COLUMBIA, MO. • “Bet you guys are surprised.”
That’s how Missouri basketball coach Kim Anderson greeted reporters Saturday after his team’s second straight home victory, a 20-point win over Vanderbilt. Was it the start of a late-season resurrection? Was it just an off day from the Southeastern Conference’s best shooting team? Was it too little, too late to salvage a season and, perhaps, a coaching staff? That might be wishful thinking considering the depths the program has plunged on Anderson’s watch, but there’s no denying the Tigers are playing their best basketball of the season.
Whether Saturday’s 72-52 win proves to be an outlier or the flashpoint for a February revival could be determined Wednesday when Alabama (14-10, 7-5) visits Mizzou Arena, one of just three remaining home games for the Tigers (7-17, 2-10).