Missouri is off to a 1-0 start after knocking off Central Arkansas on Tuesday, and now it will turn its attention to a showdown in Ames with Iowa State.
The Tigers are still adjusting to Jontay Porter being sidelined for the season due to injury, and they may have figured a few things out on the offensive side of the court in the opening night victory.
Meanwhile, the Cyclones took care of business against Alabama State, scoring a 79-53 home win to get Steve Prohm’s fourth season started on the right foot.
Let’s run through what to watch for in this intriguing matchup.
Game Details
- Missouri (1-0) at Iowa State (1-0)
- Location: Hilton Coliseum – Ames, IA
- Game Date: Nov. 9
- Game Time: 7 p.m. EST
- Watch: Cyclones TV
Players to Watch
Mark Smith (Missouri)
The Illinois transfer came through in a big way during his inaugural game with the Tigers after being granted a waiver to play this season.
Smith scored 19 points and posted career-highs in both rebounds (10) and 3-pointers made (5), and that’s exactly the kind of production that Cuonzo Martin will need going forward.
After the graduation of Kassius Robertson, we came into the season wondering how Missouri would make up for its inexperience in the backcourt, so Smith’s emergence early on is at least a step in the positive direction.
Jeremiah Tilmon (Missouri)
The 6-10 sophomore will be the biggest player on the floor in this game, and he’ll look to build off a solid opening night that saw him score 16 points and grab five rebounds.
As is always the case with him, staying out of foul trouble will be key. He picked up four fouls in the win over Central Arkansas but still managed to play 26 minutes.
He should continue to develop his skill set both on offense and on the glass, and this will be a quality test against a good opponent.
Lindell Wigginton (Iowa State)
Wigginton is certainly going to present some challenges for Missouri’s guards in this one, as he continues to build off of an excellent freshman campaign.
He averaged 16.7 points last year and started off this season with a 13-point performance against the Hornets.
Despite being just a sophomore, Wigginton can do a little bit of everything, and he could shine in this type of matchup.
Marial Shayok (Iowa State)
Speaking of players that can make plays on both sides of the court, the 6-6 Virginia transfer can do just that.
Shayok went for 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting and added six rebounds and three assists in the opener, and he should be someone Prohm can lean on for experience in key situations.
The senior started 14 games for the Cavaliers during the 2016-17 season, so he’s more than capable of rising to the challenge in big games.
Key Stats
Iowa State typically likes to let Wigginton and company keep things moving along on offense, as the Cyclones finished 81st in average offensive possession length last season (16.6 seconds).
On the flip side, Martin will want to take a more methodical approach and try to make it a grind-it-out type of game on both ends of the floor.
Missouri hit 10 3-pointers in the game between these two last year, but that may be harder to come by here since Iowa State should be improved on defense.
Game Outlook
- Spread: Iowa State -8
- Over/Under: 142
- KenPom Projection: Iowa St 76, Missouri 67
- ESPN BPI Projection: Iowa State, 73.2 percent chance to win
I tend to think the Cyclones are being a bit undervalued in the Big 12, but it’s hard to gather much from a one-game sample size against a SWAC opponent.
The addition of Smith gives Missouri a big boost after seemingly being a really bad spot due to Porter’s injury, so at least the guard play will be better than we thought.
However, there are still a lot of unknowns with Martin’s group, and players like Tilmon and Kevin Puryear (who scored only two points on Tuesday but grabbed 10 rebounds) have to be major factors on a nightly basis.
My concern is that there’s too little room for error for the Tigers right now, and one of those players having an off night or getting in foul trouble could make things rather difficult.
The Cyclones are missing a few key players, so things may not be fully clicking just yet.
But Iowa State has a great home-court advantage and may be the more complete team at this stage in the season, even if some important players are sidelined.
There should still be enough production to give Prohm’s squad some payback after last season’s struggles in Columbia.
Prediction: Iowa State 75, Missouri 65
11/9 Update: Wigginton is now questionable to play for Iowa State due to a foot injury, which would leave the Cyclones without several starters. If he doesn’t play, this could essentially be a pick’em.
Lindell Wigginton's left foot injury. It's being called a strain. pic.twitter.com/ZZSSXbySIz
— Tommy Birch (@TommyBirch) November 9, 2018
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