Looking to continue its unprecedented turnaround, No. 21 Missouri travels to meet Georgia on Saturday in Southeastern Conference action at Athens, Ga.
Just a year removed from an 8-24 record that included an 0-18 mark in SEC play, the Tigers (18-6, 7-4 SEC) appear to be well on their way to an NCAA Tournament appearance. With wins over Kansas, Florida, Ole Miss and Mississippi State, Missouri can boost its resume against tourney hopeful Georgia.
Following a two-game losing skid, Missouri rebounded Wednesday to earn an 82-58 home victory over Oklahoma. In a wire-to-wire win that saw the Tigers lead by as many as 29 points, Mark Mitchell finished with a career-high 25 points.
Missouri coach Dennis Gates said the performance epitomizes what Mitchell brings to the team since his transfer from Duke.
“Mark was coming off a game against Texas A&M that I wasn’t happy with,” Gates said. “I wasn’t happy with his performance at all, and I think he got the message to come out and respond how he responded. … His versatility offensively and defensively gives us an advantage.
“Sometimes, when you have a McDonald’s All-American caliber player, those guys come with certain baggage. Mark Mitchell doesn’t. He’s a humble young man that allows himself to be disciplined by his coach.”
Mitchell’s 12.9 points per game rank behind Tamar Bates’ 13.5 for the team lead. Missouri also boasts the conference’s leading 3-point shooter in Caleb Grill, who’s connecting on 48.6 percent of his triples this season.
As a team, the Tigers’ 37.4 percent mark from 3-point range ranks second in the SEC and is an improvement from last season’s 31.9 percent clip.
Georgia (16-9, 4-8) is in desperate need of another marquee win, as the Bulldogs continue to inch further from the NCAA Tournament bubble. Losers in seven of nine games, Georgia squandered an opportunity on Tuesday, when it saw its 11-point second-half lead at No. 8 Texas A&M evaporate, allowing the Aggies to pull away with a 22-0 run.
“Tuesday was an incredible, unique game where we looked as good as we’ve looked all year,” Bulldogs coach Mike White said. “(Texas A&M) made some adjustments, they went to their matchup zone, switching everything. It really had us a little bit off balance there in the second half.”
Georgia freshman Asa Newell paces the team with 15.0 points and 6.7 rebounds per game but was held to 1-for-6 shooting from the field in the most recent loss. Silas Demary Jr. chips in 11.8 points, but the SEC gauntlet is proving the difficulties of winning without veterans.
The Bulldogs’ oldest players, Dakota Leffew and Tyrin Lawrence, were sidelined Tuesday with injuries.
“We’re extremely young,” White said. “We’ve got two old guys that are out and now we’re really, really young. Our poise, and our attention to detail defensively and on the defensive glass let up a little bit when we had some of those empty possessions (Tuesday).”
Georgia’s 13.3 turnovers per game are third most in the SEC.
–Field Level Media
