We can draw three conclusions from Mizzou’s home defeat to the Bulldogs, which ended in a 75-68 loss.
On Saturday, Missouri basketball took on the Georgia Bulldogs at Hearnes Center. In a closely contested game that featured numerous big runs from both teams, the Tigers would lose. The Tigers’ recent three-game losing streak is proof positive that not all losses are made equal. What, then, can we learn from the Tigers’ defeat to begin SEC play?
Last year, Missouri achieved remarkable success by developing a distinctive 3-point shooting style. With the help of role players who could make big shots when needed, star players took charge and made plays when called upon. This year, the team has been lacking all of that.
The inability of the Tigers’ players to identify and accept their roles is the root of the team’s lack of identity. This game made the issues as evident as they have ever been. It is not possible that the team and players from the previous season would have traded in contested layups for a lack of three-point shooting in the game’s closing minutes. This team is undoubtedly very talented, but their all-out pursuit of the game-winning shot makes for poor clutch play. This was a glaring example of how the team still needs to establish a go-to player they can rely on to win the game in the closing seconds.
We can draw three conclusions from Mizzou’s home defeat to the Bulldogs, which ended in a 75-68 loss.
Even at the start of conference play, the formations don’t appear to be settled, which hurts the Tigers’ offensive identity. There hasn’t
been much consistency with player minutes during Mizzou’s recent cold streak. Aidan Shaw is a prime example of this, as he played for a significantly longer amount of time on the court today than he did in any of his previous three games. Gates may just be riding his luck, but even so, the disparity is significant and unsettling for a team that struggles to find its identity in the first place.
