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#Mizzou closer earns #SEC Freshman of the Week honors

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T.J. Sikkema (photo/Mizzou Athletics)

Mizzou Baseball freshman lefty pitcher T.J. Sikkema was named SEC Co-Freshman of the Week.  Sikkema saved two of Mizzou’s wins in their sweep at Alabama.  The Tigers winning streak is 19 games, tied for longest streak in the nation.

Sikkema struck out ten in 5.1 innings and didn’t allow a run to the Crimson Tide.

Sikkema has a 27.0 shutout inning streak and is tied for the SEC lead in strikeouts (46) while ranking third in ERA (0.33) and third in opponent batting (.143). He has earned a decision, four wins and three saves, in each of his last seven appearances and is averaging 15.15 strikeouts/nine innings this season, the top mark in the nation among freshmen.

The Tigers host Little Rock on Tuesday before hosting Arkansas this weekend.

Martin ready to hit the ground running at #Mizzou (VIDEO)

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Cuonzo Martin hopes this is his last coaching job.  Finally, a basketball coach who looks at the University of Missouri as a destination job.

Martin, who grew up in East St. Louis, considers himself a Midwest guy and when the job opening became available he and his wife Roberta were ready to make the move.

Martin thinks Mizzou has first class facilities and a fan base that can get behind and rally this team.  He calls himself an old school coach, comparable to Norm Stewart and Gene Keady, who he played for and was an assistant with at Purdue.

Listen to Martin’s Q & A and be sure to check out my podcast here on Tuesday morning when I give my initial thoughts on Martin.


Watch Cuonzo Martin’s introductory press conference

#Mizzou women dancing as a 6th seed in NCAA’s (VIDEO)

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The Mizzou women’s basketball team celebrates their selection

The Mizzou women’s basketball team was picked as a 6th seed for the NCAA Tournament and will begin their run on Friday against 11th seeded South Florida in Tallahassee, FL at 4 p.m. Central Time.

“We’re just so blessed to be playing in national tournament,” said Cierra Porter.

“I’m trying to squeeze everything I can out of this last go-around,” said senior Lindsey Cunningham.  “We’re capable of going on a run.”

The Tigers went 21-10, winning 21-games for the second consecutive year and will face a South Florida team that went 24-8 and was ranked from 20th to 23rd for a good portion of the season.

The Tournament

Host and three-seed Florida State (25-6) will face Western Illinois (26-6). Florida State lost in the first round of the ACC Tournament, 56-54, to No. 8/12 Miami. Western Illinois earned one of 32 automatic bids as the Summit League Tournament Champions. Western Illinois defeated IUPUI 77-69.

South Florida conference rival, UConn, is again the overall No. 1 seed of the tournament in the Bridgeport Region. Notre Dame is the No. 1 seed of the Oklahoma City Region and Baylor is the No. 1 seed in the Lexington Region. South Carolina is the No. 1 seed in Stockton Region.

Watch the team’s reaction

Spoiler Alert! #Mizzou wins in OT — Anderson “See you tomorrow.” (VIDEO/AUDIO)

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Kevin Puryear is greeted by Jordan Barnett (21) and Cullen VanLeer (33) after hitting his game winning shot (photo/Mizzou Athletics)

Sophomore Kevin Puryear hit a 3-pointer just before the buzzer, (his fifth of the game) and Kim Anderson and the Missouri Tigers live for another day after the Tigers rallied to beat Auburn 86-83 in overtime Wednesday night at the Southeastern Conference Tournament.

It was story line we have seen over and over from Mizzou this season.  Hang around in the first half, even have the lead.  The Tigers were up 36-35 at the break.  Then, like so many other times, the other team would start to pull away, Mizzou would inch back, and fall further behind until it was too late for a final charge.

“I think it’s God’s will. I think it’s justice we win this game,” said Anderson after the game.

Auburn led 72-62 after a layup by T.J. Dunans with just over five to play.  This may have been the time you decided to shut the game off and go to bed.  Missouri was still down 78-72 when Cullen VanLeer hit a three point with 21 seconds to go.  After an Auburn turnover, VanLeer missed a three, but Puryear grabbed the rebound and Frankie Hughes knocked down a three with three seconds left to force overtime.

Listen to Kim Anderson’s postgame

In the extra time, Hughes hit another three-pointer to tie the game at 83-83 with 1:22 to play.  This time, after Dunans missed a layup, the Tigers got the ball, called timeout and set up a play for Puryear’s winning three-pointer.

“It’s been a long season, and we needed that,” Puryear said.

Puryear finished with a career-best 30 points, including a career-best 5 of 9 from beyond the arc.  As a team, Missouri hit 16 three-pointers.

Mizzou will now play Ole Miss in the second round of the SEC Tournament, scheduled for approximately 8:30 p.m. CT on Thursday, March 9, at Bridgestone Arena

Kim Anderson wanted another year. “In the end, it was not my decision” (AUDIO)

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Missouri Tigers head coach Kim Anderson gives hand signals to Terrence Phillips in the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Missouri on February 21, 2017.  Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Mizzou basketball coach Kim Anderson took questions during his time slot on the weekly SEC Basketball Teleconference.

I have a tremendous amount of respect for the way Anderson handled himself with the media on Monday morning, being upfront and honest with his answers.

“We just didn’t win enough games,” said Anderson.

Anderson said he found out ten days ago, just before he and the team were scheduled to leave for Mississippi State when he was told by Athletic Director Jim Sterk that he wanted to make a change.

“It was business as usual for me,” but Anderson admitted, “It’s hard to concentrate on what you’re doing, but I thought our staff did a great job.  Certainly I would have loved to have another year.”

Anderson is 26-67 heading into this weekend SEC Tournament in Nashville, TN. The Tigers will play Auburn on Wednesday night, just four days after those two teams wrapped up the regular season.

Listen to Anderson’s teleconference. (10:00)

“A national search will begin immediately to identify and recruit the very best person to lead Mizzou Basketball into the future and we will utilize the services of a search consultant to assist in the identification and evaluation of candidates who are capable of returning our program to national prominence,” said Missouri Athletic Director Jim Sterk in a press release.

Marshall: “I could easily retire at Wichita State,” when asked about #Mizzou coaching job

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Witicha State’s head basketball coach Gregg Marshall displays his championship tee shirt after his team defeated Illinois State, 71-51 to win the Missouri Valley Conference Championship game at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis on March 5, 2017. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Gregg Marshall, fresh off the Shockers victory in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Sunday evening in St. Louis, was asked about the coaching vacancy at the University of Missouri.

“I’m flattered, it’s very humbling.  I don’t have a crystal ball, but I could very easily retire at Wichita State.”

Marshall’s contract has him tied up for another seven seasons, but the Wichita State men’s basketball coach admits he would listen to offers.

He also says his family is very happy in Wichita.  The 54-year old sees retirement on the horizon as well.

Listen to Gregg Marshall’s response


CBS Sports also reported on Friday that the American Athletic Conference is talking internally about upgrading their conference and is giving Wichita State serious consideration.  A conference move for the Shockers could certainly increase their chances of keeping Marshall for the long haul.

The conference is home to schools such as Cincinnati, Memphis, UCONN, Houston and Tulsa.  There are currently 11 schools in the conference. There is no timeline and if a move would ever occur.

Mizzou Athletic Director Jim Sterk asked for Kim Anderson’s resignation.  The announcement became public on Sunday afternoon.  Anderson will coach the team through the SEC tournament.  Anderson will speak for the first time on Monday at 11:24 A.M. CT, during his regularly scheduled SEC Teleconference.  You can follow the conversation through me on Twitter @Missourisports

Sterk asks Anderson to step down.

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Missouri head basketball coach Kim Anderson gives his team signals during the first half against Vanderbilt at the Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Missouri on February 11, 2017. Missouri defeated Vanderbilt, 72-52. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Mizzou Athletic Director Jim Sterk has asked Kim Anderson to step down as Tigers’ men’s basketball coach once the 2016-17 season has concluded.

“This decision has been very difficult for me personally because of the tremendous respect I have for Kim,” Sterk said in a statement released by the Mizzou Athletic Department. “I know how hard he and his staff have worked to turn the program around over the last three years, however, the lack of on-court success has resulted in a significant drop in interest surrounding our program, and we could not afford for that to continue another year.

“A national search will begin immediately to identify and recruit the very best person to lead Mizzou Basketball into the future and we will utilize the services of a search consultant to assist in the identification and evaluation of candidates who are capable of returning our program to national prominence,” Sterk added.  “In order to protect the integrity of the search, I will have no further public comments regarding the process or the status of any candidates until the announcement of our next head basketball coach is made.”

Anderson is 26-67 heading into this weekend SEC Tournament in Nashville, TN.  The Tigers will play Auburn on Wednesday night, just four days after those two teams wrapped up the regular season.

Anderson released a statement through the Athletic Department on Sunday afternoon.

“Missouri is a special institution to my family and I, and I am grateful for having had the opportunity to serve as the head coach at my alma mater,” Anderson said. “While we have faced significant challenges over the last three years and been unable to achieve the on-court results everyone would have liked, I do believe we have been able to stabilize the program while watching our players become responsible young men on and off the court.

“I would especially like to thank my staff and players who have worked so hard to turn this program around.  I’m proud of the growth I’ve seen in our players academically, athletically and socially since their arrival on campus, and feel very good about our efforts to serve Columbia, the University and the State of Missouri through impactful events and organizations such as the Boys and Girls Club, Tigers on the Prowl, Rally for Rhyan and the University of Missouri Children’s Hospital.”

 

Hot shooting Auburn blows past #Mizzou “Hopefully we learned from this game,”–Kim Anderson

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Another poor shooting performance from the Missouri Tigers led to another road loss as the Tigers fell at Auburn 89-78.  If Saturday after wasn’t bad enough, this was just a preview.  Fans will get another dose on Wednesday night when these two teams meet up in the SEC Tournament.

“Hopefully we learned from this game,” said Kim Anderson. “Hopefully we learned that you’ve got to come out ready to play against these guys because they’re an explosive team and a very athletic team.”

Mizzou shot 22-of-64 and 38 of those attempts came from beyond the three point arc.  Both inside and outside the three-point line, the Tigers shot 34%.  The only thing that kept the score somewhat respectable (if an 11-point defeat is respectable) was the 21-of-26 performance at the free throw.  Otherwise, this was a pretty lopsided game.

Auburn blocked nine of Missouri’s shot and not one Tiger made more than four shot attempts from the field.  Jordan Geist had the best percentage going 4-for-8, but Kevin Puryear (4-14), Jordan Barnett (4-11), Terrence Phillips (4-11), and Frankie Hughes (3-10).

At one point, Auburn made 13 straight shot attempts.  They were hitting in transition, pulling up hitting three’s, picking apart Mizzou’s interior, or stealing the ball at midcourt and going in for odd-man advantage layups.

“When a team is hitting shots like that, it deflates you,” Barnett said. “We just had to keep pushing. We responded well in the second half. We had nothing to lose at that point.”

Puryear “It’s just one of those days.” Mizzou held to 43 points in loss to Texas A & M

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The Missouri Tigers had their worst offensive game of the season, shooting under 25% for the game after shooting less than 19% in the first half (5-for-27).  That led to a 60-43 loss to Texas A & M on Senior Night at Mizzou Arena.

“It’s just one of those days,” Puryear said. “It’s not really one of those things that you predict. I thought we had a great warm-up, great preparation coming into today, two great practices coming into today, and got out there and didn’t play bad defense honestly, just couldn’t make the shots.”

Puryear scored eight points, and Frankie Hughes added eight points and a team-high six rebounds.  Terrence Phillips led the Tigers with 15 points, six of them coming in the final minute on a couple of three-pointers that were well beyond the arc. Phillips, the SEC leader is assists at 4.8 per game had none in this game.

Overall, it was a horrible basketball game to watch from both teams.  They combined to shoot just 15-of-50 three-pointers and they only combined for 50% at the free throw line.  A&M 6-for-12, Mizzou 8-for-16.

Pingeton named SEC Coach of the Year after leading #Mizzou to back-to-back 20-win seasons

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Robin Pingeton (photo/Mizzou Athletics)

Mizzou Women’s Basketball head coach Robin Pingeton has been named the 2017 Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, as announced by the league Tuesday. The award was voted on and selected by the conference’s coaches.

Pingeton is Mizzou Women’s Basketball’s first head coach to receive Coach of the Year honors since 1990 and the second coach to do so in program history, joining Joann Rutherford (1984, 1985 and 1990). Pingeton has now earned conference Coach of the Year recognition three times in her career after being named Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2004 and 2010 at Illinois State.

Despite losing All-SEC forward Jordan Frericks and key reserve Bri Porter in the frontcourt to preseason injuries, Pingeton has guided Mizzou to a historic campaign in 2016-17, leading the Tigers to back-to-back 21-win seasons for the first time since 1983-84 and 1984-85. Picked to place seventh in the SEC in the preseason poll, Mizzou finished third in the league with an 11-5 mark in conference play. Mizzou’s 11 conference wins are its most since 1990.

Under Pingeton, Mizzou now has five consecutive winning seasons for the first time since 1985-1990. The Tigers, who owned an 11-7 record four games into league action, won 10 of their final 12 games to clinch a double bye in the SEC Tournament and catapult into the Associated Press Top 25. During the home stretch, Mizzou put together a pair of five-game win streaks, MU’s longest streaks in conference play since 1990. It marked the first time in program history that Mizzou rattled off two separate win streaks of five or more in league play.

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