Missouri basketball yields few guarantees. Their offense is a jumbled mess of guess-and-check. Their tenacious press can either work to perfection or can be ripped apart like cheap wrapping paper. And, for example, Zaire Taylor can go 0-7 before knocking down three straight clutch shots to sun Iowa State. Any of these Tigers can have a breakout game. Similarly, any of them can stick a fat goose egg in the scoring column.
Thanks To Anderson, Mizzou Remains Relevant, Dangerous
↵But Mizzou does pose a single threat to an opponent whenever they take the floor, and it’s not on the court, but rather on the bench. Mike Anderson, the mind behind the “The Fastest 40 Minutes In Basketball” and perhaps the most underrated coach in the country, can pull off anything. He’s proved me wrong too many times to think otherwise. The Kansas upset last March. The 22-10 record despite losing his three leading scorers from the previous year. And now looms West Virginia, who has yet to pull away from the pesky Tigers as the game enters its latter stages. If anyone can put together something out of nothing, it’s Mike Anderson.
↵Then again, despite what many could assume, this Mizzou team is much more than meets the eye. Their bigs, such as Laurence Bowers and Keith Ramsey, can defend point guards. Their guards, JT Tiller, Kim English, and Taylor, can rebound and get into the paint with ease. It always comes down to the decisive end of a play, the jump shot or the defensive stop, but these guys will always put themselves into position to be successful. It’s the kind of team that thrives in tournament play. Unpredictable, unafraid, and unnder-appreciated.
↵Anderson might not conjure another miracle today - West Virginia is quite a burly giant to knock down - but don’t count the Tigers out until the final horn.
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