Uh oh...Bernie's talking about Mizzou...this can't be good. Well...it's good AND bad, actually. Pinkel = good. Anderson = bad.
Unlike Mizzou basketball coach Mike Anderson, Pinkel didn't engage in some tormented explanation of what "zero tolerance" really means in disciplining players.
Pinkel showed us what it means in the clearest possible manner — by telling Booker to get out.
And after a scandalous, arrest-plagued basketball season, Mizzou athletics needed a display of strength and leadership — and got it from Pinkel.
Okay, let's go through this one more time: NO COACH IN THE COUNTRY WOULD KICK A PLAYER OFF THE TEAM FOR MISSING CURFEW. I realize this is Anderson's own fault for allowing the "no tolerance" idea to be publicized, but "no tolerance" never meant "break any little team rule, and you're kicked off the team." Marquis Booker = threatened people with a gun. The Athena Five = broke curfew, acted like assholes. Slight difference. Pretty sure a) Anderson would have kicked Booker off the team too, and b) Pinkel would have suspended the Athena Five by roughly the same amounts. All that said, I do love how much people love Pinkel now. It's amazing what winning will do, huh?
Mizzou Baseball 9, South Dakota State 4. Not as easy a win as we've grown accustomed to, of course, but the 10th win in a row is the 10th win in a row. Ryan Gargano was a bit shaky in the 9th, but it didn't matter, thanks mostly to Kurt Calvert's 3-for-5, 3 RBI's, 4 runs performance. Calvert's been fantastic in the leadoff spot, with a .389 OBP. Baylor now looms...Game One at Simmons Field starts tomorrow at 6:30. The Missourian has a nice article about Mizzou's efforts to nail down the perfect batting order.
Okay, I screwed up. Mizzou Softball didn't play SLU yesterday, they played Bradley. And (GASP) they actually lost a game. Bradley took Game One, 5-4, ending Mizzou's 19-game win streak. Mizzou bounced back with a 6-0 shutout by Jen Bruck. The Missourian has more on yesterday's games.
Mutigers.com has the official release for this weekend's NCAA Wrestling Championships, but honestly you should just read chitowntiger's diary--it's way more informative. You can also choose to read this Trib article about Max Askren and last year's lessons.
On the day the NCAA tourney begins (get your picks in now!), Steve Walentik gives you the Trib's Mizzou post-mortem, entitled "Tigers can't outplay problems".
There’s no guarantee things will get better for Anderson’s team next season, but there are reasons to hope.
The nucleus of the team that finished the season figures to be back, unless Lyons decides to declare early for the NBA draft. That would seem to be a bad business decision for Lyons, who could improve his earning power with a strong senior season, but it remains a possibility because he has butted heads with Anderson the past two seasons.
Should he return, Lyons and a healthy Carroll would give Missouri a potent frontcourt. Guards Keon Lawrence and Tiller both showed progress during their sophomore campaigns. Matt Lawrence struggled shooting most of the season but finished with a 4-for-8 performance against the Huskers, and MU figures to have more depth next season.
Missouri’s four departing seniors combined to average fewer than 15 points and eight rebounds, numbers the Tigers should be able to make up for with the addition of Delaware transfer Zaire Taylor and a six-man recruiting class that includes five high school seniors and 6-foot-9 junior college transfer Keith Ramsey.
Two worthy PowerMizzou links: first, a poignant Powered Up column talking about the recent at-practice death of the Central Florida WR (and its obvious link to memories of AO...and the fact that his Senior Day will be coming up this season). Second, it's mailbag time! That's the Mizzou Links version of...
The damn video embed wouldn't work. Oh well. I almost downloaded that as my ringtone a while back.
Finally...via Dave Matter...submitted without comment...
