The Monday Morning Scrappy Utilityman
A Great Saturday For Missouri Basketball
I went into Saturday's game with Baylor thinking the climate could be right for a loss at home:
1. The Tigers had played three tight games in 12 days...two on the road and one in the exhausting classic against Kansas the Saturday before.
2. Baylor was coming off of an ugly loss at home to Kansas, and they "needed" to win to stay alive in The Big 12 Championship race.
3. Scott Drew has the pieces in his puzzle with the size Baylor possesses to change Missouri's tactics and shut down Ricardo Ratliffe, the guy who led the Tigers to victory in Waco.
It turns out I was right about all three points...and Missouri still won.
Ratliffe had 27 points on January 21st in the Tigers' 89-88 win.
Saturday, he had six.
And the Tigers won by 15.
Scott Drew did indeed shut down Ratliffe by going zone. He went from a performance of 11-14 in Waco to 3-9 in Columbia.
But, when you play zone, you open up the door for the Tiger sharpshooters to carve you up. And, that's what happened Saturday. The Tigers went batshit from beyond the arc and hit twice as many 3's in Columbia (14) as they hit at Baylor (7).
Despite getting dominated on the boards in the first half, Missouri still carried a lead into halftime. Baylor had to be wondering what it had to do if shutting down Ratliffe and outrebounding Missouri mercilessly wasn't going to cut it. And, that was before the Tigers even got it going from the field.
Once they did...it was a blowout.
Now, one could make the case---as I was actually thinking initially---that Missouri isn't going to typically shoot lights-out from 3-point land like they did Saturday. And, that is the case. That was a unique 3-ball clinic. But, on the other side of it, if you watched the game from start to finish, you also saw how many easy 2-point FG's went in and out or were flat-out missed from close range. That, in fairness, isn't going to happen either.
It's a pick your poison with the Missouri offense. Cliche...but true.
Here's what Scott Drew had to say to ESPN.com after switching defenses from Waco to Columbia...and still not stopping the Tigers:
"At the end of the day, when you play Missouri, you have to give up something,’’ Drew said. “We decided to give up the 3.’’
“When Missouri is on, there is nobody in the country as good as them offensively in the country. Nobody. Period. And they’ve been on a lot this season.’’
The win moves the Tigers to 23-2 and continues to keep them deadlocked with Kansas at the top of the conference.
Now, most Missouri fans are keeping an eye on Kansas, and understandably so. The Big 12 Championship will go through Lawrence again...one way or another.
But, for the bigger picture of the NCAA Championship, Tiger fans shouldn't be just pulling against KU...they should also be pulling against Ohio State.
And, so while Kansas easily dispatched of Oklahoma State at home as you'd expect, the fact that Ohio State got beat up by 10 points by Tom Izzo's Michigan State team is a real positive for the Tigers' chances of getting to St. Louis.
I wouldn't rule out two of the three (Missouri, Kansas, and Ohio State) getting to St. Louis. As a matter of fact, I'd keep an eye on Michigan State getting here as well...albeit more likely as a #2 seed.
But, if Ohio State were to have gone on a tear and lost only one more game between now and Selection Sunday, I don't see how they wouldn't have gotten to St. Louis.
Now, after a pretty convincing home loss and some tough road games (at Minnesota, at Michigan, at Michigan State) still to come, barring a surprise, the Buckeyes are going to lose at least one more from here on out...and I think that'd be an accomplishment for them when you consider the regular season schedule and the difficulty that will be The Big Ten Tournament.
Meanwhile, we know there are at least two losses out there for Missouri and Kansas between now and Selection Sunday. They meet at Phog Allen on Saturday February 25th, and one of them will have to lose in the Big 12 Tournament. They could split those losses. One could get both of them. Or, each team could suffer more than one with a surprise loss in conference play plus a loss in the Big 12 Tournament.
If I had to guess, KU will have its hands full tonight in Manhattan. Road rivarly games are not particularly fun for the visiting team. Duke and Michigan State proved last week there are exceptions, but overall, randomly average teams can rise up and pull off upsets at home in rivalry games more often than doing it again a damn good non-rival at home. But, outside of tonight and 12 days from now with hosting Missouri, KU would have to suffer a monster upset to lose another game (vs. Texas Tech, at Texas A & M, at Oklahoma State, vs. Texas). Missouri can tell you about a trip to Stillwater not going as expected, but that was more of a case of OSU not missing late in the game than it was a case of the Tigers falling victim to the trappings of Gallagher-Iba.
From the Missouri schedule perspective, it's beginning to look much more favorable than it did a couple of weeks ago. While the road trip to Kansas has trouble written all over it, the other two remaining games away from Columbia are looking much more enjoyable. Texas Tech on March 3rd never looked to be trouble, but Texas A & M this Saturday had danger written on it...at least from my perspective. Now, that's not to say it doesn't any longer...because Oklahoma State will always be a reminder of what can happen...but the Aggies are a mess as of late. They've lost four in a row and five of seven. But, they play well at home...only losing to Texas by two and Baylor by four. A couple of weeks ago, I thought that would be the game that could be Missouri's second "Oklahoma State." Hopefully, A & M at 12-12 (3-9) has packed it in...and the Tigers can roll in there and take care of business.
If the only loss on Missouri's schedule from here on out is at KU, they're coming to St. Louis. I don't see how that doesn't happen. That'd mean 31-3 and a Big 12 Tournament Championship. If they lose to KU in Lawrence and KU or Baylor in the Big 12 Tournament, my guess is the Tigers go out West as a #1 or go to Atlanta as a #2. At this point, however, I'd say it's likely we see a scenario in which two of the following four teams (Missouri, Kansas, Ohio State, and Michigan State) are playing in St. Louis.
While the Tigers cannot lose that chance February 25th in Lawrence, a win there combined with running the table the rest of the way in the regular season would lock it up.
Surprising Poll Results
I'll be the first one to say my column is not rooted in what I think most people in St. Louis are interested in. It's rooted in what I'm interested in. This isn't a news outlet. It's a hack website operated by a godless pervert.
With that all out there, I was surprised to see that for Friday's poll question, Missouri dominated the results. The question was:
What are you looking forward to most this weekend?
The results:
Missouri-Baylor: 60%
Blues-Sharks: 17%
Blues-Avalanche: 14%
Illinois-Michigan: 5%
Saint Louis U-LaSalle: 4%
Now, let's make it clear that the Blues really picked up 31% of the vote when you combine the two games, but still...I'm surprised that Missouri basketball has that much appeal locally...especially with the Blues playing as well as they are. Of course, the Tigers were going up against the #6 team in the country with just six regular season games left...while the Blues still have 27 to go.
Either way, I thought the number was surprising. Maybe it wasn't. I don't know. Fuck me softly.
And...how about the relative lack of excitement around town for the Billikens?
Part of the problem, in my opinion, is that the team really doesn't market itself too well. Another part is the conference...obviously. And, then they're playing an important game Saturday at LaSalle, and it's not even on television.
How about this fun fact?
In the latest Basketball Power Index rankings, Saint Louis U. is ranked #10.
1. Syracuse
2. Kentucky
3. Ohio State
4. Michigan State
5. Kansas
6. North Carolina
7. Duke
8. Missouri
9. Wisconsin
10. Saint Louis U
And A Great Weekend For The Blues
The Blues couldn't ask for much more out of this weekend with picking up all four points...and getting Andy McDonald back Sunday night in beating Pacific Division-Leading San Jose.
While Alex Pietrangelo played an incredible game on both ends of the ice in scoring two goals and getting an assist, you could see the difference McDonald makes. If there's one thing that fans worry about haunting the Blues once April rolls around, it's the ability to score...and McDonald could be the remedy. He picked up an assist last night in his return.
I don't care to jinx it, but after beating three playoff teams in New Jersey, Colorado, and San Jose, the Blues now have three with some of the shakier teams in the NHL...and two of them at home: at Columbus (38 points, worst in the NHL), vs. New York Islanders (54 points, 14th place in the Eastern Conference), and vs. Minnesota (58 points, 12th place in the Western Conference...and on a four-game losing streak).
And...as odd as it may sound...Sunday's opponent is playing worse than anyone in the league. The team? The Blackhawks. Joel Quenneville's team has lost eight games in a row.
The Blues have played one less game than Chicago, and they now have a 10 point lead on the 6th place Blackhawks.
They now have a 15 point cushion between themselves and the 9th place team in the Western Conference.
And, despite playing fewer games than all but two teams in the NHL, only two teams have more points.
Once the Blues are finished with the Boston Bruins at Scottrade Center next Wednesday, they'll play just three of their next 17 at home. Insane. They have 27 games left in the season...but only 10 at home.
It could be brutal...but based on the way they're playing (they've picked up points in all but two games in 2012), I'm not sure the road thing is as big of an obstacle as many of us thought when we saw the schedule.
Quick Hits
-Mardi Gras is this Saturday, and while it's supposed to be pretty sunny, it'll be cold obviously. The insideSTL Tent is your hook-up for food, drinks, private restrooms, and warmth and is proudly presented by Miller Lite, Johnnie Brock's Dungeon and Southern Comfort. Don't forget what happened last year. You can purchase your tickets right now by CLICKING HERE. And, for the price of $65, you will get the following ALL DAY LONG from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.:
- Access to the heated tent from start to finish of the day with in-and-out privileges
- 6 drink tickets (includes premium drinks) ranging from Hurricanes to premium beer to shots and premium cocktails (Cash Bar After)
- Private Indoor Bathrooms
- Afternoon Food Buffet
- Live Music and DJ inside the tent
- Beads and Mardi Gras giveaways for every attendee
- All of the above all-day long at the prime intersection of 9th and Geyer in the heart of Soulard Mardi Gras for ONLY $65
- Limited number of tickets are avilable for sale, get yours early.
Buy 4 Tickets and Get 4 Commemorative Miller Lite Mardi Gras Mugs*
-Here's something from an article in the Post-Dispatch on the rise of a Christian-based alternative to the Girl Scouts, which has become popular in the St. Louis Area. This quote is from one of the mothers of a member of The American Heritage Girls on why she had her daughters leave the Girl Scouts:
"They were encouraging girls to embrace whoever they were; it didn't matter what choices they made, as long as they were true to themselves. That was a concern."
Perfect.
-I'm aggressively looking for a new apartment in Downtown, Clayton, Kirkwood, Webster, or Brentwood. We may be moving our offices from Downtown, so we're looking at moving soon. Feel free to email me at tmckernan@insidestl.com if you'd like to help the cause.
-The ITDRoll.com Morning After heads down to Spring Training this Friday. We'll start our live broadcasts---both audio and segments on tape on video airing on insideSTL.com---next Monday.
-Saw this posted over at Bernie's Pressbox on STLToday.com. It's an article written last week on ESPN.com about the Rams and Los Angeles. Here's the part that was a little surprising...and disappointing. It comes from Isaac Bruce when he was asked about the possibility of the Rams moving back to Los Angeles:
“It wouldn’t be weird to see the Rams move back to Los Angeles,” Bruce said. “What was weird was the first move when they left Los Angeles. If it were to happen, it’s the price of doing business in the NFL. I do believe Los Angeles will have an NFL team soon.”
If and when the NFL does come back to Los Angeles, Bruce said he wouldn’t mind being involved in some capacity.
“I think now is the time to bring the NFL back and if they need a general manager, I’m here,” Bruce said. “Bring me back to L.A.”
Yikes.
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