Unable to play in the postseason, Missouri motivated to play spoiler against Georgia, SEC
ATHENS -- Each remaining regular-season game is a countdown for Missouri's end.
Due to NCAA violations that occurred under former head coach Frank Haith during the 2013-14 season, the Tigers self-imposed a one-year postseason pan last week, meaning they will not be eligible to compete in any postseason tournament, including the SEC tournament.
As Missouri head coach Kim Anderson acknowledged, the Tigers (8-9, 1-3 SEC) aren't exactly in the running for an NCAA tournament or NIT berth at the moment.
But to be able to play in the SEC tournament would be meaningful to his team. With that no longer an option, Anderson has had to manage his team's focus with each game remaining on the schedule.
"They've handled it OK," Anderson said of his players. "I've tried to be more positive and talk about refocusing goals. And maybe we could spoil somebody else's season. Maybe we can win a game down the line that means something to someone else."
One team Missouri could spoil in incredible fashion is Georgia, which is coming off of a 34-point loss to Texas A&M. The Bulldogs (9-6, 2-3 SEC) haven't had a signature win this season, but they also haven't had a bad loss.
Being dropped by Missouri would certainly qualify as a bad loss, especially considering the Tigers have an RPI ranking of 146.
Head coach Mark Fox was not pleased following the Texas A&M defeat and said his players must enter Wednesday's road game against Missouri in a much better frame of mind. Fox also knows his team is going to get Missouri's best shot since the Tigers don't have anything to lose at this point.
"I want to see a significantly different effort than we got (against Texas A&M)," Fox said. "We didn't play well at either end. Obviously, we want a different response."
Fox said there should have been a better answer after Texas A&M's initial surge to start the game. Georgia won't be able to have those issues against Missouri, especially considering the game is on the road. The Bulldogs are 0-3 this season when away from Stegeman Coliseum.
More importantly, Georgia needs to establish an offensive rhythm from the onset. With shots unable to fall early against Texas A&M, Georgia got impatient, which led to missed opportunities.
"If you don't execute well -- as a team, as a unit -- you won't win," junior guard J.J. Frazier said.
Georgia was able to take care of business in fairly easy fashion during its first meeting against Missouri, which resulted in a 77-59 win. The Bulldogs hit 11-of-19 shots from behind the 3-point line, with Frazier (16 points), sophomore forward Yante Maten (15), senior guard Charles Mann (14) and senior guard Kenny Gaines (11) all scoring in double figures.
Missouri was limited to 34.5 percent shooting while making only 3-of-19 3-point attempts.
To keep its NCAA tournament hopes alive, Georgia needs to string together a winning streak beginning at Missouri. Georgia didn't look like an NCAA tournament caliber team against Texas A&M, but it possesses plenty of chances to prove it belongs in the field of 68.
With Anderson's Tigers unable to participate in the madness in March, his team would love nothing more than to ruin what teams such as Georgia are hoping to accomplish.
"They've had the big news that they won't play in the postseason, so the mentality of their team is these games are all they have," Fox said. "I'm sure we'll get a great effort from Missouri."
This story was originally published January 20, 2016 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Unable to play in the postseason, Missouri motivated to play spoiler against Georgia, SEC ."