Sometimes you open a book or watch a movie, and within the first five pages or minutes, you can tell where it’s going. That was exactly what happened in Missouri men’s basketball’s season opener against Cleveland State.
The Tigers rolled past the Vikings 111-50 behind big performances from their 5-star freshmen. The 100-point mark was only reached twice last season.
Jason Crowe Jr. and Toni Bryant combined for 38 points, nine rebounds and four blocks. Both lived up to expectations in their debuts,
but it was the big out of Tampa who caught eyes early on across Mizzou arena.
Bryant’s role became clear within the first few minutes of play: rim protection and knocking down corner threes, surprisingly. He had 11 points at half, making 3-of-4 corner triples and blocking three shots. His athleticism was off the charts against a Cleveland State team lacking in that department.
It may not have been the 23-0 run to start the game that the Tigers had last season against the Vikings, but they jumped to a 15-0 advantage in the first four minutes behind stellar play from the rookies.
If Bryant brought the power, Crowe brought finesse. His first bucket as a Tiger was a confident step-back three. He ended the night shooting 4-for-7 from distance. And don’t let Crowe’s 6-foot-4, 190-pound frame fool you, he can hold his own in the paint. He drew a foul through two Vikings’ forwards in the first half and converted the and-one opportunity.
Something to watch coming into the season was how Crowe looked as a playmaker. He finished with two assists. Mizzou’s top facilitator was Mark Mitchell with 10 assists. The fifth-year forward had five assists in his first six minutes of action.
He achieved his career-high 10th assist – previously dished out nine dimes against Vanderbilt last season – on a dish to Crowe for his third 3-pointer of the night.
Mitchell’s game was a perfect example of why stock shouldn’t be bought from exhibition games. He adapted to his circumstances well, choosing to be the connecting piece that the Tigers need.
As a team, Mizzou shot 60.9% from the field and 45.2% from three-point range on 29 attempts. The latter is especially significant with few proven shooters coming into the season. The freshmen showed off some prowess from long range, but BYU transfer Kennard Davis Jr. also provided a spark, shooting 4-for-6 from three. He ended the night with 19 points, often being the secondary play initiator with Crowe out or moved off-ball.
The only player who didn’t shoot well on high volume from beyond the arc was Trent Pierce at 1-for-6. He still contributed by going 4-for-4 from inside the arc in his 19 minutes of play.
Bryson Tiller and Jamier Jones rounded out the contributors by making their presence felt in the paint. Tiller was a mid-range machine, and no Viking could stop Jones from getting downhill.
Cleveland State can’t take many positives from this outing, other than that it got through it and is onto greener pastures on its schedule. Mizzou held the Vikings to 32.8% from the field and 12.5% from three.
Now that the Tigers got a feel for a real game, they move forward to an early real test at the Enterprise Center against Saint Louis at 6 p.m. this Friday.
