Missouri's Willie Jackson and Frankie Hughes look for a niche, celebrate Cleveland's title

Here are today's Mizzou Links.

By Bill Connelly@SBN_BillC Jun 22, 2016, 4:57am CDT

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What's On

Willie Jackson + Frankie Hughes = dunk show.

The Trib: High school teammates Jackson, Hughes working to fit in with Tigers

The 6-foot-6 forward averaged 14 rebounds to go along with 21 points as a senior — numbers that landed him a place on the All-Ohio first team as well a nod as one of Cleveland.com’s All-Stars. His physicality and strength gave him an advantage over prep competition and could help him contribute faster than some of his fellow newcomers.

"Willie is a guy whose body is maybe a little more mature," Coach Kim Anderson said. "I definitely think he’s got that college body."

Hughes isn’t quite as developed right now, but the 6-4 guard does carry a reputation for a skill Missouri needs: perimeter shooting. He averaged 19 points and five rebounds as a senior and landed next to Jackson on the All-Ohio first team and the Cleveland.com All-Star list.

Hope you're ready to spend some time at the 4 with that college body, Willie.

(But seriously, I've been pretty excited about Jackson for a while. Mizzou needs perimeter shooting, obviously, but Jackson appears tough, unique, and fun to watch.)

KC Star: Mizzou basketball’s freshman duo from Cleveland relish Cavs’ crown

"It was very special for Cleveland," Hughes said. "When we were down 3-1 (in the finals), I was telling people around campus and the coaching staff and everybody at the basketball arena that we were coming back and winning three in a row. I was just keeping the faith and a belief in the Cavs, knowing what LeBron (James) and Kyrie (Irving) and all those guys are capable of." [...]

"It brings some excitement to the city, because nowadays all we hear about in Cleveland is somebody being shot or robbed," Jackson said. "It was big to see everybody come out and support something that hadn’t happened in a long time."