University of Missouri
Utah
Mizzou Hosts Utah for First Time in Program History
12/17/2021 1:05:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Utes travel to Columbia, Mo. for return trip from 2017
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Following the renewal of the Border Showdown in Lawrence, Kan. last week, the University of Missouri men's basketball team returns to action Saturday, Dec. 18. The Tigers welcome Utah to Mizzou Arena for a 3:30 p.m. tip on SEC Network. Tom Hart and Jon Sundvold will have the television call, with Mike Kelly and Chris Gervino covering the game on Tiger Radio Network.
Saturday's game serves as Mizzou's annual holiday game, with a giveaway for a free gold Santa hat to the first 500 fans in attendance. Fans may also bring a new teddy bear for the halftime Teddy Bear Toss, which will be donated to local charities in need.
MIZZOU HEADLINES
- Kobe Brown continues to be efficient everywhere on the court for the Tigers, leading the team in scoring, rebounds, assists, steals and blocks.
- Brown has shown himself to be one of the country's elite rebounders, ranking 28th nationally with 9.4 rebounds per game.
- Mizzou ranks 25th nationally and third in the SEC with 13.40 offensive rebounds per game.
- The Tigers are 4-1 this season when outrebounding their opponent, the sole loss being against Liberty.
- Missouri is looking to rebound after a tough outing against No. 8 Kansas last weekend.
- Against Kansas, Mizzou freshman Sean Durugordon and Trevon Brazile both recorded their first double-digit scoring games with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
- Javon Pickett is coming off a season-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting against the Jayhawks, two shy of his personal-best.
- Mizzou has been strong inside the paint this season, outscoring its opponents inside in eight of the team's 10 games this season.
THE SERIES
- Saturday is the fourth all-time meeting between the two programs, and the first to take place in Columbia.
- The series was set up with a Tiger trip out to Salt Lake City in 2017 where the Utes won, 77-59. The game in 2017 was just the third under the helm of head coach Cuonzo Martin.
- Mizzou's previous two meetings against Utah came in neutral sites in 1978 and 1944 with Utah recording every win in the series.
SCOUTING UTAH
- Utah enters the weekend with a 7-3 record including wins against Cal, Tulsa and Boston College.
- Saturday will be the Utes second game of the season in central time zone, losing to TCU in Fort Worth earlier this month.
- Head coach Craig Smith is in his first season at Utah, previously guiding Utah State to a 74-24 record and two Mountain West Tournament Championships.
- Utah is led by Branden Carlson who is scoring a team-high 13.9 points per game with 6.1 rebounds. Carlson also ranks top-40 in the country in total blocks with 22.
- Rollie Worster has proven to be an efficient ballhandler for the Utes, ranking 23rd nationally in assists to turnover ratio. Worster is fifth in the Pac-12 with 4.0 assists per game.
UP NEXT
Mizzou turns around and travels to St. Louis on Dec. 22 for the annual Braggin' Rights matchup against Illinois. The game returns to the Enterprise Center in St. Louis, after being hosted in Columbia last year.
FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest information on Mizzou Men's Basketball, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Tigers on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook @MizzouHoops. Fans should call 1-800-CAT-PAWS for tickets or buy online today!
