Players to watch, keys to the game for Kentucky vs. Missouri

Mark Pope is out of excuses. He can say whatever sentimental or philosophical thing he wants whenever Kentucky loses. I get it, he cares so much about this team and this program. That’s great. But now, the onus is on him to get this team’s identity figured out.

Wednesday night, Kentucky will take on the Missouri Tigers in its first SEC home game of the season. Missouri is not a pushover team. They’re a good team that can put up points and shoot the ball, similar to last year’s team, and are coming off a top-25 home win over Florida, who just demolished a top-25 Georgia team.

The Tigers also have physicality, largely from big man Mark Mitchell, who the Wildcats are very familiar with.

Let’s look at the players to watch, keys to the game, and score prediction against Missouri on Wednesday night.

Players to watch vs. Missouri

1. No. 25: Mark Mitchell — 6-9, 230 lbs. Sr. Guard/Forward; Kansas City, Kan. (Duke Transfer)
Stats: 16.9 pts, 5.4 rebs, 56.5 FG%, 20% 3-PT FG, 68.4 FT%, 30.8 mpg

Mitchell has over 1,000 points in his college career, a milestone he reached in his third season last year in his first season with Missouri. He was the No. 7 transfer by CBS Sports in 2024, and he has flourished in Columbia.

Last year, Mitchell was one of 14 players in the country to have 450 points, 150 boards, 60 assists, 30 steals, and 25 blocks. In addition, Mitchell led the team in scoring at 13.9 points per game.

So far this season, Mitchell has five games with 20+ points. However, he’s only 7-of-20 from the floor over his last two games. The key for Kentucky will be to force him into tough looks in the paint and to make him work for his points.

2. No. 35: Jacob Crews — 6-8, 215 lbs. Gr. Guard/Forward; Hilliard, Fla. (UT Martin Transfer)
Stats: 13.9 pts, 4.6 rebs, 54.3 FG%, 50.7 3-PT FG%, 81.1 FT%, 24.4 mpg

Crews is nearly tripling his scoring average from last season this season, and he is, arguably, Missouri’s best 3-point shooter. Five times this season, Crews has made at least four 3-pointers. He’s made multiple 3-pointers in every game but three this season.

Like Alabama on Saturday, Crews is going to look to let it rain from beyond the arc. The Wildcats can’t let him have any space on the perimeter when he’s shooting from 3-point range.

3. No. 17: Jayden Stone — 6-4, 185 lbs. Gr. Guard; Perth, Australia (West Virginia Transfer)
Stats: 12.7 pts, 4.7 rebs, 59.3 FG%, 40% 3-PT FG, 13-19 FT, 25.6 mpg

Stone missed 2024-25 at West Virginia with an injury, but he’s having a good first season with Missouri. This is a player who averaged 20.8 points during his junior campaign in 2023-24, ranking 22nd in the nation. 

This season, Crews has scored in double digits in every game but one. He missed all of December with an injury, but returned for Missouri’s win over Florida.

4. No. 0: Anthony Robinson II — 6-3, 185 lbs. Jr. Guard; Tallahassee, Fla.
Stats: 11.5 pts, 3.9 rebs, 49 ast.-24 TO, 32 stl, 45.3 FG%, 34.7 3-PT FG%, 69.1 FT%, 29.9 mpg

Robinson is Missouri’s defensive specialist. Just the second Tiger to earn All-SEC Defensive Team honors, which he did this past season, Robinson was second in the SEC with 2.03 steals per game in 2204-25. In addition, he increased his shooting marks by 11.6 percent overall and by 19.5 percent from beyond the arc from 2023-24.

Coming into this game, Robinson has four straight games with at least 12 points, including two with 19 points. Those four games have increased his scoring average from 9.6 points per game to 11.5 points per game.

5. No. 11: Trent Pierce — 6-10, 225 lbs. Jr. Guard/Forward; Tulsa, Okla.
Stats: 10 pts, 5 rebs, 3-5 FG (2-4 3-PT FG), 2-4 FT, 19 mins in season debut Saturday vs. Florida

Making his season debut Saturday, Pierce played an important role in the Tigers’ upset of the reigning national champions, the Florida Gators. In his second season last year, Pierce more than tripled his scoring total and doubled his rebounding from his rookie campaign. 

6. No. 15: Shawn Phillips Jr. — 7-0, 245 lbs. Sr. Center; Dayton, Ohio (Arizona State Transfer)
Stats: 7.7 pts, 5.2 rebs, 17 blk, 66.7 FG%, 44.4 FT%, 18.5 mpg

Phillips is Missouri’s leading shot-blocker and leader in field goal percentage. In two seasons at Arizona State, where he played with Kentucky’s Jayden Quaintance, Phillips totaled 290 points, 234 rebounds, and 59 blocks with the Sun Devils. In addition, he started 12 of the final 13 games of the 2024-25 campaign, averaging 7.8 points, 7.0 boards, and 1.8 blocks per game.

Head Coach: Dennis Gates (4th Season, 66-49; 7th Season Overall, 116-89) — 45 years old

Gates has quickly become one of the best head coaches in the SEC. Since taking over Missouri in March of 2022, the Tigers have gotten themselves back to being an NCAA Tournament team. The Tigers have been to two NCAA Tournaments in Gates’s first three seasons and seem poised to get back there this season.

Prior to Missouri, Gates was the head coach at Cleveland State for three seasons. The Vikings won the Horizon League Tournament in 2021 to earn an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament, and they won the regular-season title the following season.

Before becoming a head coach, Gates was on Leonard Hamilton’s staff at Florida State for eight seasons. The Seminoles won the ACC Tournament in 2012 and went to the Elite Eight in 2018. 

As a player, Gates played for California for four seasons and was part of the Golden Bears’ 2002 NCAA Tournament team.

Keys to the Game

1. Guard the 3-point line

This goes without saying, especially after Saturday. Missouri is shooting 36.5 percent from 3-point range. They can shoot it from beyond the arc. Kentucky must have a plan to defend Missouri from the 3-point line.

2. Start fast

Kentucky can’t keep falling behind in these games. Mark Pope said it’s not necessarily how the Wildcats start games; it’s the middle of the first half. Still, though, a strong start would at the very least give them a cushion for the middle of the first half. The Wildcats have to set the tone Wednesday night… and every game, for that matter.

3. Feed the bigs

Kentucky is still searching for an offensive identity. One thing that would help is to make the bigs the focal point of the offense. Jayden Quaintance and Malachi Moreno should be the go-to players on most of the Wildcats’ offensive possessions. For a team that struggles shooting the ball, getting high-percentage shots is a good way to combat that.

4. Get out in transition

This can help Kentucky get to the rim and push the pace. It will get the crowd involved, too, which will increase this team’s confidence.

Score Prediction: Kentucky 84, Missouri 78

The Wildcats should win this game at home. Will it be close? Probably. But a good start and timely shot-making will give Kentucky its first SEC win this season and make fans a little happier than they are right now.