Saturday was Missouri men’s basketball’s final dress rehearsal. And Missouri coach Kim Anderson wants everything perfect for the big show.
“The great thing about exhibition games is that they give you a chance to prepare your team,” Anderson said. “We worked last week on our pregame warmup, and then we worked on (timeout procedures). ‘Who’s bringing the chairs out? Where’s the coach going to sit? Where’s the team going to be? Where are the assistant coaches going to be?’ It’s about working out the kinks beforehand.”
Mission accomplished. Mizzou beat University of Missouri-St. Louis 77-54 at Mizzou Arena.
The Tigers seemed to be caught off guard early, as UMSL came out and knocked down four straight three-pointers quickly. The two teams went into the half with Missouri leading just 39-34, a much closer margin than most would’ve anticipated.
“I thought it was great because we got behind,” Anderson said. “It’s not great to get behind, but it was great because we had to play from behind. I thought it showed our guys they need to be a little more serious about things.”
But though Anderson wasn’t necessarily pleased with his team’s slow start, he did enjoy watching his players’ resiliency after they started trailing.
More consistent shooting, better ball movement and lock-down perimeter defense sparked a much more dominant half for the Tigers after halftime.
“We knew we needed to step up in the second half,” senior guard Keith Shamburger said. “We knew we weren’t playing well. We didn’t want to face the consequences at practice if we lost.”
Sophomore forward Johnathan Williams III returned from a meniscus injury to play his first minutes since March, posting a double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Although he was just 2-for-10 from the field, Williams was 8-for-10 from the free throw line and also hit a three-pointer from the top of the key at the end of the first half.
“It was good to get back out there,” Williams said. “It definitely helps your confidence.”
Williams said that his knee did tighten up some after the first half, but he ultimately felt fine after the game.
The Tigers outscored the Tritons 38-20 in the second half — large in part to UMSL’s 18.2 percent three-point shooting after the break — going on to win the game 77-54. Missouri will kick off its regular season next Friday when they play host to University of Missouri-Kansas City at Mizzou Arena.
