Game notes: Mizzou Arena sees high early season attendance
Missouri beat Truman State in its exhibition opener Friday night.
Published Nov. 6, 2009
Fanning out
A crowd of 8,120 came out to see Missouri basketball defeat Truman State on Friday night. The fans were into the game from tipoff and coach Mike Anderson said he could see the effect on his players.
“Hats off to our fans, especially our students,” Anderson said. “They showed up in numbers and that has a tremendous, tremendous effect on our guys. When they walked out there, I could see it in their eyes. I knew they were going to leave it on the floor.”
This year, the crowds at Mizzou Arena have been bigger than those this time last year. The attendance at the Black and Gold Game on Oct. 23 was more than double that of the previous year.
The attendance Friday night exceeded that of last season’s regular season opener against Prairie View A&M on Nov. 15, 2008.
“That was a great feeling,” senior guard Zaire Taylor said. “Before the game even started just seeing everybody in the stands was a great feeling. It makes you feel like you’re going to have a lot of support this season and hopefully we won’t disappoint.”
On the rebound
Missouri out-rebounded Truman State, 54-24. The Tigers posted 24 offensive rebounds, leading to ample opportunities for second chance points.
Sophomore forward Laurence Bowers said as the competition gets stiffer, Missouri would have to fight harder to get those rebounds.
“Us being not the biggest team in the world, we can’t get killed on the boards,” Bowers said. “Later on we’re going to have to work, really work. It’s not going to be as easy as it was tonight.”
Bowers led Missouri with 12 total rebounds, including eight on the offensive side.
“It’s all about hustle and attitude and wanting to,” Anderson said. “We rebound a whole lot better when we know the shot is going up. You know when that ball is going to be shot and it gives you an opportunity to attack that glass."
Tiger tracks
The game against Truman State marked the first time these two teams met since 1933. In this, their first meeting in Columbia, the Tigers increased their all-time series lead to 3-0.
With this win, the Tigers improved to 7-0 in exhibition games under Anderson.
The numbers tell the story
The second half was one to forget for Truman State. Beside scoring only eight points, the Bulldogs were 1 for 17 from the field — good for a 5.9 percentage.
They hit zero 3-pointers on seven attempts and were out-rebounded 31-12 in the half.
No Truman State player ended with double-digit points. The high scorer was junior forward Andrew James with five points. In contrast, nine Tigers scored five points or more in the game.