No. 15 Mizzou looks for a season-sweep against Arkansas on Saturday
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The national spotlight is shining bright on No. 15 Mizzou hoops, following a statement win over No. 4 Alabama, on Wednesday night. However, the light isn't blinding this Tiger team. In fact, head coach Dennis Gates said his group remains more focused than ever.
The victory versus the Crimson Tide was not labeled an upset in his locker room. Gates said although it may have been a surprise to outsiders, his staff and players never wavered, as they knew they could achieve these types of wins during summer workouts.
"Others on the outside are starting to recognize, as they compare us to the others that they spent a lot of time watching. So, now you're watching Missouri and, you know, I guess everyone likes what they see, but it's not gonna change anything that we haven't seen internally. We know our potential. You guys laugh at me when I say we have not played up to that potential yet, but I truly believe we haven't even touched it," Gates said during Friday's media availability.
You can watch the full press conference with Gates in the video player below.
However, Coach Gates emphasized that the win against Alabama is now in the rearview mirror. Next up on the SEC slate is a rematch with the Arkansas Razorbacks, a team which Mizzou blew out, 83-65, back in January.
It's clear that this Mizzou team is not looking past an unranked matchup at Bud Walton Arena, though. Gates said, in his eyes, head coach John Calipari's team is a Top-25 that's only improved since they last met them at Mizzou Arena.
"They've gotten better at roles, settling into it. You know, when it comes down to execution, they're executing at a better rate. Guys are stepping up, they have balance, they're getting to the foul line and they're doing things that I truly believe they were doing, but they're doing it at a different pace, a different rate," Gates said. "They have great size and great athleticism...You look at their depth and it is what it is, but they have those guys prepared to play."
The Razorbacks will come into Saturday's night showdown on a two-game losing streak in conference action. However, it's important to look at the quality of those losses, too. Calipari and company fell to No. 1 Auburn by just seven points on Wednesday night, while staying within eight points of No. 8 Texas A&M over the weekend.
Although nationally Arkansas has been labeled as a bubble team in the NCAA Tournament, Coach Gates detested that label on Friday.
"They're not on the bubble. They're an NCAA Tournament team. They are Top-25 in my eyes and in our team's eyes," he said. "We don't go bubble and off the bubble. In every preseason publication [Arkansas] was ranked, what Top-10? They have not changed. Calipari has not changed his coaching style. He's the same coach that everybody said was a Top-25 team, Top-10 in the country. That's what we go off of. We don't go with the ebb and flows of what opinions are from AP and what they think, unless everybody watches every game, which I am shocked if every voter watches everybody's game in the Top-25 to compare and put their votes in."
It's no surprise that Coach Gates isn't taking the matchup with the Razorbacks lightly, as he's been crystal clear all season that he believes every game in the Southeastern Conference is a Top-25 showdown. On Friday, he said the success of this league is something that's never been seen before in college basketball. He added it all comes down to the right coaches and the right players, with the right style of play, all coming together at the same time.
"The level of transfer portal, the level of high school recruiting class members and the retention and it's just talented," Gates said. "Teams just create in-game situations that can allow them to win. When you have the versatility of coaching, execution, athleticism and shooting all in one place, it's gonna be a first-round NCAA Tournament game every single time we cross the court. That's what it feels like."
The meeting with Arkansas is one of just five games remaining on Mizzou's regular-season slate, ahead of the start of the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. on March 12.
The Tigers and the Razorbacks will tip off at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 22 at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville.
