FAYETTEVILLE — Missouri guard Tamar Bates is a hot-shot SEC newcomer the University of Arkansas must try to contain in today’s 7:30 p.m. game against the Tigers at Mizzou Arena.
Bates, a 6-5 transfer from Indiana, is showing a phenomenal shooting touch from every level in his first season in the league.
Bates was the only player in Division I with a field-goal percentage of 50% or greater (.552), a three-point percentage of 40% or better (.458) and a free-throw rate of 90% or better (.941) heading into last weekend.
“He’s a really tough matchup,” Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman said on his radio show Monday. “Left-hander, three-level scorer, can make threes, can beat people off the bounce. He’s an excellent cutter. He’s got great strength.”
Bates has made 95 of 172 field goals, 22 of 48 three-pointers and 48 of 51 free throws. Put them all together and the Kansas City, Kan., native is making 64.1% of all shots on the year.
Musselman said Bates and former Razorback Justin Smith came from Indiana with an inherent strength.
“The one thing with the Big Ten, those players, whether it’s Justin Smith or Tamar Bates, those guys strength-wise are used to physicality and finishing through physicality,” Musselman said. “And Bates does a great job of that. He’s a guy that they’ll run some pick-and-rolls with him handling the ball on the right side of the floor to try to get him going downhill with his left hand. And he’ll leak out in transition.
“He’s a great transition scorer. Very good offensive rebounder. So he’s a very difficult cover.”
Bates ranks fifth in scoring in SEC games only at 18.9 points, is second in field goal percentage (.571) and leads the conference in free throw percentage (.957) in SEC play.
Hungry Tigers
Musselman believes Missouri will be a tough matchup with the Tigers looking to break out of their 0-7 hole win SEC play.
“Our guys have to realize how hungry they will be,” Musselman said on his Monday radio show. “If you look at Missouri’s games, [it’s] a lot of close scores. You look at the five-minute mark left in games of Missouri’s SEC games. It’s unbelievable how close they are and how hard they’ve played.”
Missouri Coach Dennis Gates made a grand debut last season, leading the Tigers to a 25-10 record, their first double bye for the SEC Tournament, a 79-71 win over No. 17 Tennessee at the SECs, and a 76-65 win over 10 seed Utah State in the NCAA Tournament before falling to 15 seed Princeton (78-63).
The NCAA Tournament victory was the first since Coach Mike Anderson’s 2009-10 team advanced to the second round. The Tigers’ 25-10 record marked the program’s first 25-win season since Coach Frank Haith’s debut team in 2011-12 went 30-5 and won the Big 12 Tournament before losing in upset fashion, 86-84, to Norfolk State in the first round of the NCAAs.
This year, the Tigers went 8-5 in non-conference play, including a 71-64 win over Pittsburgh on the road in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge and a puzzling 73-72 home loss to Jackson State. A 92-59 win over Central Arkansas on Dec. 30 is the Tigers’ only triumph since defeating Wichita State 82-72 on Dec. 3.
Missouri has lost 10 of its last 11 games.
Good Defense
Musselman said his review of video from the Hogs’ 63-57 loss to No. 6 Kentucky showed the game swung on a precious few possessions.
“They made some threes down the stretch, we turned the ball over and didn’t get a shot on goal [and that’s] really the difference in the game,” Musselman said on his radio show Monday.
“Because I’ve watched that thing multiple, multiple times. It was probably our best defensive effort, to be honest with you, of the whole year. I thought we did a really good job of controlling tempo against the No. 1 offensive team in the nation.”
Kentucky scored 26 points less than its season average of 89 entering the game.
Former guys
While former Missouri standout Trevon Brazile is questionable for Arkansas due to knee soreness heading into the game, former Razorback Connor Vanover is coming off one of his better games for the Tigers.
Brazile is averaging 8.9 points and a team-high 6.5 rebounds but he missed Saturday’s loss to Kentucky while rehabbing his knee.
Vanover is averaging 4.0 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.9 blocked shots in 11.9 minutes per game. A graduate student who prepped at Arkansas Baptist and Findley Prep, he is now listed at 7-5, 230 pounds.
He began his career at Cal (2018-19) before transferring to Arkansas (2019-22) where he made 37 starts in 44 games over three seasons. Vanover played at Oral Roberts (2022-23) before landing in Columbia, Mo.
Vanover posted season highs of 11 points against Wichita State and Central Arkansas. The former TikTok sensation is coming off a season-high tying seven rebounds in 18 minutes in a loss at South Carolina.
Free throw flip
Arkansas is No. 5 in the nation in drawing free throws with an average of 25.9 per game while Missouri is on the flip side of that stat, ranking No. 303 out of 362 teams with 16.4 per game.
Heading into their last game at South Carolina, the Tigers were 351st in free throw attempt differential at -6.0 per game. Arkansas is plus 4.3 in that category.
Series glance
Arkansas leads its series with Missouri by a count of 33-27, including a 14-9 mark since the Tigers joined the SEC for the 2012-13 season.
The Razorbacks had won five in a row before Missouri eked out a 79-76 win last Jan. 18 over No. 25 Arkansas at Mizzou Arena.
In the earlier meeting last year, No. 13 Arkansas downed No. 20 Missouri 74-68 at Bud Walton Arena in its conference home opener on Jan. 4. That marked the first meeting with both teams ranked since an 89-88 win for the No. 4 Tigers over the No. 7 Razorbacks on Dec. 13, 1989 at Barnhill Arena.
Missouri holds a 17-12 advantage in games played in Columbia, Mo., including a 7-4 mark since joining the SEC.
Ricky Council poured in 25 points, including 11 of 13 free throw shooting, Joseph Pinion added 13 points off the bench with 3 of 6 shooting from three-point range, and Davonte Davis had 10 points, 5 assists and 3 steals in the Razorbacks’ win last year.
In the return game, Missouri made 30 of 40 free throw attempts and Kobe Brown scored 17 points and drew 9 fouls for the Tigers, who were out-rebounded 42-23 but out-scored the Arkansas bench 48-16.
The game was phenomenally tight with 11 ties and 17 lead changes.
The Razorbacks led by 10 points, 67-57, on a pair of free throws by Council with 5:07 remaining. DeAndre Gholston’s three-point shot off a Kamani Johnson turnover knotted the game at 67-67 at 2:28 and the Tigers were 8 of 8 at the line in the final 29 seconds.
Davis led four Hogs in double figures with 18 points. Anthony Black scored 15 points, Council contributed 13 and Jordan Walsh had 12 for Arkansas. Walsh hit 4 of 4 shots, 2 of 2 from three-point range, and went 2 for 2 from the free throw line. Walsh was one of four Razorbacks to foul out, along with Makhi Mitchell, Johnson and Davis.
All 20
With the injury to Brazile and the departure of Davis prior to the Kentucky game last Saturday, the list of Razorbacks who have played in all 20 games dwindled down to three: El Ellis, Mitchell and Chandler Lawson.
Brazile, Davis, Khalif Battle, and Layden Blocker have played in 19 games, and Jeremiah Davenport and Tramon Mark have played in 18 games.
Going under
Missouri is already below .500 for the season at 8-12 and the Razorbacks (10-10) would join the Tigers with a loss tonight.
Arkansas basketball has not suffered a losing season since going 14-18 in 2009-10 under third-year Coach John Pelphrey.
The 2015-16 team won four of its last six games to finish 16-16 and keep fifth-year Coach Mike Anderson’s streak of not having a losing season intact.