3 Takeaways from Mizzou's Trouncing Win Past Arkansas

The Missouri Tigers kept their momentum flowing from their upset victory over the No. 5 Florida Gators on Tuesday, returning home to Columbia and defeating the Arkansas Razorbacks in a 83-65 blowout.

Arkansas had been reeling since it entered conference play, including a 78-74 loss to the LSU Tigers in their previous game. With the loss to Missouri, it now falls to an 0-5 record and No. 15 ranking in the SEC.

Here are three takeaways from the Tigers' fourth-straight win:

3-Point Disparity

The outcome swaying in such a significant way for Missouri can largely be attributed simply to the difference in three-point percentage from both teams.

The Tigers shot a near-50% clip from behind the arc, finishing the night with 11-of-23 made three-pointers as a team. Guards Tamar Bates and Caleb Grill — who both reached 1,000 career points in the matchup — led Missouri with three each.

On the other side, Arkansas found little to no success. It shot just five-of-23 on its three-point attempts, nearly a 20 percent clip. Starters Boogie Fland and D.J. Wanger each took four attempts each, but missed all eight combined.

Throughout the regular season, the Tigers have shown the ability to be one of the most dangerous teams when it comes to the three-point shot. When Grill gets hot there's few that can compete with his shot-making ability, while the likes of forward Trent Pierce and guard Anthony Robinson II are also consistent options.

Missouri now has a 37.9% three-point percentage as a collective unit — good for the third-best in the SEC. Only the Auburn Tigers and Texas Longhorns rank higher, the latter of which it will face on Tuesday.

Halves Still Differ

There can't be too much to complain about with a 52-point first half, but there still remains a noticeable difference in how the Tigers perform in the first and second.

Missouri likes to start out games with intensity, forcing turnovers that lead to fast break opportunities and push the offensive pace. It's been an effective way to jump out to big leads, and so far in SEC play, it's translating into mostly wins.

Regardless of the Tigers beating by double-digits in the end, it only had a 31-30 advantage in the second half. The offense started to get sloppy and mistakes that it didn't make in the first half started to creep up, which could've caused more trouble if the Razorbacks found more momentum themselves.

If the two halves continue to be much different in quality for Missouri, eventually it's going to bite it. It nearly did against Florida and the Vanderbilt Commodores. Its schedule isn't getting any easier in the coming weeks than it has been thus far.

The Tigers have been in the driver's seat for every matchup besides the one against the Auburn Tigers, however, which is entirely an impressive feat. There are far more positives than negatives to mention after Saturday's game, but the difference in halves should be near the top of coach Dennis Gates' list of things to address.

Missouri is Legit

It could probably be inferred by many before Arkansas that Missouri is back to being a legitimate opponent in the SEC, but the way it handled the Razorbacks all but cemented that it's going to be a threat for the rest of the year.

With two wins against top-five opponents already under their belt — No. 1 Kansas Jayhawks and the No. 5 Gators — the Tigers have gotten high-quality wins that are going to make their case for a decent ranking in the NCAA Tournament strong if they keep performing. There's still a lot of season left in a very difficult conference, but there doesn't seem to be a "fluke" nature with this team.

It's without question that Missouri will receive a spot in the AP top 25 Poll after this week, but that isn't a concern for Gates nor any of its players. The Tigers have embraced being a dark horse of sorts in the conversation around top teams in the country, and they are determined to accomplish more than a high ranking.

"They don't want to be ranked. They don't care," Gates said, "They did not care about any of that. At the end of the day, our goal is to be in San Antonio, Texas. "That's the one goal we have, and that's what we talk about."

The Final Four is a high bar to reach, but it's a far more realistic possibility than a year ago, much less earlier on this season. Missouri is playing with a chip on its shoulder and striving for the top achievement, but it's also proving that it's more capable than most expected.

Right now, the Tigers are on a roll. If there was any questioning of its legitimacy after the Kansas win, those have been addressed in conference play.

3-Point Disparity

Halves Still Differ

Missouri is Legit

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