Knowing the Gators Opponent: Missouri Tigers

The Florida Gators will be taking on a much improved Missouri Tigers team on Tuesday night
This isn't the typical Mizzou team that will be playing the Gators on Tuesday
This isn't the typical Mizzou team that will be playing the Gators on Tuesday / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

Gainesville, Fla. – The Florida Gators men’s basketball team had a great last week. They took down the former No. 1 team in the country with ease, followed it up with their first road win in conference play and moved up to No. 5 in the AP Top 25

However, the SEC waits for no one, which means they have to quickly turn their attention to the next team on the schedule. That team is the Missouri Tigers, who travel to Gainesville on Tuesday for this SEC bout. 

Play between these two began back in the 2012-13 season, with the Gators winning 11 games since then compared to the Tigers four. Additionally, the Gators are currently on a four-game winning streak in this series and are 6-1 at home against the Tigers. 

But history can only take a team so far. So, let’s see who the 2024-25 Missouri Tigers are in this edition of Knowing the Gators Opponent.

Season Outlook

It’s been a great bounce-back year for the Tigers to this point. Despite a very disappointing 2023-24 season that saw them go 8-24 overall and 0-18 in conference play, Missouri now sits 13-3 and 2-1 in the league. 

Their two wins in the SEC came against LSU and Vanderbilt in back-to-back games after opening the SEC schedule with a loss to Auburn. 

Their biggest win through their first 16 games wasn’t either of these two. It was actually against Kansas, who, at the time, was ranked as the AP No. 1 team in the country. This was their first win over an AP No. 1 since Feb. 4, 1997. 

So, this team has some firepower. 

But don’t let this trick you too much. They have some great wins on their resume. However, they’ve all come at home. Missouri is 0-2 on away hardwoods. 

Tigers to Look Out For

Missouri has four players averaging 10 or more points on the season. Those four are Mark Mitchell, Tamar Bates, Caleb Grill and Anthony Robinson II. Leading this pack is Mitchell with 13.5 points per game. Bates is right on his tail with 13 points per game as well. 

The Gators bigs will have their hands full with Mitchell, a former five-star recruit and former Duke Blue Devil. He leads the team in scoring, second in rebounds and has recorded double-digit steals and blocks through 16 games. Fortunately for Todd Golden and company, they have the bigs men as well to fight back.

In addition to Mitchell, Bates is someone else that Florida will need to have their eyes on throughout the entire game. He has always been their go-to guy and is one of the SEC’s best scorers when it’s his night. He’s a three-level scorer and is knocking down 38.6 percent of his triples this season. Bates is also very great at getting his hand in the cookie jar, recording 27 steals up to this point. 

Another worrying aspect about this Missouri team is their pair of deadly sharpshooters. Sure, Bates shooting 38.6 percent from three is very respectable, but he isn’t the leader in this category for the team. That title goes to Caleb Grill. Grill is connecting on 46.7 percent of his threes. Then, right behind him is Marques Warrick, who is hitting 45.1 percent of his threes. 

Florida will need to make sure they run them off the three-point line and limit their shots or else it could be a repeat of how Kentucky guard Koby Brea shot against them. 

Win the Turnover Battle

The Gators have struggled at times to limit their poor, untimely turnovers. It was a key reason they lost to Kentucky and why Arkansas was able to keep it a close game.

And, even though Missouri isn’t one of the best at generating fastbreak points, they are one of the top teams in the steals department. They are averaging 10.2 steals per game in 2024-25, which is good enough to be tied eighth in the country. Moreover, the only SEC team higher than them is Vanderbilt. 

The Gators will need to be careful and take care of the basketball when in possession or else an upset could be upon them. 

Tip-off is set at 9 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN U. 


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