What Mizzou Will Need Out of Mark Mitchell Against Arkansas

Senior forward Mark Mitchell has never shot fewer than seven attempts per game in his four-year collegiate career, a mark he reached in his freshman season at Duke.

This year, Mitchell is averaging career highs in points per game, field goal attempts and field goal percentage. But Tuesday against Oklahoma, his offensive aggression dipped below averages.

Mitchell recorded 17 points on a mere six field goal attempts, matching his conference-low in the Tigers’ penultimate regular season contest.

The difference wasn’t poor shooting, as Mitchell was perfect from the field. Nor a surplus of free throws, as Mitchell tied his season average of attempts. It was instead a hounding Sooner defense that threw multiple bodies his way.

“Kudos to the defense, there (was) two guys on me, three guys on me, double teams every time I drove,” Mitchell said in a press conference Friday. “Different games cause different things. Sometimes I take 20 shots and sometimes I might only take six.”

With the Tigers set to face No. 20 Arkansas on Saturday, they will need Mitchell to lean towards more of a shot-heavy diet.

Luckily for Missouri, the 6-foot-9 forward was very successful against Arkansas in the teams' first meeting this year. Mitchell recorded his SEC season-high, 26 points and eight assists, while shooting 8-for-12 from the field and 9-for-12 from the free-throw line.

Mark Mitchell drives — Feb 21, 2026; Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA; Missouri Tigers guard Mark Mitchell (25) drives against Arkansas Razorbacks forward Trevon Brazile (7) during the second half at Bud Walton Arena. Arkansas won 94-86. Mandatory Credit: Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images | Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images

“They kind of play more one-on-one, rather than helping and things like that, but they adjusted throughout the game and I’m sure they’ll make adjustments (on Saturday),” Mitchell said of Arkansas' defense. “I'm just trying to take what the defense gives me, see what I can keep improving on, keep doing better.”

Mitchell’s success in Fayetteville led to a strong offensive performance from Missouri, matching its third highest total in points with 86. But in that eight-point loss, the Tigers gave up a season-high 94 points.

Mitchell will need to have another impressive offensive performance for the Tigers to keep up with a Razorbacks offense that ranks second in scoring in the SEC. Missouri's defense will certainly need to improve to handle the high-powered Arkansas offense. But the factor that can swing the pendulum the most is Mitchell.

“There's nobody more important to their team than Mark Mitchell is to Missouri, I will say that at a drop of a dime,” head coach Dennis Gates said Friday.

The Tigers are 2-4 when Mitchell takes less than 10 field goals in SEC play, while they are 8-3 when he takes 11 or more. To succeed against Arkansas, the Tigers can’t give up another season high, but most importantly, will need to create opportunities for Mitchell.