Mizzou 2010 Hoops

[albertmvpujols]

This Mizzou/aTm game has been crazy. The first half was full of runs and the second half both teams are shooting lights out. Ratliffe has been absolutely incredible. Mizzou is up by one with six and change left.

[albertmvpujols]

I love when the much closer official gets overruled by a guy about 30 feet away from the play...

[albertmvpujols]

Certainly looked like Pressey got fouled near the end of OT there. Regardless, that was a great game. Mizzou HAS to shoot better from the free throw line and even with that if it weren't for a really poor decision late in OT by Denmon, Mizzou probably wins that game.

[cardsfansince82]

It was certainly an intense, tournament type game. It's annoying that Mizzou is seemingly clueless on how to finish games. Free throws and poor game/clock situation IQ has been a problem preventing this team from achieving a lot more the last few years.

[cardsfansince82]

Flip Pressey is incredibly good. He's clearly supplanted Dixon as far as I'm concerned. Looked like Mizzou was going to blow a big lead against K-State, but they are back in control. Please finish well for a change.

[JL21]

Are they really that bad at finishing games, or is that a misconception created by a few missed free throws vs. aTm and Georgetown? They sure looked great down the stretch against Illinois. They stepped on the gas big-time here at the end of the KSU game. Old Dominion was on the ropes when Mizzou delivered a stunning knockout blow with 3 minutes left in that game. Don't get me wrong... I'm not doubting what you're saying. I'm just not sure if there's a trend beyond those two games.

Now they're 16-3, and they're a few missed free throws away from being 18-1 and a top 5 team. Two of their three losses came to #23 Georgetown and #10 aTm. When they look good, they look incredible. You've gotta love how the season's going so far.

[albertmvpujols]

Are they really that bad at finishing games, or is that a misconception created by a few missed free throws vs. aTm and Georgetown? They sure looked great down the stretch against Illinois. They stepped on the gas big-time here at the end of the KSU game. Old Dominion was on the ropes when Mizzou delivered a stunning knockout blow with 3 minutes left in that game. Don't get me wrong... I'm not doubting what you're saying. I'm just not sure if there's a trend beyond those two games.

Now they're 16-3, and they're a few missed free throws away from being 18-1 and a top 5 team. Two of their three losses came to #23 Georgetown and #10 aTm. When they look good, they look incredible. You've gotta love how the season's going so far.

The Oregon game was another they didn't close out well. They won the game, but only by 3 after leading by 19 at half.

I missed the game tonight, but it's good to see that they put up a double digit victory against a solid KState team.

[JL21]

Oregon is a tough one to gauge. They played max effort against Georgetown, one of the best teams in the country. Then some 48 hours later, they were flying all the way across the country to take on Oregon. It would've been more shocking if they HADN'T struggled late in that game.

[cardsfansince82]

Are they really that bad at finishing games, or is that a misconception created by a few missed free throws vs. aTm and Georgetown? They sure looked great down the stretch against Illinois. They stepped on the gas big-time here at the end of the KSU game. Old Dominion was on the ropes when Mizzou delivered a stunning knockout blow with 3 minutes left in that game. Don't get me wrong... I'm not doubting what you're saying. I'm just not sure if there's a trend beyond those two games.

Now they're 16-3, and they're a few missed free throws away from being 18-1 and a top 5 team. Two of their three losses came to #23 Georgetown and #10 aTm. When they look good, they look incredible. You've gotta love how the season's going so far.

It's been kind of a weird year so far in college basketball. There's a lot of teams with good records that could be described as "not as good as their record suggests". Even Kansas has looked pretty shaky at times. I think it's because so many teams are relying heavily on young players. There's a long way to go and this will all get sorted out, but I'm perfectly happy with where Mizzou is at right now. My skeptical side says they aren't quite a top 10 team, but they can play with anybody on a given night.

As far as finishing games, I'm not really talking about free throws. We have a lot of athletic players that produce well within the system, but aren't pure shooters. I'm sure they practice them plenty. That's something I've come to accept as a fan of the 40 minutes of hell. My only beef with CMA is that he coaches 40 minutes of hell when I would prefer 37 minutes of hell. A lot of times they'll be clinging to a slim lead with a couple minutes left and still be playing fast. If it's working they win the game running away, but a lot of times they let teams back in games and either lose or make it closer than it needs to be. They're still taking the first available good shot/drive to the basket early in the shot clock, when working the clock and shortening the game is the correct play IMO (particularly when you aren't a good FT shooting team). Sometimes they'll be pressing when backing off and playing good half court D would be my preference. You keep the clock moving, lessen the chance of a foul, and lessen the chance of surrendering an easy bucket. I feel like teams get too many extra possessions at the end against us. Anderson has mentioned wanting to get better at this, and they did a good job today of finishing off K-State. Just being smart and playing the percentages at the end could be the difference in a tournament game. This team is still susceptible to strong front court players, good FT shooting teams because of all the fouls we commit, or someone simply having a hot shooting day when the pressure isn't working. But we're going to win a lot of games and the future is bright. Pressey and Ratliffe are a glimpse at what we could be in the future if we continue to add a higher caliber of recruit that fits the system well.

It's a fun time to be a Mizzou fan. Between football and basketball combined we have achieved as much success as just about anybody. Certainly more than a lot of other schools we're supposed to be at a disadvantage to for whatever reason. Both teams rely on unorthodox styles of play, but the results are pretty incredible. I have my minor annoyances with both styles that are well documented, mostly because I overthink sports. But overall I couldn't be happier. I get to see a lot of wins and as a fan that's all you can ask for.

[cardsfansince82]

Mizzou is on fire tonight against Iowa State. Everything is working. Game is on ESPNU.