Latest entries in Live blog: Missouri men's basketball vs. Nebraska
The Tigers take on Nebraska in Big 12 action at Mizzou Arena. Tipoff is 5 p.m.
Jan. 23, 2010
Paul's big night helps Missouri take down Nebraska
For the first 30 minutes of this game, defense reigned king. But a strong final 10 minutes from Missouri and sophomore Miguel Paul resulted in a 70-53 final at Mizzou Arena.
Paul scored a career-high 15 points in only 16 minutes on the floor and keyed a vital Tigers run near the end of the game that enabled MU to pull away.
The Tigers' next test is against Kansas on Monday at Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks are currently ranked No. 3 in the country.
Huskers hanging tough
The Tigers haven't been able to shake off Nebraska so far in the second half and lead 42-41 with 11:47 left in the game.
NU's field goal percentage has risen to 44.1 percent as it answers nearly every Tiger score with one of its own.
Defense dictates the first half
Looking for a barnburner? Go somewhere else.
The Tigers take a 28-26 lead into halftime in a game dominated by defense. Neither team is shooting greater than 39.1 percent from the field, and no player has hit double-digits in points yet.
The shoot clock has routinely drained to less than 10 seconds for both squads, as pressing defense has led to a combined eight turnovers.
This is to be expected in a game featuring a team with the Big 12's lowest offensive scoring average (Nebraska) and a notoriously-relentless defense (Missouri).
What was disturbing for the Tigers were the prolonged periods without points. Near the end of the first half, the Huskers grasped the lead before sophomore guard Marcus Denmon ended a four-minute drought with a 3-pointer to give MU the lead.
Missouri's defense allowing it to build up lead
The Tigers lead 20-13 with 7:05 left in the half, and are making the Cornhuskers uncomfortable when they have the basketball.
Missouri has forced four turnovers and have continually forced the Nebraska shot clock to drain to less than 10 seconds.
Nebraska already has a tough time scoring, so pressure defense could be the key to Missouri taking this game.
Pregame notes
After a week off Missouri gets back into action this evening against Nebraska.
When we last saw the Tigers they dropped one late to Oklahoma on the road, 66-61. Missouri looks to bounce back from that loss and push its home win streak to 31 games against a Cornhusker team leading the Big 12 in scoring defense (59.8 ppg).
So why are the Huskers in the basement of the Big 12 at 0-3 in conference? Despite their stingy defense, the Huskers find themselves last in the Big 12 in scoring offense (68.2 ppg).
While Nebraska's offensive struggles could play right into Missouri's pressure defense, it may be inopportune timing for MU that it is facing such an effective defense. The Tigers shot a combined 35.3 percent from the field in its last two games. The Tigers survived a trip to Texas Tech with an overtime victory on Jan. 13 but couldn't pull it out against Oklahoma.
No matter how well the Tigers shoot tonight, they better enjoy their time in the friendly confines of Mizzou Arena, for a trip to Allen Fieldhouse to take on No. 3 Kansas awaits on Monday.