On Monday evening, Missouri basketball began a new era; head coach Dennis Gates made his coaching debut. Gates has been the talk of Columbia for several months, and for good reason: he’s made waves on the recruiting trail and from preseason camp.
However, everything was put to rest when they played Southern Indiana in their season tipoff. All speculation and projections became moot, and the Tigers got to play basketball for the first time since the spring, winning 97-91. Some things remained the same: forward Kobe Brown tallied 20 points and 14 rebounds, sleep-walking his way to a double-double.
Brown was an all-conference selection last season and looks to increase his NBA draft stock this year. He’s an excellent around-the-basket big man, but his 6-8 frame won’t lend itself to success down low at the professional level.
Gates put the ball in Brown’s hands early, allowing him some flexibility on the perimeter. Brown wasn’t dominant with his touches, but the development process will take time and shouldn’t become consistent until conference play.
Fans knew Brown would walk into gyms and put together impressive performances nightly. They didn’t know what the surrounding cast would look like, and to be frank, Gates doesn’t know yet. They tinkered with some lineups on Monday, playing multiple ball handlers simultaneously while attempting to leave some shooters on the floor.
Guard Sean East II showed some flashes of playmaking ability, though you would like to see him become more consistent. East shined when he got into the open court and made quick reads, though the half-court game is a work in progress.
Missouri will need some shooting from their front court if they want to hold teams accountable. Southern Indiana didn’t hope to stop the Tigers from attacking the basket, but SEC teams will clog the paint more effectively.
They got some flashes of scoring from forward Noah Carter and guard D’Moi Hodge. Hodge had a strong shooting night, and his mechanics are appealing; he releases the ball on the way up in his set shot, an uncommon idiosyncrasy that some of the best shooters in the world have.
They got some flashes from freshman forward Aidan Shaw, the prized recruit in the 2022 class. Shaw’s tantalizing upside remains clear; his length and athleticism on the defensive end make him an adequate rim protector. His offensive game is a little raw, but Shaw plays hard and can put some things together as a secondary ball-handler.
Missouri will continue to dive into its non-conference slate on Friday as they host Penn, another solid test for a Tigers team hoping to discover themselves.