A familiar finish for the Tigers

In the last two seasons, MU has lost four close games to Nebraska.

By Mike Bushnell

Published March 14, 2008

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With three minutes remaining in Thursday's game, MU found itself in a familiar position when it has come to playing against Nebraska during the Mike Anderson era.

Just like when the Cornhuskers stunned the Tigers at Mizzou Arena this year, beating Missouri by four, or just like when the Cornhuskers stunned the Tigers at Mizzou Arena last year, winning by four, MU was trailing by one possession with legitimate opportunities to pull out a win.

And again, instead all the Tigers got was another loss.

On Thursday, with a home state crowd heavily in their favor, Missouri was able to pull within one point with 2:17 left, but no closer. It was their fourth loss in five games against the Huskers since Mike Anderson took the coaching reins before last season, and also the fourth by five points or less. Their only win was an 86-78 victory in overtime in Lincoln, Neb., on Feb. 13.

Junior forward Leo Lyons said Nebraska's zone defenses have matched up well with a Missouri offense that thrives off fast breaks and man-to-man play.

"We're an attacking team," Lyons said. "When teams pack it in and play zone its harder for us to drive, and that's what they do really well."

In the four losses to Nebraska the last two seasons, the Tigers have always shot below 45 percent from the floor. On Thursday, they shot just 31.6 percent; take away their 9-for-19 shooting from three-point range, and the Tigers shot 9-for-38; 23.6 percent. In the overtime win in Lincoln, the Tigers shot 49 percent.

"We switch out on everything," Nebraska coach Doc Sadler said of his team's defense, which prided itself Thursday on creating unusual match-ups, such as putting senior center Aleks Maric on MU senior point guard Jason Horton. "Defensively, Aleks did a great job and we had a lot of help from other guys."

But sophomore guard Keon Lawrence said the losses to Nebraska, like most of their defeats in general, have been more a product of MU's own failures than anything else.

"It's us, man," he said. "We just keep doing stupid things and can't get in position to make shots."

Another major problem for the Tigers against the Huskers, not unlike most games, has been their inability to win the rebounding battle. When Nebraska beat MU on Feb. 2, 2007 at Mizzou Arena to snap a 10 game losing skid in Columbia, it was the first time they had out-rebounded a Big 12 team all season. Then, the second time they out-rebounded a conference team was when they beat MU in Lincoln later that month.

"We just lack a lot of size inside," junior forward DeMarre Carroll said. "With Maric in there for Nebraska, it's been hard for us when we play them."

Maric had 13 rebounds on Thursday, which, to MU's credit, was one less than the 14 he had against MU in Columbia last month. Or the 19 boards they let Maric pull down during last year's loss in Lincoln that knocked those Tigers (who, outside of the departure of the sparsely-used Marcus Watkins and the addition of the often-used Carroll, are the exact same Tigers as this season) out of any real hope of reaching the NCAA Tournament.

"They just match up real well with us," Lyons said of the Huskers. "Sometimes that's just the way it is."