It wasn't necessarily pretty, as Missouri failed to make a field goal during the final 6:24 of the game. But the Tigers beat 10th-seeded Georgia in their first game of the SEC Tournament, earning the team's first trip to the quarterfinals since 2014. There, Missouri will face the 2 seed, Arkansas, winners of 11 conference games in a row.
Not only will a trip to Saturday's semifinals be on the line, the matchup will represent a rubber match for the two rivals after Missouri won in Fayetteville and Arkansas won in Columbia earlier this season. Here is everything you need to know to get set for the matchup.
TIP TIME INFORMATION
Missouri (16-8) vs. Arkansas (21-5)
WHEN: 6:00 p.m.
WHERE: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee
TV: SEC Network
RADIO: Tiger Radio Network (Mike Kelly, Chris Gervino)
SERIES: Arkansas leads 29-26
KenPom Prediction: Arkansas 77-72
THE STARTING LINEUPS
BY THE NUMBERS
MIZZOU KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Get Jeremiah Tilmon going. The obvious, surface-level difference between Missouri's two matchups against Arkansas this season: When the Tigers won in Fayetteville, they had Tilmon on the floor. When the Razorbacks won in Columbia, Tilmon didn't play, as he was away from the team due to the death of his grandmother. The Tigers certainly missed him, as he dominated in the first meeting, finishing with 25 points and 11 rebounds. Tilmon's absence was felt on the defensive end, as well; in the first matchup against Arkansas, Razorback center Connor Vanover scored just four points on 0-9 shooting. Vanover scored 12 points in the second meeting, while fellow forward Justin Smith, who didn't play in Fayetteville, had 19. With opponents making him the focal point of their defenses, Tilmon has seen his production wane a bit of late, averaging 9.3 points and 5.0 rebounds across his last three games. Friday would be a good time to get him going again, as he's shown this season that he can have success against the Razorbacks and Missouri will need him playing his best if it is going to have a shot at making a run in the NCAA Tournament.
2. Crash the boards. Arkansas has been a solid rebounding team all season, ranking among the top 60 nationally in rebounding rate. Missouri has been more inconsistent, but rebounding has been a fairly reliable barometer for the Tigers. In its 16 wins this season, Missouri is a combined plus-56 on the boards. In its eight losses, the team is minus-34. The Tigers have rebounded the ball well against Arkansas in the teams' first two meetings this season, with a plus-14 advantage on the glass during the win in Fayetteville and plus-five during the overtime loss. The Tigers will need to keep Vanover and Smith off the glass and will likely need to win the rebounding margin once again to keep pace with an Arkansas offense that has averaged 84.9 points per game over its last seven contests.
3. Make Arkansas shoot over you. Another way to keep Arkansas' scorching hot offense from putting this game out of reach: Don't allow too many easy scoring opportunities around the basket or at the three-point line. The Razorbacks have shot the three-ball pretty well all season at 34.4 percent, but they've been even better from two-point range, where they shoot 51.9 percent — 87th nationally. Keeping Arkansas out of the lane will be much easier said than done, however. Guards JD Notae and Desi Sills can break down opponents off the dribble and freshman star Moses Moody is a threat to score from anywhere on the floor. Arkansas is also averaging a whopping 24.6 free throw attempts per game over its last seven contests. On the other hand, the good news is that Missouri's defense has given Arkansas more trouble than any other this year, as the Tigers held the Razorbacks to a season-low 26.8 percent shooting performance in the first meeting between the two teams.
POWERMIZZOU PREDICTION
The first two meetings between these two teams this season suggest Missouri matches up favorably with Arkansas. But the Razorbacks have been playing their best basketball of the season over the past month, while the Tigers have largely limped to the finish line. It wouldn't come as a shock if Missouri were to pull the upset and win the season series, but we don't quite envision the Tigers being able to keep pace with Arkansas' scoring.
FINAL SCORE: Arkansas 80, Missouri 74
