The Kansas State Wildcats will go for their fourth win in a row and sixth in their last seven games when they welcome the #21 team in the nation, the Missouri Tigers, into Bramlage Coliseum Saturday morning at 11 on ESPN. Missouri has had a solid season, staying ranked in the polls during the duration of the season while holding down the #4 seed in the Big 12. The only real knock on the Tigers so far this season has been their inept ability to win conference games on the road. Missouri has only won one game on the road in the Big 12 Conference—and that was on last Saturday, February 19th, against Iowa State 76-70. On the other hand, K-State has turned their season from a disappointment to having a solid chance at making the NCAA Tournament winning recent games against #1 Kansas (at the time), Oklahoma, and a big road win against Nebraska in Lincoln this past Wednesday. Although both teams appear to be NCAA Tournament-bound, Missouri has the last laugh in this match-up. On January 17th, Missouri took care of the Cats with little to no trouble.
The Last Time Out...
(24) K-State @ (14) Missouri (Mizzou Sports Arena - Columbia, MO 1/17/11)
The first time these two teams played, Missouri beat the Cats 75-59 in what was a terrible game for the Cats. K-State had 23 turnovers, were just 3 for 16 from the three-point line and gave up 43 points in the first half to Missouri. MU held K-State to just 28 first-half points due to their “ Fastest 40 minutes” , which means that Missouri pressures the ball for all 40 minutes of the basketball game. Two bright spots for the Cats were Jacob Pullen and Jordan Henriquez-Roberts. Henriquez-Roberts scored 14 points and had six rebounds, an assist, and two blocks. Pullen scored 16 points and only had two rebounds. Marcus Denmon led the Tigers in scoring with 14 points from shooting 4 for 9 from the field, had four rebounds and three steals. Phil Pressey, who had on a glove on his shooting hand to protect a broken finger at the time, scored 13 points and went 3 for 5 from three point range. Before the keys of victory and prediction, let's see how K-State and Missouri did in their last games. K-State got the victory they needed to solidly a spot in this year's NCAA Tournament.
K-State 61 Nebraska 57 (Bob Devaney Sports Center - Lincoln, NE 2/23/11)
K-State was already in the NCAA Tournament to many in the College Basketball world, including Joe Lunardi who does Bracketology on ESPN as a #9 seed in the East Region. Others thought that the Cats needed to do more work in order to get in. Either way, the Cats went into Lincoln and got a big victory against Nebraska, with a 61-57 win. This win will without a doubt put the Cats into the tournament. Jacob Pullen continued his consistent play over the last few weeks by scoring 27 points, with 20 coming in the second half. In the last three games, Pullen has scored 38 against Kansas, 27 against Oklahoma and 27 more vs. Nebraska for an average of 30.6 per game Rodney McGruger chipped in and scored 11 points for the Cats. The Huskers were held to 35% shooting and were forced into committing 17 turnovers. This was the final regular season game between K-State and Nebraska as members of the Big 12, due to Nebraska moving into the Big 10 Conference starting next season. K-State leads the all-time series against Nebraska, holding down a 126-93 record against them. Missouri's last game was at home, which in Columbia they're unbeaten, and that continued in their last contest this past Wednesday.
(21) Missouri 77 Baylor 59 (Mizzou Sports Arena - Columbia, MO 2/23/11)
Missouri and Baylor are on two different planets when it comes to college basketball in the 2010-2011 season. On one hand, Missouri is only playing for seeding in the NCAA Tournament since they have all but punched their ticket to the tournament due to consistent play all season. Baylor on the other hand, are playing for their NCAA Tournament lives every game they play. They did not help matters when they lost to Missouri 77-59 in Columbia this past Wednesday night. The only way the Bears can get into the tournament at this point is if they can win the Big 12 Tournament next weekend in Kansas City. Lawrence Bowers led the Tigers with 20 points, nine rebounds, six steals and 2 blocks. Ricardo Ratliffe chipped in with a double-double, scoring 11 points and grabbing 13 rebounds. Quincy Acy was the leading scorer for Baylor, scoring 13 points, grabbing nine rebounds, dishing out an assist, two steals and two blocks. LaceDarius Dunn only scored 12 points from 4 for 14 shooting for Baylor. Here are the MU/K-State keys to victory, starting with Mizzou.
Keys to Victory:
Missouri
Turn defense into offense: This key to victory is a double-edged sword. If the Tigers can do a good job of applying the “Fastest 40 Minutes” and pressure the Cats' ball handlers, they can cause a lot of problems for K-State. If not, the Cats will have a lot of easy baskets off of MU's press and could win the game by double figures.
Ricardo Ratliffe: Ratliffe just came off of a huge game for the Tigers, scoring 11 points and grabbing 13 rebounds inside the post. The big man has been in double figures in six of his last seven for Mizzou. If he continues to score with that type of efficiency against the likes of Curtis Kelly, Jamar Samuels and Jordan Henriquez-Roberts, the Tigers have a good shot at leaving Manhattan with the victory.
Guards: Missouri needs to get Marcus Denmon going early, especially from the perimeter. He and forward Lawrence Bowers are deadly at penetrating the interior of opposing defenses. If both can attack the rim early, it will eventually open the whole floor for the Tigers offense to operate and knock down shots.
K-State
Handling the “Fastest 40 Minutes”: At times this season, the Cats have handled the ball very well; however, there's been other times when K-State is sloppy with the basketball. The Cats can't afford to turn it over 15+ times against Missouri, or else the Tigers will make them pay.
Jacob Pullen distributing: Pullen's scored 38, 27 and 27 in his last three games, showing a level of consistency not seen from him much this season. Mizzou will be harrassing him all afternoon. That's going to open things up for guys like Will Spradling and Rodney McGruder. Don't expect Pullen to have as big of a scoring day as he's had in the past three games. Keep in mind though that he is still one of the best distributors on this roster. It'll be up to the young guns to knock down some big shots and help alleviate some of the scoring burden from Pullen.
Rebounding: With Bowers/Ratliffe's athleticism, Kelly, Samuels and Henriquez-Roberts will have to hit the glass harder than they have in recent weeks. The key will be staying composed and not getting into foul trouble for the trio of Wildcats.
Prediction: K-State wins, 70-62.
-Paul Payton, Wildcat 91.9 Sports Staff
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