Mizzou hoops set to host No. 21 Georgia, looking to remain unbeaten at home
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
After a disappointing road trip to Baton Rouge, the Mizzou men's basketball team is returning to the comforts of home, where the team is unbeaten this season.
On Tuesday night, head coach Dennis Gates and his team will host the No. 21 Georgia Bulldogs in an effort to bounce back from Saturday's eight-point loss at the hands of LSU. That defeat came as a result of a sluggish start for Coach Gates' crew, offensively.
Mizzou found itself in a 10-0 hole out of the gates, as the bayou Tigers capitalized on second chance buckets and a costly foul from senior Mark Mitchell in the opening minutes. That double-digit deficit was one that MU could never quite overcome, trailing the entire game.
"You can't expect the whistle to save you, whether the calls are right or wrong. You're on the road, you got to be able to fight through the whistle," Gates said, when asked about that slow start. "I think our guys are doing a good job being able to manage the minutes, but you can't you can't go down 0-10 at the beginning of any game. However, if you look at the shot profile and you look at certain things in that, we helped the defense in certain parts by our execution. [Execution] has to get a little bit tighter, especially on the road, in addition to being able to stop their ball from going in. They made shots and we didn't. They got to the free throw line, we didn't. So, it's not the first time, but our guys did adjust. I do think that the beginning of the game set us back, but more importantly it set us back because of the Mark Mitchell foul. That was the part that dictated, I think, a lot of that first half and less of the second half and we got to do a better job in that from an aggressive standpoint."
You can watch the full press conference with Coach Gates in the video player below.
Luckily for the Tigers, returning to the comforts of Mizzou Arena, may be just what the doctor ordered. Coach Gates' team is undefeated on its home court, this season, boasting an 11-0 record.
There seems to be a different kind of life to the Tigers when they take Norm Stewart Court for action. But, playing well at home is a trend that Gates has noticed up and down their league.
"The environments in our conference str great...The smallest thing can ignite a run and ignite a crowd that may have been a little bit less louder than before," the leader of the Tiger said. "So, you see that spark and our crowd takes the spark. So, for us, it's just the comfort of being at home. You think about what is taking place over a two-year span here at home. You look at, also, whether it's us taking care of the basketball or the routine of our day, those things add up. But, I think our fans, when they show up, they give us an outstanding environment here at Mizzou Arena."
Looking ahead, Mizzou will have its hands full with a talented Bulldog team rolling into Columbia.
Head coach Mike White and his guys come to Mizzou Arena on a 3-2 start to Southeastern Conference action, featuring a high-scoring win over Auburn, a tight victory over South Carolina and a statement win over No. 20 Arkansas, on Saturday.
Junior forward Trent Pierce broke down some of the keys to success in Tuesday night's game for local media members, on Monday.
"They are high scoring team. They average 96 points, so slowing down slowing their pace will be key for us," he said. "Like I said, they're really good team offensively, so just getting the stops that we need...Slowing them down wil really help and I feel like lessening the possessions is another thing that we need."
You can watch the full press conference with Pierce in the video player below.
Pierce and guard Jayden Stone have been some of the biggest keys to the success MU has found in its 3-2 start to conference action. Since each of them returned from injury against Florida on Jan. 3, the pair is averaging a combined 25.8 points per game, as each have shown up in some of the biggest of moments for Coach Gates.
After returning from his injury, Pierce isn't just finding success on the court, but with his teammates, as well. During Monday's press conference, Coach Gates announced that Pierce has been named a team captain. It's an honor that they knew he would get this year, regardless, but they held off in order to allow him time to focus on recover from his injury.
"[Trent Pierce] naturally still led, even without the title. I didn't have to say 'you're captain' for him to initiate team-building opportunities, for him to invite guys to his apartment, dinner, meals, whatever it is together. I didn't have to have tell him him initiate something here at Mizzou Arena with his teammates. I didn't have to do certain things, so you saw the behavior patterns take place and it was already what I was thinking. In addition to that, that was one of his goals coming into after his sophomore year, coming into his third. Now, I delayed to Tamar Bates' announcement [last year]. He was the last one named captain last season and I just delayed it this year to allow him to focus on himself and it paid dividends and allowed him to have the impact that he's having," Gates said.
Gates will undoubtedly lean on guys like Pierce and Stone to get to where they want to be in the SEC: in the upper echelon of the conference.
Even though the Tigers have faced some ups and downs, there's still plenty of opportunity in a conference that hasn't seen one team jump out far in front of the rest of the pack. The Florida Gators lead with the way, holding first place all on its own at 4-1 in league action. But, after that Mizzou is in a seven-way tie for second place in the conference with a 3-2 mark alongside Vanderbilt, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky and Ole Miss.
"Everyone thought at some point, when you look at the rankings, that there would be a top heavy team. This banner can go to anybody. It really can....as long as your team stays healthy. That's the most important part," Gates said.
Up next - the Tigers will tip off against No. 21 Georgia at 8 p.m. on Tuesday at Mizzou Arena.
