This week has presented kind of a lull in the coverage on the Mizzou beat, as it is finals week and teams aren’t really active. By the way, if you’re a December grad, CONGRATS!!! And if you’re a December J-School grad and know what you’re doing with your life post-grad, please fill out your survey. However, the Rock M links waits for no man (or woman), and so we shall proceed.

Since we are in the midst of hoops season, I thought that we’d just focus our energy there on both men’s and women’s hoops, so into Dave Matter’s subscriber chat we go. As always, I won’t share a lot, as it is a subscriber chat (thanks for that log in, fam).

When a chatter said Mizzou MBB plays undisciplined, he had this response:

Missouri hadn’t turned the ball over very much until the Kansas kansas game and was one of most efficient shooting teams in the country. So not sure where the undisciplined comment comes from. They had a bad day against Kansas kansas- as most KU kU opponents do. It doesn’t ruin the season, but it might have exposed some glaring weaknesses that were harder to uncover during the 9-0 start. I thought their decisions on offense at times led to easy KU baskets in transition. Mizzou has to be the team that scores easy baskets - not the other way around.

And, of course, it wouldn’t be a Mizzou chat/comment without the mention of Mizzou’s M.I.A. star, Isiaih Mosley (listen to the Eye on the Tiger pod, please).

As for Mosley, BenFred and I addressed the topic yesterday on our podcast. A little more clarity on the situation might be in the best interest of Mosley and the team considering some of the wild conspiracy theories I’ve read from fans in the last couple weeks. If some of the things I’ve heard second-hand are true, I think fans would be more sympathetic toward the situation - and more understanding. Jimmy Dykes said on the TV broadcast last week that Mosley wasn’t at the practice Dykes attended before the KU game. If there’s a personal issue in his life that’s keeping him from attending practice, that would explain why he’s not playing in some games. He was in the practice gym yesterday putting up shots with teammates and managers before the team’s practice.

And regarding the women’s team, who have started this season surprising EVERYONE with their 9-1 start, having only lost to a ranked VA Tech squad, there are some questions: When asked about Coach P ending last season on thin ice, he said:

Strong start so far. They’ve lost to the only ranked team they’ve played but it was mostly competitive until a drought in the third quarter. They’ve beaten two high-major teams in Wake Forest and Arizona State. Not exactly powerhouses but that’s good for the postseason credentials. They’re No. 32 in the NCAA’s NET rankings. That’s very solid.

Here’s where this team was smart with scheduling: They played beatable teams away from home, so you get the NET reward for playing away from home but the games weren’t against elite teams. They’ve gone 4-1 outside of Columbia. Regardless who played, that’s going to help their strength of schedule.

Moving on.

This is, besides a Cuonzo 4-Ever Fan page, an Aidan Shaw Fan Page. I LOVE that kid. L-O-V-E. His effort. His exuberance. His enthusiasm. His love for the school. Just him. All of it. Just a great, great young man.

So when we hear/see this, we jump into action.

And as such it is our duty to Aidan Shaw to help him find a new name. The company Slack offered up Aegon Shaw (Mitch), The Shawty (Levi), and.. in our minds, the winner… Shawshank (Josh). OH HELL, YESSSSSS.

The team left chilly CoMo on Thursday evening, by the way, for a lovely temperature shift in The Sunshine State. The second business trip of the season. Let’s hope it’s as successful as the first one, eh?

Despite wanting to make this a hoops-only post up top, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention these… pretty incredible nuggets above the fold. We all thought Mizzou would be facing a max exodus, and that’s not even a joke. But as of December 15, have a looksie. Honestly, SHOCKED and FLABBERGASTED.

And one more thing on the football front, given the thinness of some positions going into the bowl game next week. This is FANTASTIC news.

Okay, now I’m done.

ON TO THE LINKS!!!

Happy Birthday, Coach! Hope we can get you a win on Saturday.

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Yesterday at Rock M

• New Podcast: With Bush Hamdan out, who might Mizzou turn to? And how might that impact the team?
• Matt Harris went in-depth on Opportunity Cost: In Isiaih Mosley’s absence, Mizzou’s issue on the wing come into view
• IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Adeen, with my assist, revisited the Mizzou Women’s Basketball non-con preview | Brandon’s pre-UCF presser preview

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More Links:

Football

• St. Louis Post-Dispatch: 7 SEC football teams that may shop for a proven quarterback in the transfer portal (Jeff Gordon) | Read Dave Matter’s new subscriber chat
• PowerMizzou/Rivals: 2024 WR Jeremiah McClellan loves Mizzou’s style of play and atmosphere (Jarod Hamilton)
• Saturday Down South: Grading each position group after the 2022 regular season (Crissy Froyd)
• Keep it up, KAD. It’s your Reputation Era. We’ll take never-ending graphics if it means you’re coming back!

• And in case you care about former Tiger Barry Odom and his new staff at UNLV, here’s a nugget:

Hoops

• PowerMizzou: What Missouri took away from its first loss (Drew King) | PowerMizzou Live: Tiger Hoops looks to bounce back (Gabe DeArmond & Drew King)
• Columbia Missourian: How Mizzou Basketball can rebound against UCF (Chris Kwiecinski)
• In this week’s “I Hate the NCAA” news: Per The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach, they’ve hired the “new” Mark Emmert, and I guess he’s a political figure of some sort? I bet it will just go swimmingly, because the NCAA is worthless.

• Recruiting this-and-that: 7-footer Braden Pierce had this to say about Mizzou to On3’s Jamie Shaw:

Missouri: “Coach (Dennis) Gates told me they are trying to have the biggest team in the country. It’s a lot about family up there, which I like. He is trying to develop a good relationship with my parents too. I like how they’re recruiting me.”

• Well, well, well, well....

• Here’s your Whiteboard Wednesday! Uh, Coach... you sent this on a Thursday.

• PROMO ALERT!!! There’s some good stuff on the way, y’all! Come cheer on this team in person! (Resharing)

Other Mizzou Sports

• Softball: Having the important discussions

NBA/G-League Corner

• Jordan Clarkson & Utah Jazz (17-14):

12/15 vs PELS (W 132-129 OT): 39 min | 39pts HOLY SHIT on 15-26 FG (7-14 3PT) | 8 REB | 2 AST | 2 STL | 4 TO | 1 PF | +2

12/13 vs PELS (W 121-100): 29 min | 11pts on 4-13 FG (1-7 3PT) | 1 REB | 3 AST | 1 BLK | 4 TO | 2 PF | +14

12/10 vs NUGGS (L 115-110): DNP

12/9 vs T-Wolves (L 118-108): 36 min | 21pts on 8-20 FG (0-7 3PT) | 2 REB | 3 AST | 1 STL | 5 TO | 2 PF | -13

UP NEXT: 12/17 vs MIL at 7pm | 12/19 vs Cavs @6pm | 12/20 vs DET at 6pm | 12/22 vs WASH @8pm on NBAtv

• Michael Porter, Jr & Denver Nuggets (14-10):

Held out since 11/22 with heel (achilles?) injury. Check out yesterday’s Links post update.

UP NEXT: 12/16 vs LAK at 9pm on ESPN | 12/18 vs CLT at 7pm

• Dru Smith & Miami Heat & Sioux Falls SkyForce (10-6):

12/14 vs Gold (W 108-106): 25 min | 6pts on 2-6 FG (0-2 3PT) | 2 REB | 5 AST | 1 STL | 4 PF | +1

12/12 vs Gold (W 89-83): DNP

12/10 vs Spurs (W 115-111): DNP

• Jontay Porter & Wisconsin Herd (6-9):

12/14 vs Mad Ants (L 128-119): DNP. I wonder what’s going on here. My guy has gotten a few of these recently.

UP NEXT: 12/16 vs Mad Ants at 7pm

Former Tiger Hodgepodge Season Averages (as of 12/15)

**NOTE: Arrows indicate better (or worse) performance over last week’s shared data. I didn’t list the best recent game if there wasn’t a good/better one. (In the case of PF & TO, a ⇧ indicates they’re doing better/ ⇩ is worse)

• Javon Pickett (SLU): In 11 games, Pickett is averaging 25.8mpg (⇧) and 11.2ppg (⇩). He’s got a 52.1 FG% (⇩), 41.2 3PT% (⇩), and 80% FT% (⇧), to go with 6.5rpg (⇩), 1.5apg (⇧), and 0.6 steals (⇧). He’s also averaging 2.5 PF and only 1 TO.

Best recent game (12/10 vs BOISE): 27 min | 6pts | 4 REB | 2 AST | 1 BLK | 2 STL

• Sean Durugordon (Austin Peay): In 11 games, Sean is averaging 25.5mpg (⇧) and 11.8ppg (⇧). He’s got a 39.7FG% (⇩) and 29.2 3PT% (⇩) and 80 FT%, to go with 5.5rpg (⇧), 1.2apg (⇩), and 0.6 steals (⇩). He’s only averaging 1.5 PF and 1.1 TO.

Best recent game (12/12 vs LIN): 29 min | 18 pts | 6 REB

• Boogie Coleman (Ball State): In 10 games, Boogie is averaging 32.3mpg (⇩) and 12.9ppg (⇧). He’s got a 37.8 FG% (⇩), 40.4 3PT% (⇧), and 88 FT% (⇧). He’s averaging 5.2rpg (⇩), 0.7 blocks (⇧), 3.6apg (⇧), to go with 3PF (⇩) and 3.2TO (⇧).

Best recent game (12/10 vs EVAN): 25 min | 15 pts | 55.6% FG | 50% 3PT | 4 REB | 2 AST | 3 STL | 2 BLK (plus 11pts on 12/7, 12/3 and 11/27, the epitome of consistency)

• DaJuan Gordon (NM State): In 9 games, DaJuan is averaging 27.3mpg (⇧) and 9.3ppg (⇧), to go with 6rpg (⇧), 1.8 steals (⇧) and 0.9apg (=). He’s shooting 35.1 FG% (⇧) and 28.9 3PT% (⇩).

Best recent game (12/14 vs SMC): 30 min | 10 pts | 3 REB | 3 STL | 40% FG

• Xavier Pinson (NM State): In 9 games, X is averaging 31mpg (⇧) and 13ppg (⇩), to go with 3.3rpg (⇩), 0.2 blocks (⇧), 1.4 steals (⇩), and 2.7 TO (⇩). He’s shooting 38.9 FG% (⇩) and 33.33PT% (⇩).

Best recent game (12/14 vs SMC): 31 min | 12 pts | 1 REB | 1 AST | 1 BLK

• Amari Davis (Wright State): In 11 games, Amari is averaging 27.2mpg (⇧) and 11.9ppg (⇩), to go with 5rpg (=), 1.7apg (⇩), and 1.1 steals (⇧). He’s shooting 44 FG% (⇩) and 82.4 FT%.

Best recent game (12/10 vs WKU): 35 min | 11 pts | 6 REB | 1 AST | 3 STL

• Anton Brookshire (Iona): In 7 games, Anton is averaging 8.9mpg (⇩) and 2.3ppg (⇩), to go with 1.7rpg (⇧), and 0.6apg (⇧). He’s shooting just 23.33 FG% (⇩) to go with a 18.8% 3PT (⇩).

Best recent game (12/4 vs CAN): 12 min | 0 pts | 4 REB | 1 AST | 2 STL

• Torrence Watson (Elon): In 9 games, Torrence is averaging 26.6mpg (⇩) and 9.9ppg (⇩), to go with 4.8rpg (⇩), and 1.7apg (⇩). He’s shooting just 28.7 FG% (⇩) and 23.6% 3PT (⇩).

Has not played since last update

• Parker Braun (Santa Clara): In 12 games, PB has averaged 33mpg (⇩) and 7.8ppg (⇧) to go with 6.5rpg (=) and 2.6apg (⇩). He’s got a 54.1 FG% (=) and 26.9 3PT% (⇧).

Best recent game (12/13 vs PRST): 34 min | 13 pts | 83.3% FG | 7 REB | 1 AST

• Jordan Wilmore (NW State): In 10 games, Big Jordan is averaging 10.7mpg (⇧) and 0.5ppg (⇩), to go with 2.4rpg (⇧), 0.9 blocks (⇧) and 0.4 steals (=). He’s got a 22.2 FG% (⇩).

Best recent game (12/14 vs LA-Monroe): 23 min | 0 pts | 8 REB | 1 AST | 3 BLK

• LaDazhia Williams (LSU): In 8 games, LDW is averaging 20mpg (⇧) and 9.9ppg (⇩), to go with 4.4rpg (⇩), 1 apg (=), 1.4 steals (⇩) and 0.9 blocks (⇧). She’s also got a 66.1 FG% (⇧) but only a 38.5 FT% (⇩).

Best recent game (12/10 vs ULM): 19 min | 8 REB | 2 BLK

• Kiya Dorroh (Col State): In 5 games, Kiya is averaging only 5mpg (⇩) and 3ppg (⇧), to go with 1.5rpg (⇧). She’s also got a 66.7 FG% (=).

Has not played since last update

• Izzy Higginbottom (Ark St): In 9 games, Izzy is averaging 34.4mpg (⇧) and 15.8ppg (⇩), to go with 4.3apg (⇩), 3.1rpg (⇩), 2.3 steals (⇩) and 0.2 blocks (⇩). She’s shooting 39.7 FG% (⇩) and 24 3PT% (⇩), to go with 2.3 TO (⇧) and 1.2 PF (⇧).

Best recent game (12/11 vs no. 21 ARK): 36 min | 19 pts | 41.2% FG | 1 REB | 2 AST | 3 STL

• Yaya Keita (Oklahoma): Has not played since the last update.
• Aijha Blackwell (Baylor): Still out with a lower leg injury, hasn’t played since 11/15 vs SMU. She did update her IG this week, saying she’ll be back soon.
• Trevon Brazile (Arkansas): out for the season with a torn ACL

Random Stuff

• I’m sorry, but I will NOT let this blasphemy stand among these Missouri journalists. They must learn the error of the ways.

Round 6, pick 46. For one of the greatest animated movies EVER made. Avid readers of this particular writer’s work should already know of my fondness for the Emperor’s New Groove. I used to nanny for a third & fifth grader and we watched this multiple times a week, and I never once got tired of it. It’s a GD treasure. A TREASURE, I tell you.

These dum-dums (yeah, I said it) DID throw off my groove.

Anyway, look through the list. What’s missing? Brett says not having Shrek makes the whole thing fraudulent. The original is great; I’ll agree. I’d agree that’s a huge miss. Also, An American Tail is amazing as well as Antz and A Bug’s Life but also not included. Lemme know in the comments.

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