Mizzou Travels to South Carolina Seeking Second Straight Win

Saturday, February 1

Columbia, S.C.

2:30 PM

University of Missouri

South Carolina

Mizzou guard Javon Pickett (4), Mizzou guard Xavier Pinson (1), Mizzou guard Dru Smith (12), Mizzou forward Reed Nikko (14). Mizzou Tigers vs. Georgia Bulldogs at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo. on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2020. Zach Bland/Mizzou Athletics

Mizzou Travels to South Carolina Seeking Second Straight Win

1/31/2020 9:26:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Tip off is set for 2:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network

Mizzou Hoops Travels to South Carolina Seeking Second Straight Win
OPPONENT	LOCATION	DAY	TIME (CT)	WATCH	STATS
South Carolina	Columbia, S.C.	Saturday, Feb. 1	2:30 PM	ESPN	Stats

Mizzou Basketball Game Notes

Game Notes

STORYLINES

Mizzou is coming off an epic comeback win over Georgia, in which the Tigers erased a 20-point second half deficit to down the Bulldogs, 72-69. It marked Mizzou's largest comeback since the mid-1990s.
Five Tigers reached double figures vs. Georgia, the first time a Mizzou team had five players do so since Feb. 10, 2018, vs. Mississippi State.
Mizzou is looking for its third win in the last matchups with South Carolina. The all-time series is deadlocked at 5-5, and head coach Cuonzo Martin is 7-1 all-time against the Gamecocks in his coaching career. The Tigers downed South Carolina, 78-63, in the lone meeting between the two programs last season, with current sophomore Torrence Watson pouring in 20 points to key the victory.
Mizzou's stingy defense has ratcheted up lately. Georgia committed 17 turnovers on Tuesday, its most so far in SEC play. Mizzou has forced 10+ turnovers in 19 of 20 games this season, including all league games. The Tigers lead the SEC in league play in both steals per game (7.4) and turnovers forced per game (15.1). Mizzou's opponents are coughing it up 16.9 times per game since Dec. 7.
Mizzou is shooting 77.3 percent from the free throw line, which is on pace to break the single-season team record of 76.6 percent set in 2011-12. The 77.3 percent clip ranks 15th nationally. Mizzou is shooting an SEC-best 81.1 percent during league action. The Tigers made an NCAA-record 54 consecutive free throws from Jan. 18-21.
Redshirt junior guard Dru Smith is a large part of Mizzou's success at the charity stripe. He is shooting 96.6 percent from the line in league play and 91.3 percent for the season, which ranks seventh nationally, and would set a Mizzou single-season program record if the season ended today. Dru has made 29 consecutive free throws dating back to Jan. 11, which is 10 shy of matching the program record for consecutive free throws made.
After Xavier Pinson erupted for a team-high 16 points vs. Georgia, Mizzou has had at least one bench player reach double figures in the last four games. The Tigers are +155 overall in bench points this season. Mizzou has outscored or matched 16 of its 20 opponents in bench production this season.
Mizzou ranks 34th nationally and second in the SEC in scoring defense, holding opponents to 62.6 points per game. It's on pace to mark Mizzou's best defensive scoring average in a season since 1983-84 (62.8). Only five Mizzou teams in program history to have held opponents to fewer than 63 points.

FURIOUS COMEBACK

In Tuesday night's win over Georgia, Mizzou put together a ridiculous comeback to erase a deficit and snatch a victory from the Bulldogs. Georgia led 59-39 at the 13:33 mark of the second half, then Mizzou held the Bulldogs to 10 points and just four made field goals the rest of the way as the Tigers wiped away the lead and surged in front with 1:30 left.
The 20-point comeback marked Mizzou's largest since at least the mid 1990s. The Tigers erased a pair of 17-point deficits against Indiana in 2004 and Oklahoma State in 1994.
Mizzou saw five Tigers reach double figures for the first time since Feb. 10, 2018. Senior Reed Nikko scored a career-high 13 points and had a the game-winning block against future NBA lottery pick Anthony Edwards. Nikko scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half.
Mizzou improved to 3-0 on the season when it makes 10+ triples after making 10-of-23 from beyond the arc vs. Georgia. The Tigers are making 8.0 triples per game in league play, which trails only Alabama.

PICKETT: THE SPARK PLUG

Sophomore Javon Pickett scored 11 points vs. Georgia on Tuesday. On three consecutive possessions after Mizzou got down 20, Pickett scored back-to-back floaters and then assisted Xavier Pinson on a kickout 3-pointer to spark Mizzou offensively.
Pickett has now scored in double figures six times this season after his performance vs. Georgia. Mizzou is 6-0 in those games. In those six victories, the Tigers won by an average margin of 15.3 points per game.
In Mizzou's wins this season, Pickett is averaging 10.5 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists while shooting 50 percent from the field and 52.9 percent from beyond the arc. In Mizzou's losses, he's putting up 3.8 points, 2.8 boards and 1.4 assists while shooting 27.5 percent from the field and 15.4 percent from 3-point range.
He has started 42 of 51 games since coming to Mizzou. He logged 808 minutes as a freshman - joining Jontay Porter, Terrence Phillips and Johnathan Williams III as the only Tiger freshmen with 800+ minutes this decade.
He's scored at least seven points 29 times in 51 games at Mizzou, and has turned it up since Dec. 7. Since that date, he has been Mizzou's third-leading scorer over the last 11 games, averaging 8.4 points per game, largely coming off the bench. In that stretch, he's shooting 41.1 percent from the field and 45 percent from beyond the arc while grabbing 43 boards.
Pickett leads Mizzou in offensive rebounds this season with 28. Of his 76 rebounds this season, 36.8 percent have come on the offensive glass.
Pickett posted 10 points and eight boards vs. Incarnate Word, the fourth true guard to reach those numbers under Martin at Mizzou alongside Kassius Robertson, Jordan Geist and Mark Smith. He recently shot 6-of-8 from the field and a perfect 2-of-2 from 3-point range en route to 14 points vs. Florida.
Pickett, along with Mark Smith, is widely known as a relentless hard worker. He can be found in the gym each morning at 6 a.m. getting shots up. Pickett sometimes has to be instructed to hold back from the extra work to save his legs during the season.

MITCHELL SMITH MAKING AN IMPACT IN FOURTH YEAR

Redshirt junior Mitchell Smith entered the 2019-20 campaign having totaled 104 points, 96 rebounds and 13 steals while shooting 57.1 percent from the free throw line. He spent the offseason working tirelessly to bulk up and become a contributor in his fourth season on campus. The hard work paid off. Through just 20 games this season, Smith has 91 points, 83 rebounds and 15 steals while shooting 90 percent from the charity stripe.
Mitchell was also challenged by the coaching staff heading into league play to lead Mizzou's effort on the glass. He's answered the bell, averaging a team-high 5.3 boards per contest against SEC foes.
Mitchell has reached double figures three times in the last seven games, including a season-high 12 points on a career-high three 3-pointers against Georgia. He added a team-best seven rebounds and was a key figure in Mizzou's furious comeback.
The 6-foot-10 forward has started every game since Dec. 7, and continues to be a defensive force able to switch 1-5.

BENCH PRODUCTION

Mizzou's depth has been its strength this season. The Tigers are +155 in bench production. A bench player has reached double figures in each of the last four games for Mizzou. The reserves are led by sophomores Torrence Watson and Xavier Pinson and freshman Kobe Brown.
Brown has started 16 of 20 games he's appeared in on the season, averaging 6.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. His field goal percentage of 45.1 percent (46-of-102) ranks sixth among SEC freshmen with at least 100 attempts on the year.. Brown trails only Georgia's Anthony Edwards and Florida's Scottie Lewis in total steals this season among SEC freshman with 24.
Since Dec. 30, Torrence Watson has hit 19 3-pointers and scored 76 total points. At No. 14 West Virginia, Watson exploded for a 19-point outburst. He shot 6-of-13 from the field and 5-of-8 from beyond the arc, making at least five 3-pointers in game for the fourth time in his career.
On Dec. 30, Watson erupted for a career-high 24 points vs. Chicago State, setting the Mizzou Arena single-game record with eight treys, hitting six in the second half alone. The eight 3-pointers were the most by a Tiger since Thomas Gardner made eight vs. Baylor on Feb. 7, 2006.
Pinson is coming off a season-high 16 points (all coming in the second half) to ignite Mizzou's comeback over Georgia. He's scored at least seven points 11 times this season. Mizzou is 8-3 in those games, and 4-2 when he reaches double figures. He has 16 multi-assist games this season after 20 in 2018-19.