On if players are buying in and if fans are remaining supportive …
"Yeah, fans have been great. I think we had our largest crowd of the year on Saturday. Our students will be back in town today, and they start school again tomorrow, and the guys have been good. Anytime you have a new coach and kind of a new system, we’re trying to put a lot of emphasis on defense, and we’ve had mixed results. We’re not giving up a ton of points, other than we gave up a bunch to Kentucky and a couple teams. We feel like we’ve got to be a good defensive team in order for us to win because we are challenged offensively. We do have trouble scoring the basketball. But as I look around the country, there’s a lot of teams like that. It’s been a good experience for me other than the fact that we just haven’t won as many games. Obviously, everyone wants to win more games than seven at this point. You’ve just got to keep plugging away. You’ve got to keep grinding every day, and I think our guys are doing that."
After Missouri’s loss to Tennessee, Anderson couldn’t say what exactly cost his team the game or what, specifically, the team needs to improve on. Anderson talked about practice, as he often has. Missouri is not a good practice team, which is something that has plagued the Tigers since week one. This week, it costTramaine Isabell a half of basketball. Anderson benched the freshman guard for the first 20 minutes of the game after a sub-par effort during practice.
In response, the Men's Basketball Rules Committee and officiating community reacted in a decidedly pro-offense way, limiting contact with the ballhandler and interpreting the always-murky block/charge call in a way most favorable to the offensive player.
There was an adjustment period, sure, but most in and around the game felt the changes were for the better, and that after a flurry of early fouls, teams would learn to play defense with their feet instead of their hands, and offensive players would have more freedom of movement.
By the middle and end of last season, officials reverted back to the status quo. Conference play was as physical as ever. This season, with yet another interpretation of the block/charge rule, the advantage has returned to the defensive player. Physicality remains a problem, particularly in the paint.
Mizzou – 7-10 Overall, 1-3 SEC Last Week’s Symptoms: Suffocated at Kentucky, faded at home to Tennessee. Prognosis: The planned St. Louis Cardinals players appearance on Saturday was the main reason why Mizzou’s home attendance topped more than 8,000. The Tigers may be reach death next week, become undead zombie Tigers week after next.
In his first mock draft, ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper had the Jets taking Ray with the sixth overall selection and the Chiefs drafting Green-Beckham at No. 18. In another early mock draft, SI.com projected Ray going to Atlanta at No. 8, Green-Beckham going undrafted in the first round and Green Bay taking Missouri defensive end Markus Golden at No. 30.
League spokesperson confirms: NFL lists draft prospects by the last school the player "actually participated in a game." Hence DGB & Mizzou
DE Markus Golden, Missouri Mizzou has produced some quality defensive linemen over the years and could have two first-round picks this spring with defensive ends Shane Ray and Golden. A 6-foot-2, 260-pound converted linebacker, Golden was at times during his junior season the best defensive end for the Tigers, a group that included Ray, 2014 second-round pick Kony Ealy and Southeastern Conference defensive player of the year Michael Sam.
"It's a blessing to be here," Pressey said. "We made a big trade of course, we're just trying to get back on the winning side of things. We've taken a couple of losses lately but I think we're heading in the right direction. As for my second season, it's been great, can't complain."
Fans saw a defensive end and expected a handful of sacks off the edge, overlooking the fact he played in a 3-4 with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Hood was put in the interior of the defensive line and finished the year with 1.5 sacks, which caused many to mistakenly think he wasn't doing what he was brought here to do.
That didn't happen, and that version of 'Spoon may be lost to time. He's played just 20 regular season games over the last three seasons, and he'll head into his age-27 season with a million question marks. Critically, he's coming off his second major injury in two years, and his contract has expired, leaving him in limbo.
The right-hander turned down a qualifying offer of one year, $15.3 million from Detroit in November, meaning the Nationals forfeit their first-round pick in 2015 for signing Scherzer. The Tigers get a compensatory pick for losing Scherzer as a free agent, in between the first and second rounds.
Words of Wisdom
From former Mizzou linebacker Donovan Bonner:
You can tell me all you want...but I won't pay attention until you show me
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