Mizzou Links for Thursday, May 12

Survive and advance!

Mizzou Softball’s postseason run got underway in the first round of the SEC Tournament on Wednesday against Auburn in Gainesville, Florida.

After a 1-0 pitchers’ duel victory, the Tigers are moving on — thanks to Jordan Weber’s eight strikeout complete game shutout.

The only run of the game came in the bottom of the 4th with a clutch, two-out RBI double from Jenna Laird, scoring pinch runner Maddie Snider.

Though, the play of the game may have came in the Top of the 2nd as the Tigers escaped a bases loaded jam, thanks to this web gem by Alex Honnold.

From the game notes via MUTigers.com, this was Mizzou’s fifth SEC Tournament win in program history, and four of the wins have been shutouts.

With the win, Missouri has advanced to the Quarterfinals, setting up a MUCH anticipated re-match against No. 2 seed Alabama after Sunday’s controversial home run call. First pitch against the Crimson Tide today comes up at 1;30 p.m. CT on the SEC Network, or 30 minutes after the Mississippi State-Tennessee completion.

As usual, plenty of more coverage coming later today with a preview from Karen Steger.

And in men’s hoops news, the program has officially announced the signing of Mohamed Diarra.

Diarra, who was one of the nation’s top JUCO prospects — will have three years of eligibility remaining entering next season. Diarra was named the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Player of the Year in 2021 after averaging 17.6 points and 12.8 rebounds per game.

From Dennis Gates on Diarra, via MUTigers.com:

“Mo was one of the most versatile players in Junior College basketball this past season. He will be able to play several positions on the court for us which will cause matchup problems for opposing defenses. He comes from Garden City Community College, one of the premier Junior Colleges in the country and competed in the tough Jayhawk Conference. He’s just scratched the surface of his potential, and we are excited for him to continue growing here at Mizzou.”

And from Diarra:

“Mizzou is very renowned throughout the country and with the arrival of Coach Gates I knew I could develop here. Coach Gates has successfully coached many players with a similar style as myself and has been very successful. He knows how to develop skills and I can see we have the same winning mentality, which really tipped the scale for me.”

Onto the links. M-I-Z!

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Yesterday at Rock M

• Rock M Roundtable with Harris, Watkins, Matejka, and Gilliam: What to make of Dennis Gates’ roster rebuild?
• On Brandon Kiley’s latest Recruiting Reset: Looking into the latest blue chip quarterback in dual-threat Gabarri Johnson
• PREVIEW from Karen Steger: Mizzou takes on Auburn at SEC Tourney in the Swamp

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More Links:

(KCStar)

• From Max Baker: Missouri Tigers softball beats Auburn, gets rematch with Alabama in SEC Tournament

(Columbia Missourian)

• From Kenny Van Doren: Missouri track and field returns for SEC Outdoor Championships
• Diarra officially signs with MU men’s basketball, writes Anthony Kristensen
• Weber’s gem pushes MU softball past Auburn in first round of SEC Tournament, writes Chris Blake

(Columbia Daily Tribune)

• From Chris Kwiecinski: Missouri basketball has a hungry coaching staff from top to bottom
• Missouri ‘pumped up’ for matchup with Alabama in SEC Tournament quarterfinals, writes Matt Stahl

(Miscellaneous/Tweets)

• Mizzou Baseball’s chances of making the SEC Tournament are slim at this point, but the Tigers will be playing for their fourth consecutive series win at home against Florida. They will desperately need it to keep their Hoover hopes alive.

• On The Big 550 KTRS, Dave Matter joined Brendan Wiese on The Big Sports Show to discuss the latest centered around Mizzou sports. Give it a listen!

• Former Mizzou wide receiver Javian Hester who recently entered the transfer portal has announced his commitment to Oklahoma. Best of luck, JJ!

• On MUTigers.com, SEC Outdoor Track and Field Championships This Weekend
• Some good recognition here from Kris Abrams-Draine!

• If you’re looking to sign up for ESPN+, Rock M Nation now has an affiliate link: click Here for ESPN+ Now!
• If you’re looking to sign up for a new streaming service, you can try FuboTV: click HERE for FuboTV access — FuboTV now has ESPN, CBS, FS1 and more sports channels.
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