Feb. 5, 2010
Columbia, Mo. -
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Mizzou Basketball News and Notes 2009-10
University of Missouri Tigers (16-6, 4-3 Big 12) vs.
University of Colorado Buffaloes (11-11, 2-6 Big 12)
2009-10 Regular Season Game 23 - February 6, 2010 - Boulder, Colo.
Tip-off: 3 p.m. CST
Arena: Coors Event Center - Boulder, Colo. (11,064)
TV: Big 12 Network - (Dave Armstrong play-by-play; Jon Sundvold analyst)
Radio: Tiger Radio Network (Mike Kelly play-by-play; Gary Link analyst)
Rankings: Mizzou: RV/RV, Colorado: NR/NR in Associated Press / USA Today Coaches polls
Series: Missouri leads 96-52 all-time; last - Mizzou won 66-53 on Feb. 21, 2009 in Boulder
Coaches:
Missouri: Mike Anderson (Tulsa ’82); 170-82 overall (8th season); 81-41 at Mizzou (4th)
Colorado: Jeff Bzdelik (Illinois-Chicago, ‘76); 107-100 overall (7th season); 32-53 at Colorado (3rd)
For Openers
> Missouri Basketball hits the road once again to take on one of the Big 12’s most improved teams, the Colorado Buffaloes on Saturday afternoon in Boulder, Colo. ... Mike Anderson is 6-0 vs. the Buffaloes, including three hard-fought wins in the Coors Event Center.
> Two of the Big 12’s youngest teams will square off on Saturday ... Missouri has 11-of-13 players in their first or second season playing for Mike Anderson ... Missouri is getting more than half of its 81.1 points per game from the sophomore class alone ... The second-year Tigers are logging 42.7 points per game ... If you add the freshman class, Mizzou is getting 67 percent of its scoring (54.0 ppg) and 8.4 assists from underclassmen this season ... Oh and for good measure, Missouri is welcoming in the nation’s #7 recruiting class next year (per USA Today).
> Missouri is looking for its second Big 12 road win of the year ... The Tigers won 94-89 (in overtime) at Texas Tech back on Jan. 13 and will be facing a Colorado club that is an impressive 10-2 at home this season with its only home losses coming to Top 10 clubs Kansas State (87-81) and #1 Kansas (72-66).
> Keep an eye out for Zaire Taylor, who has reached double figures in scoring five times in his last seven games ... Taylor reached double figures just four times in the season’s first 15 games, but is now averaging 10.6 tallies during Big 12 play, well up from his average of 7.5 ppg during non-conference contests.
> Taylor has been outstanding in true road games over his Tiger career ... In his two seasons, Taylor has averaged 9.0 points, 4.0 assists and just 1.1 turnovers in 14 road games ... During his 32-game career at home, Taylor has averaged 6.5 points, 2.9 assists and 1.2 turnovers.
> Don’t get fooled by the pace Missouri plays at, the Tigers are incredibly efficient ... Missouri does lead the nation with 12.0 steals per game and ranks #1 nationally in turnovers forced (21.2), but Anderson’s club also ranks #21 nationally in assists per game (16.3), #2 nationally in turnover margin (+8.0) and is among the Top 35 nationally with a 1.23 assist/turnover ratio as a team.
> Mizzou has forced each of its last three opponents: Kansas, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M into a season high number of turnovers the last three outings ... Kansas averaged 12.5 turnovers and turned it over 23 times ... Oklahoma State averaged 11.8 miscues and turned the rock over 24 times, while Texas A&M averaged 11.3 mishaps and turned it over 21 times ... Colorado is excellent at ball security turning it over just 12.5 times a contest this season, so something has to give.
Mizzou Quick Hitters
> Missouri looks to bounce back from a tough home loss to Texas A&M on Saturday as it faces a very good Colorado team in Boulder.
> Missouri has not lost back-to-back Big 12 Conference games since the 2007-08 campaign when it fell at home to Oklahoma State and at Baylor on Feb. 26 / March 1, 2008.
> Missouri has enjoyed good success in Boulder since Mike Anderson’s arrival, going a perfect 3-0 in the Rocky Mountains.
> Did you know that Mizzou sophomore Kim English and Colorado sophomore Nate Tomlinson met several times while in prep school? English attended Notre Dame Prep, while Tomlinson “prepped” at Lee Academy.
> In a quick note, Happy Birthday to former Mizzou beat writer Graham Watson, now a resident of Denver ... Watson turns 30 on Saturday (bwhahaha!).
> Missouri is being led in scoring by THREE underclassmen, Kim English (14.8), Laurence Bowers (10.9) and Marcus Denmon (10.8) ... The last time that happed was during the 1999-2000 campaign when Keyon Dooling (15.3), Kareem Rush (14.7) and Clarence Gilbert (13.7) paced the Tigers in scoring.
> Missouri ranks #21 nationally with 16.3 assists per game … However the perfect illustration for the Tigers’ unselfishness is that Mizzou has ZERO players ranked among the Top 250 nationally in assists … No one player dominates that basketball and that fuels Missouri’s quick-strike offense … However nine different Tigers have 25 or more assists this season, led by Zaire Taylor (63), J.T. Tiller (56), freshman Michael Dixon (46) and sophomore Miguel Paul (40) ... And as a reminder, Missouri led the nation in assists last season with 18.4 dimes per contest.
> Missouri has topped 20 assists seven times, including 28 dimes in the 106-69 win against Oregon and 25 vs. Georgia.
> Conversely the Tigers lead the nation in steals per game (12.0) and are led defensively by Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year candidate, J.T. Tiller ... It’s not the steal total to watch with Tiller, it’s the deflections and overall havoc the senior causes on the floor.
> Missouri is #2 nationally in turnover margin at +8.0 … With that great turnover margin and assist/turnover ratio (+1.2) the Tigers have taken 163 more shots then their opponents this year … That statistic certainly helps to offset rebounding margin … In a crazy stat that speaks to great ball-security, the Tigers already have 130 more steals this season than their opponents through 22 games.
> Did you know the Tigers actually turn their opponent over a nation-leading 30 percent of the time during a game? What does that mean? Well it means nearly one out of every three defensive possessions ends in a turnover.
> With that great turnover percentage Missouri is forcing 21.2 turnovers a game and is averaging 25.4 points per game off of those turnovers.
> It’s certainly early, but the Tigers sport excellent depth on their roster ... Nine different players have reached double figures in scoring and 10 different Tigers are averaging at least 9.7 minutes per game ... In addition, that depth fuels Missouri’s pressure and has allowed the Tigers to reach double figures in steals in 17-of-22 contests, including a school record 24 thefts vs. Chattanooga on Nov. 24.
> Missouri continues to be outstanding at the free throw line this season ... The Tigers are hitting at a 72.4 percent clip on the year, compared to 67.2 percent shooting last season.
> It’s hard to argue with the production of Missouri’s bench ... The Tigers are getting 35.7 of their 81.1 points per game from the reserves ... Missouri’s bench has actually outscored their starters five times this season and are outscoring their opposition’s bench 35.7-to-18.0.
> Mizzou has had a double-figure scorer off the pine in 18 games this season, including a season high three players in the wins against Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Oregon and UMKC.
> One thing about Mike Anderson’s clubs, they are built for the long haul ... Over his tenure “Coach A’s” teams have averaged 26.9 points per game off the bench... That’s over 122 career games.
> It’s nothing new to have the reserves outscore the starters either ... Including five games this season, the reserves have dropped in more tallies than the “initial five” 17 times (in 122 games) in Anderson’s tenure ... It just goes to show you, when the man says he has eight or nine starters, it means he has eight or nine starters!
> To help illustrate that point even further, Missouri has had eight different starting lineups this year.
> Missouri has typically played some tough schedules over the years and that trend will continue in 2009-10 ... Mizzou has 15 games against teams that have been ranked / receiving votes in the Top 25 this season ... Included in that list are some impressive non-conference games against, Illinois, Old Dominion, Vanderbilt, Oregon, Georgia and Richmond.
Tiger Tidbits
J.T. Tiller, 6-4, 200 Pounds
> J.T. Tiller (aka the Tasmanian Devil) has earned mention on virtually every preseason All-Defensive Team in 2009-10 … Tiller is of course the reigning Co-Defensive Player of the Year in the Big 12 Conference and was named to All-Defensive Teams by Sports Illustrated and ESPN prior to the start of his senior season.
> Tiller was hobbled early by a bone bruise in his left foot, but has still reached double figures in 8-of-19 games played.
> Tiller has notched seven assists in a game three times this year, including seven dimes at Vanderbilt, seven in a win against Old Dominion and seven in a home win against Georgia.
> The Marietta, Ga., native has 287 career assists and needs 43 more dimes to move into the career Top 10.
> He also owns 143 career steals and eight more thefts would push him into the Top 10 in that category as well, surpassing former teammate Jason Horton (2004-08), who had 150 … In fact his career steals per game average of 1.2 already ranks in Mizzou’s career Top 10.
Zaire Taylor, 6-4, 189 Pounds
> Zaire Taylor has been one of America’s top defensive players so far in 2009-10 and is #2 in the Big 12 and ranked among the Top 100 nationally with 1.8 steals per game this season.
> Not only is Taylor excellent at swiping the basketball, he is one of the country’s best at protecting the rock as well ... Last year he ranked among the Top 5 nationally with a 3-to-1 assist/turnover ratio ... This season he is #56 nationally with a 2.3-to-1 ratio.
> Taylor has wasted little time picking up his assist totals this year and has dished 63 dimes while committing just 24 turnovers in his last 21 games, including a career-best eight assists and zero turnovers at Oklahoma.
> Of course its hard to talk about Taylor and not mention his “Big Shot” moniker ... Taylor hit game-winners last year vs. #16 Kansas and at #16 Texas and then broke a 66-66 tie vs. #10 K-State on Jan. 9 with a deep triple with just 33 seconds remaining ... All three of those game-winners were vs. ranked teams.
> Taylor has done an excellent job supplementing his scoring at the foul line in Big 12 play and has made 30-of-33 charity shots in league action (.909).
> Thanks to the free throw production Taylor has reached double figures in five of his last seven games and is averaging 10.6 points during that stretch.
> Not only do Taylor and Tiller form one of America’s best backcourts, but the pair is incredibly visible in the community and volunteered with the Children’s Miracle Network Radiothon, which supports the University of Missouri Children’s Hospital ... The duo answered phones on the phonebank and made special visits to patients.
Laurence Bowers, 6-8, 205 Pounds
> Laurence Bowers is one of Missouri’s most efficient players this season and is second on the team in scoring (10.9), tops in rebounding (5.9) and tops in blocked shots (1.6) in just 20.6 minutes a game.
> Bowers scored a career high 23 points in the Jan. 2 win against Georgia, hitting 11-of-14 FGs for his first career 20-point night and has now reached double figures in five of his last eight games, including 13 points and eight boards vs. K-State and 16 points and three steals vs. Oklahoma State.
> Over his last 10 games Bowers is a combined 44-of-73 from the floor (.603) and is averaging 12.3 points a night, including double-doubles vs. Oklahoma and Texas A&M.
> Don’t be surprised by Bowers’ efficiency ... That’s part of his game ... The Memphis native maximizes his minutes played ... Last season as a freshman he was the team’s most efficient rebounder and shot-blocker in just 6.9 minutes a game.
> The Memphis native has blocked at least one shot in 18-of-22 games this season, including a career high four swats in the wins against Austin Peay and Tech.
Kim English, 6-6, 200 Pounds
> Kim English was named one of the nation’s Top 5 Most Improved Players by Dick Vitale in USA Today.
> English leads Missouri with 15 double figure scoring games this season, including eight 20-point efforts.
> English has scored 20+ in five of his last 14 games, including 20 against Oklahoma State.
> English grabbed a career high 10 boards for his first double-double at Texas Tech.
> He also grabbed a six rebounds and ripped two steals vs. the Fighting Illini ... English has at least one steal in 20-of-22 games this season, including 23 steals in his last 12 contests.
> English was named the Big 12’s Player of the Week on Dec. 28 after leading the team to wins against Illinois (24 points) and Austin Peay (23 points).
Marcus Denmon, 6-3, 185 Pounds
> Marcus Denmon is nearly full strength after off-season knee surgery and has reached double figures 12 times this year.
> Denmon has been one of Mizzou’s most consistent scorers with those 12 double-figure efforts and poured in a career high 20 points in the win at Texas Tech.
> In fact Denmon has reached double figures in seven of his last 11 games and is averaging 11.6 ppg during that run.
> The team-leader in three-point field goals, Denmon is shooting 47 percent from three over his last 15 games, hitting 37-of-79 triples, including 12-of-15 games with multiple three-point makes.
> Denmon has been very good late in games recently ... The Kansas City native is coming off a 14-point effort against #10 Kansas State where he scored eight of his team-high tying 14 points in span of 3:43 late in the second half to hand the Tigers their 30th consecutive home court victory ... The Tigers were down 55-49 at the 5:37 mark when Denmon nailed back-to-back treys and then hit a baseline runner off glass that had “Old Skool Basketballers” reminiscing.
> During the win at Texas Tech Denmon scored five points in overtime, including the first bucket of the extra frame and a 24-foot trey to break an 85-85 tie.
> Denmon currently ranks among the Big 12 leaders in three-point field goals per game (2.3) and three-point percentage (.442).
Justin Safford, 6-7, 230 Pounds
> Justin Safford grabbed a career high 11 boards in the win against Nebraska and narrowly missed a double-double with nine points.
> The Bloomington, Ill., native then scored a career high 19 points at Kansas thanks to 8-of-10 foul shooting ... Over his last eight games Safford is averaging 10.8 tallies per game, with four double-figure scoring contests.
> Safford has been excellent at the line over his last four games, hitting 17-of-21 charity shots (.810).
Miguel Paul, 6-1, 172 Pounds
> Miguel Paul scored a career high 15 points to lead Mizzou in the win against Nebraska ... Paul hit two treys and 5-of-6 total field goals in 16 minutes.
> Paul owns an excellent assist/turnover ratio this season with 40 dimes and just 20 turnovers (2.0-to-1).
Steve Moore, 6-9, 264 Pounds
> Fans will notice a slimmed down version of Steve Moore this year … Since his arrival Moore had dropped 40 pounds and has now began to regain the weight in the form of muscle … Moore credits Associate Director of Strength and Conditioning David Deets with adjusting his eating habits, allowing the “Extreme Makeover”.
> Moore turned that weight loss into production, as he has recorded career highs in virtually every statistical category this season.
Michael Dixon, 6-1, 175 Pounds
> Michael Dixon has been one of the Big 12’s top freshmen this season and is averaging 8.1 points on 46 percent shooting this year.
> Dixon has reached double figures in nine of his last 17 games and was excellent in “high major” non-conference games, averaging 11.2 in contests against Illinois, Oregon, Georgia and Vanderbilt.
> The rookie showed his moxie in Missouri’s road win at Texas Tech, hitting four free throws in the final :17 seconds of OT for the triumph.
> The Kansas City native leads Mizzou in FT percentage at 83.3 percent.
> He recently hit a career high 4-of-4 treys against Oklahoma State, while adding two assists, two steals and zero turnovers.
> Dixon was named the Big 12’s Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 28, the first league honor of his young career.
About The Colorado Buffaloes
Colorado (11-11, 2-6 Big 12) is one of the Big 12’s most-improved teams this season and is coming off a 72-66 overtime loss to #1 Kansas at home on Wednesday ... The Buffaloes have one of the leagues youngest clubs and is led by Cory Higgins and Kansas City-area product Alec Burks ... Higgins is scoring 18.1 points per game this year, while Burks is one of the nation’s leading scoring freshmen at 16.3 tallies ... Burks did not play vs. the Jayhawks due to a knee injury but is expected to see action against Missouri on Saturday ... Colorado has a pair of Big 12 home wins against the nationally-ranked Baylor Bears and the Nebraska Cornhuskers ... CU’s only two home losses have been by single digits to Top 10 teams Kansas State (87-81) and the #1 Jayhawks in overtime.
The Series With Colorado
Missouri leads the all-time series with Colorado 96-52 and the Tigers have won six consecutive meetings dating back to Mike Anderson’s first season in Columbia ... Missouri has won three straight in Boulder, including a 66-53 decision last season ... Colorado owns a 33-29 series advantage in Boulder, but Mizzou has won six of the last 10 games at the Coors Event Center.
Tigers Turning Up the Defensive Heat
Missouri has been excellent at turning opponents over this year, forcing a nation-leading 21.2 miscues a game ... Missouri’s pressure has forced 17-of-22 teams into 20+ turnovers this season, including five of seven Big 12 foes ... Each of the Tigers’ last three opponents: Kansas, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M averaged less than 12.5 turnovers a game, but each nearly doubled their season average when facing the Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball.
Season Previous
Opponent Avg. vs. Mizzou Season High
Kansas 12.5 23 21 vs. Memphis
Oklahoma St. 11.8 24 20 at K-State
Texas A&M 11.8 21 19 vs. Clemson
Mizzou In A Special Two-Year Stretch
Missouri has played a special stretch of basketball over the last two seasons, going 47-13 during that time ... The 47 wins over two seasons is the fifth most in school history and the school record is 54 wins over two seasons set by the 1988-89 team (29 wins) and the 1989-90 club (26 wins).
Top Two-Year Stretches at Mizzou
Years Win Totals
1988-90 54 Wins
1981-83 53 Wins
1980-82 49 Wins
1993-95 48 Wins
2008-10 47 Wins
2007-09 47 Wins
1992-94 47 Wins
1979-80 47 Wins
1975-77 47 Wins
2001-03 46 Wins
1989-91 46 Wins
Dixon One Of Mizzou’s Best Frosh Point Guards
Michael Dixon has made a huge splash for Mizzou early in his Tiger career and below is a quick look at how the Lee’s Summit freshman compares to some other Tiger point guards during their freshman campaigns.
Tiger Year PPG APG TPG A/T Ratio
**Michael Dixon 2009-10 8.1 2.1 0.9 2.2
Keyon Dooling 1998-99 8.7 3.0 2.0 1.5
Melvin Booker 1990-91 8.3 3.5 2.7 1.3
Travis Ford 1989-90 6.4 3.5 1.8 1.9
Lee Coward 1986-87 6.5 1.7 1.4 1.3
Prince Bridges 1981-82 6.8 3.3 2.2 1.5
**Jon Sundvold 1979-80 6.3 2.1 1.9 1.1
**Larry Drew 1976-77 6.9 2.8 N/A N/A
** Kansas City natives
Bench Making The Difference
Missouri is known for using its deep, effective bench to help fuel the Fastest 40 Minutes in Basketball and the Tiger reserves have outscored their opposition’s bench in 21-of-22 games this season ... In fact, Missouri’s second wave has outscored its starters five times this season, including games against UMKC and Georgia.
> Eight times this season the Tiger bench has scored 40+ points in a game and owns a 35.7-to-18.0 scoring margin against its opponents in 2009-10.
> Missouri has had six different Tigers come off the bench to score in double figures this season: Kim English, Laurence Bowers, Marcus Denmon, Michael Dixon, Zaire Taylor and Miguel Paul.
Top Bench Scoring Totals of 2009-10
Opponent Bench Scoring
vs. Texas-Pan American 57
vs. UMKC 57
vs. Georgia 54
vs. Oregon 50
vs. Chattanooga 49
vs. Tennessee-Martin 45
vs. Oklahoma State 42
at Texas Tech 41
English, Dixon Sweep Big 12 Honors
A pair of Missouri Tigers earned recognition from the Big 12 Conference last week, as sophomore guard Kim English and freshman point guard Michael Dixon were named the league’s Player and Newcomer of the Week (respectively) on Dec. 28.
> English led Missouri to two victories over Illinois and Austin Peay, averaging 23.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game ... The 6-foot-6 guard shot 50 percent (8-of-16) from three-point distance and 55.2 percent (16-of-29) from the floor.
> Dixon averaged 14.0 points, 4.5 assists, 3.5 steals and just 0.5 turnovers in two starts ... The Kansas City native was magnificent in Missouri’s win against Illinois, scoring a career high 16 points on 6-of-13 shooting ... He later dropped in 12 points and ripped a career high four steals vs. Austin Peay.
The Future Is Bright For Mizzou
Missouri’s freshmen and sophomores are scoring 54.0 points per game for the Tigers this season, which accounts for 67 percent of the team’s 81.1 total points per outing and is the #1 underclassmen scoring total in the Big 12.
> Those 54.0 points become incredibly promising since MU is welcoming the nation’s #7 overall recruiting class in 2010-11.
> Missouri leads the Big 12 in underclassmen scoring, with Oklahoma ranking second (53.6) and Kansas third at 52.7 points a night.
With A Tiger Win ...
> Missouri would improve to 17-6 on the season and move to 82-41 all-time under Mike Anderson.
> Overall, Anderson would improve to 171-82 in his eight seasons as a head coach.
> The Tigers would earn their second road win of the Big 12 season and improve to 5-3 in league play.
> Missouri would have its 11th win in 14 games dating back to early December.
> The Tigers would claim their fourth consecutive win in Boulder for the first time since 1983, a streak in which Saturday’s analyst, Jon Sundvold was a part of.
Congrats To Mizzou’s Graduate, Zaire Taylor
Congratulations are in order for senior guard Zaire Taylor … The Staten Island, N.Y., native graduated Dec. 19 the same day the Tigers took on Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Mizzou Arena … In fact Missouri Basketball pushed up its normal shoot-around time allowing Taylor to walk across the stage to receive his diploma in Sociology.
Sweet English
Kimmie English has been much more than a scorer for Missouri over the last 14 games ... While he is averaging a team-best 14.5 ppg during the run, he has also provided improved rebounding and defense.
> Defensively, English has multiple steals in eight of the last 14 games, including a career high four rips in the win against Fairleigh Dickinson.
> He has also been an improved rebounder, highlighted by his first career double-double vs. Texas Tech, with 20 points and 10 boards.
> During his offensive surge English has enjoyed five 20-point efforts and narrowly missed a sixth with 18 points in 25 minutes in the win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff ... Two of those 20-point nights (24 vs. Illinois and 23 vs. Austin Peay) helped English earn Big 12 Player of the Week honors on Dec. 28 and he recorded his first 20-point game in league action in the Jan. 13 win at Texas Tech before following it up with 20 tallies against Oklahoma State.
Old Skool, New School
Michael Dixon brings an old skool flair to his new school of Mizzou, as the freshman is averaging consistent numbers of 8.1 points, 2.1 assists and 1.2 steals this season for the Tigers ... While the rookie thrives in the open floor, the “throwback” guard is most comfortable unleashing his array of floaters and mid-range jumpers on opponents.
> Dixon has stepped his play up to another level over the last 17 games (nine double-figure scoring games), as the Kansas City native is averaging 8.7 points, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals for the Tigers ... The 6-foot-1 guard has also turned the ball over just 14 times in those 17 games and has a 2.4-to-1 assist/turnover ratio during that span.
> Dixon was recently named the Big 12’s Newcomer of the Week on Dec. 28 after leading the Tigers to wins against Illinois and Austin Peay.
Rip City
Mike Anderson has his youngest team as a head coach with 11-of-13 players in just their first or second year of competition in the program, but he also may have his fastest club at Mizzou yet to date … The Tigers are averaging an outstanding 12.0 steals per game this season, which ranks #1 nationally … Those 12.0 “Rips” per game are the most ever at MU through 21 contests.
Year Steals SPG
2006-07 248 11.3
2007-08 190 8.6
2008-09 234 10.6
2009-10 265 12.0
Trey-Mendous Shooting
With an array of improving young guards Missouri has one of its best perimeter shooting teams in school history (with all due respect to the teams playing before the implementation of the three-point line) … The Tigers are shooting 39 percent from three-point land this year (#23 nationally), including a very good 41 percent as a team within the friendly confines of Mizzou Arena.
> Mizzou has made double-figure treys in eight games this year, with a season high of 18 coming in the 99-56 win against Chattanooga … The 18 treys were a Mizzou Arena record and the second most in school history, just behind the 20 three-pointers Mizzou hit at Colorado on Feb. 23, 2002.
> Mizzou recently connected on 17 treys against Oklahoma State during a 95-80 win against the Cowboys.
Denmon Delivering
Marcus Denmon has continued to be one of the club’s most improved players and is one of the Big 12’s hottest shooters hitting 37-of-79 treys over his last 15 contests, 47 percent.
> Denmon poured in a career high 20 points in the win against Texas Tech and has now reached double figures in six of his last 10 games.
> Denmon is now third on the team in scoring at 10.8 points per game and ranks third in the Big 12 in three-point field goal percentage (.442) and fifth in three-point makes per game (2.3).
> He has also shown a flair for the dramatic, scoring five-overtime points vs. Texas Tech and eight points in a span of 3:43 vs. K-State late in the second half.
Balancing Act
Mike Anderson calls Missouri the “Ultimate Team” and MU’s incredible balance perfectly illustrates his point.
> The Tigers have had nine different players tie or share for the team lead in assists this season.
> MU has had seven different players tie or share the team lead in steals.
> Six different players have led the club in rebounding and six different players have led the club in scoring.
> And last but not least the Tigers have enjoyed incredible balance in playing time, which will pay huge dividends with experience down the road, as nine different players average at least 13.0 minutes per game.
Here Come The Men In Block
Missouri’s front line of Keith Ramsey, Justin Safford, Laurence Bowers and Steve Moore are blocking shots and a pretty high rate ... MU already boasts 103 blocked shots through 22 games and can begin looking towards the school record books for most blocks in a single season ... Since Mike Anderson’s arrival at MU the high for swats in a year is 140, set in 2008-09 ... The school record is 154 set during the 2001-02 campaign.
> Missouri is currently blocking 4.7 shots a night (sixth in the Big 12) and Bowers’ 1.6 swats per game is sixth in the league ... Ramsey (1.1) ranks 13th overall, while Steve Moore is just outside the Top 15.
> Missouri had 86 blocked shots last season through 22 games, so the 103 swats is well above that pace from last season.
