COLUMBIA, Mo. — The soft landing at the end of the Missouri basketball team’s regular-season schedule is almost here — with an emphasis on almost.
Starting Saturday, the Tigers close with three of the Southeastern Conference’s four lowest-ranked teams: Georgia (No. 131 NET ranking), Louisiana State (No. 258) and Mississippi (No. 129). That three-game stretch could provide a safe runway to the top half of the SEC tournament bracket next month in Nashville.
First, though, there’s a 6-foot-11, 245-pound road block in the way.
Before the Tigers can start daydreaming about favorable tournament seeds, they’ll trade blows with Mississippi State and senior center Tolu Smith on Tuesday at Mizzou Arena.