WHO?Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks @
WHAT?Water Polo or basketball
WHEN?7:00 pm CST December 9th, 2015
WHERE?Mizzou Arena Columbia, Mid-Missouri
WHY?Previously scheduled contest of non-conference opponents
WATCHSEC Network Mitch Holthus; Jon Sunvold
LISTENTiger Radio Network Mike Kelly, Gary Link
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Keeping an eye on the Four Factors! For a quick explanation on what they mean: Click Here! Here's my KenPom graphic of the matchup.
Omaha does one thing well on defense and that's steal the ball. Other than that, Missouri should have no problem finding baskets against the Maverick defense. In the KenPom rankings he has Omaha at 201 and Mizzou at 174, with a projected win of about 71% to the Tigers with a final score of 82 - 76. The Mizzou defense, which has been average to date, is going to have to play well because while the Mavericks aren't so hot on defense, they're pretty good offensively, and even rank 6th in average possession length. Just means they want to run and play fast. I'm ok with that, I like a faster paced game.
The player to keep your eye on is Tre'Shawn Thurman. he's not afraid to put the ball up, but he's not much of a threat from long range. He's the guy that will kill you in transition and attacking the basket. Devin Patterson is next up, a 5-11 guard who has averaged double figures his three years at Omaha.
Keys to the game are mostly the same for a young Missouri team.
1) Rebound the ball
Tigers need to keep the smaller Omaha team off the glass, especially on the offensive end. That means getting back on defense, getting two feet into the paint first, and fanning out to your man second.
3) Value the ball
Turnovers is the name of the game when you go up against a fast paced team. Missouri's experience against Arkansas should hopefully get them through having to play against a team that wants to push pace. Control the ball when you have it and you'll find good shots against a suspect defense.
3) Home Cooking
Missouri will also try to take advantage of the home court as much as possible. The crowds have gotten better as the season has gone along, and Mizzou has largely played well at home. If they can shoot well and avoid the large lulls in offense they've been prone to for the last few seasons, this could be the game they win going away.
#LetsGo tonight! It's #GameDay! #MIZ pic.twitter.com/HqDDrXZvXL
— Mizzou Basketball (@MizzouHoops) December 9, 2015
Leave your trifecta picks here. I'll take Phillips - Isabell - Gant. And for a predicted score, I think this will go higher than the projected score on KenPom, and I think Missouri plays well tonight. I'll say 89 - 76.