass clean as he ended the game with 15 rebounds.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers was awful in the first half and during a stretch in the second half, dominated as Missouri took control of the game. It was nice to see some of the two-man game that Bowers and Pressey had going in the second half where Pressey would deliver and Bowers would finish. I hope to see more of that.
Phil Pressey
Phil is great, but really needs Dixon back in the lineup to take some of the pressure off. Phil tried to do everything in this game because no one else was able to do anything in the first half. Guys weren't catching his passes, they weren't finishing plays. He ended the game with a nice set of stats: 9 assists and 2 turnovers and looked like the great point guard that he is.
Negus Webster-Chan
Webster-Chan is really a great addition to this team. He has really looked good in these early games and continues to impress with being solid in every phase of the game. Early on, he got hung up on a couple of screens but closed out well and was able to keep his man from getting a shot off. In the second half, he got stuck on some screens (as did a number of the Tigers late in the game) allowing some easy looks for SIUE.
Earnest Ross
Ross stunk. Didn't rebound. Couldn't guard. Missed layups. Threw airballs up from 3. When SIUE was getting all of those open looks from 3, Ross was usually in no man's land and then would fly at the shooter after the shot was released. It just wasn't his game. Ross needs to start playing better defense or he's going to see most of his minutes go to Jabari Brown in December.
Keion Bell
Bell was pretty quiet. After two early turnovers, he settled down and played much better in the second half. His outside shot sure hasn't looked good. He's a slasher and was able to get into the lane and pick up some nice assists.
Tony Criswell
Criswell looked good in the first half as he was very active on the boards and grabbed a number of offensive boards to keep possession with the offense. Unfortunately, he also had trouble finishing in close and seems very awkward on the left side of the goal. He really favors his right side and doesn't seem to be able to use his left hand even when it's the right move. He struggled defensively in the second half picking up four quick fouls which led to free throws for SIUE.
Stefan Jankovic
Jankovic continues to stroke it from the outside. That's where his bread will be buttered this year. He was a bit of a liability on defense I thought. He just lacks strength.
Overall Thoughts
Right now, this team plays worse defense than last year's team. I was just amazed at how easy a team like SIUE was able to get all the way to the basket time and time again. There was little help defense and overall the team just looked lazy on D like they just weren't willing to play tough. Even Oriakhi looked lousy on defense at times.
Dixon (assuming he returns) is going to cure a lot of the problems on offense as his quickness and reliability with the ball put additional pressure on opposing D's. Mizzou scored 83 points on 76 possession which is not very efficient considering the opponent. SIUE's zone defense late in the game really bogged Mizzou down, especially when Bowers wasn't in to man the high post.
Pressey, Webster-Chan and Jankovic were 7-9 from 3. Ross and Bell were 0-7. I know Ross lit it up in the first exhibition game, but he wasn't even close today.
Overall, it was a good early season game. The team has plenty to work on.
Next up: Alcorn State on Tuesday.
Exhibition 2: Missouri Southern
Some teams just don't provide a very good gauge for how far along Mizzou is. It's especially hard when two of Mizzou's primary players don't even play. Early on, I thought Missouri looked terrible. Pressey was throwing up bricks from outside (0-5 from 3), Missouri Southern was outrebounding a much taller Missouri squad, Rosburg continues to look overmatched by Division II players and general sloppy play from the team as a whole. I was happy to see the team start the second half with a little defensive intensity, but even then...it was a mixed bag.
Alex Oriakhi
Oriakhi sure did not impress in this game. He didn't rebound, he turned the ball over and showed no touch on the offensive end. I am really hoping that he can provide a solid inside presence this season, but this game sure was not a good sign.
Laurence Bowers
Bowers looked better this game than he did against Northwest Missouri State. He played more within the flow of the offense and was more active on the boards. That was encouraging to see.
Phil Pressey
Flip stunk. But we know enough about him not to be concerned.
Earnest Ross
Ross also disappointed me in this game. I was hoping that he would be a solid mid-range player, but he seems content to float around the perimeter looking only for 3-pointers. I watched him on defense and he seems to do a pretty good job, but I never got a good feel for him and he's not near the rebounder that he was touted to be. He did have 6 assists in this game though which shows that he's a pretty well-rounded player in that he can do a lot of different things to help the team win.
Tony Criswell
I really really like Criswell's game. He's the mid-range player that this team needs. He moves and plays like he's 6'4", but he's a 6'9" bruiser who is a great ballhandler and has a really nice touch on the offensive end. Right before halftime, he had a nifty steal and then led the break the other way and made a great pass. Criswell is definitely going to be a part of this rotation. He finished the game with 13 points shooting 63% from the field, 3 rebounds, 2 steals and no turnovers. I'll take those stats any day of the week.
Ryan Rosburg
Not ready.
Stefan Jankovic
Jankovic obviously scored some points today, but I'm not wild and crazy about his game. I actually think his potential is that of Josh Kroenke, as a 3-point specialist. He's a little wild and doesn't have the strength yet to bang with the big bodies that are going to be down low during the meat of the season.
Negus Webster-Chan
I saved the best for last. If anything good came out of this exhibition game, it was the arrival of Webster-Chan. I loved the way he ran the point as Pressey's backup. I loved how steady he was. He didn't showboat. He didn't gamble for steals on defense. He was all business and was super-solid at getting the job done. He played the most mature game of all the Tigers, yet is only a freshman. I had somewhat written him off based upon what I saw at Mizzou Madness and the first exhibition game, but I finally saw what the coaches have been raving about. He ran the point way better than what we saw from Bell in the last game. He is extremely versatile and based upon today's performance is going to be one of those players who can be counted on to do whatever it takes to get the job done. Jankovic had the big dunk in the game, but what got me off my feet was the bounce pass that made it happen.
Overall Thoughts
Three thoughts, all of which are slightly negative but highlight the things this team needs to work on:
- Defense. This was a weakness last year and I don't yet see an improvement in that area. Last year I kept thinking that teams were making a lot of "hail mary" type baskets, but that trend continued all the way through the Norfolk State game. At some point, there has to be a correlation between the success of those "hail marys" and the defense that is being played. That trend continued in today's game.
- Rebounding. Mizzou had a huge size advantage today and still let Missouri Southern (yes...Missouri SOUTHERN!) get tons of second-chance points.
- Efficiency. This is mostly an indictment of Pressey as he played pretty wild today throwing lots of ill-advised passes. Missouri wasted lots of possessions in today's game with low percentage shots and bone-headed turnovers. Unfortunately for us fans, we were spoiled last year with a ridiculously efficient offense that played within itself and was unselfish almost to a fault (much like our frustrations with the QB play from our football team of late after having NFL-caliber QBs for the previous 5 years). Pressey really needs to become a leader in this regard and limit the wows for the sake of the good of the team. Pressey is an incredible talent and doesn't need to be flashy to be good. He obviously has some flash (which is fun), but what this team needs right now is for him to be steady and get the job done.
- Okay, I lied. One other thing: we have yet to see this team play with Michael Dixon. I am a huge Dixon fan and sincerely believe that he is the best player on the team. My hope is that his presence in the line-up will alleviate some of my concerns. He is an extremely efficient player due to his ability to finish plays, to get to the free throw line and to make those free throws. I look forward to seeing how he interacts with the rest of this team.
Next up: SIUE on Saturday.
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