March 2009 blog archives
Posted on
March 30, 2009 by Shane Epping
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
Photos by Karen Stockman
Kaitlyn Bailey stays warm on Sunday afternoon while she waits for her favorite basketball team to return from the NCAA tournament, where the Tigers finished in the Elite 8.
After stepping off the team bus, Zaire Taylor enters a tunnel of Mizzou fans on the south side of Mizzou Arena.
J.T. Tiller greets the crowd of approximately 200 people with high-fives, handshakes and autographs.
Coach Mike Anderson thanks the fans for their support. Although he didn’t speak, Steve Moore stood beside Anderson and several of his teammates who also thanked the fans.
Freshman Kim English returns an autographed poster after promising to bring home a national title next year.
Posted on
March 27, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
There was a telling moment in the first half of Mizzou’s 102-91 upset of Memphis in the Sweet 16. A moment, with just seconds left on the clock, when Tigers fans felt goosebumps and started to wonder whether this truly could be a team of destiny.
Marcus Denmon, who had just been robbed of a three-pointer on the previous possession, took the inbounds pass. Tightly guarded, he had to heave the ball 70 feet toward the basket. And then, with the CBS cameras ready to follow the team into the locker room, the shot swooshed through and gave Mizzou a 49-36 halftime lead. Nothing was going to deny them.
J.T. Tiller led Mizzou offensively with a career-high 23 points. Leo Lyons had a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds. DeMarre Carroll added 17 points, six rebounds and six assists. Zaire Taylor (14) and Matt Lawrence (13) also were in double digits.
Mizzou (31-6) ended Memphis’ (33-4) 27-game winning streak and propelled Mizzou to the Elite 8 for just the fifth time in school history (including the 1943-44 season when just eight teams made the tournament). The Tigers next face UConn (30-4), the top seed in the West regional. The Huskies, who beat No. 5 Purdue on Thursday, have won by an average of 31.3 points in their three tournament games so far. To get to Mizzou’s first Final 4, they have to go through UConn and the Big East Player of the Year, Hasheem Thabeet.
Although Mizzou has never made the Final 4 before, perhaps these Tigers — the first in Mizzou history to rack up 30 wins and the first to win a Big 12 Championship — can pull off one more first.
Posted on
March 23, 2009 by Shane Epping
Mark Ellis takes on Iowa State’s David Zabriskie at the Hearnes Center Feb. 15, about a month before Ellis went on to win a national championship.
Mark Ellis, an MU junior from Peculiar, Mo., won a national championship at the NCAA Division I Wrestling Tournament on Saturday night in St. Louis. Wrestling in the heavyweight division, Ellis accrued a 30-3 record for the year, losing only to Oklahoma State’s Jerrod Roshold and Iowa State’s David Zabriskie earlier in the season.
Ellis is Mizzou’s second wrestler in history to win a national title, preceded by Ben Askren, who won national titles in 2006 and 2007. This was Ellis’s third time to qualify for the national tournament and his first to finish as not only an All-American but also a national champion.
Four of his teammates also earned All-American honors:
Raymond Jordan, 3rd place in the 174 division
Michael Chandler, 5th place in the 157 division
Max Askren, 5th place in the 197 division
Nick Marable, 7th place in the 165 division
As a team, the University of Missouri finished in seventh place with 70 points and tied the No. 1 team, Iowa, with for the most All-American wrestlers on one team.
Posted on
March 23, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
With victories against Cornell and Marquette this weekend, the Mizzou men’s basketball team advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA tournament.
The Tigers, in their first NCAA tournament since 2003, started as the No. 3 seed in Boise, Idaho. Playing 14-seed Cornell on Friday afternoon, Mizzou thrashed the Big Red 78-59. Leo Lyons led the attack with 23 points and 10 rebounds and often imposed his will on his overmatched opponents.
Sunday afternoon, the Tigers didn’t have things quite so easy. Mizzou built an 11-point first half lead on outstanding team play. True freshman Kim English stood out, scoring 15 points in a torrid 4 1/2 minutes off the bench.
The Golden Eagles weren’t going down easily, and led 78-74 with less than two minutes to play. That’s when Mizzou coach Mike Anderson said he heard a player on the bench say, “We’ve been here before.”
The Tigers held on defense and tied the game at 79, but Marquette had a chance to go back ahead. In a textbook example of how their impeccable conditioning paid off, Mizzou clung to Marquette’s players like Cellophane and forced a shot clock violation with 19 seconds left.
Junior J.T. Tiller took the ball up the court, and taking advantage of a break in the defense, drove to the basket. The shot rimmed out, but Tiller was hammered on his way to the hoop. He was unable to take his two foul shots with 5.5 seconds left, so in came English with a chance to be a hero. English, not one to disappoint, swished them both.
The Mizzou defense brought its patented pressure and, in a break, got the ball back when Marquette’s Lazar Hayward stepped on the baseline on the inbounds pass. Two Leo Lyons free throws later, Mizzou won 83-79.
It was fitting that the last-second win would come at the same arena where the Tigers hearts had been broken nearly 15 years earlier. UCLA’s Tyus Edney took the ball the length of the court in 1995 to beat Mizzou, but Marquette had no such chance this year.
The Tigers now travel to Glendale, Ariz., just outside Phoenix, to take on the second-seeded Memphis Tigers. Memphis narrowly escaped upset in the first round in a 81-70 win against No. 15 Cal State Northridge that was closer than the final score indicated. Memphis left little doubt Saturday, dismantling Maryland 89-70. In the other West regional semifinal, No. 1 UConn plays No. 5 Purdue.
The pair of victories this weekend gives the Tigers a 30-6 record, and the 30 wins are the most in program history. Mizzou gets a chance to set the record even higher on Thursday at 8:37 p.m. Another win would give the Tigers a Saturday game with the time to be decided.
NCAA.com allows users to watch games online, follow scores in real time and updates brackets on the completion of games. Check back on Mizzou Wire and the Live Wire blog for more Mizzou coverage.
Posted on
March 20, 2009 by Shane Epping
The 2009 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships started on Thursday, March 19, in the Scottrade Center in St. Louis. Eight Tigers earned a right to go; six of them were ranked in the top six in their respective weight class brackets.
As of Friday afternoon, after the quarterfinals and wrestlebacks, five Mizzou rasslers were still alive in the tournament. Raymond Jordan (174), Max Askren (197) and Mark Ellis (HWT) wrestle in the semifinals on Friday night while Michael Chandler (157) and Nick Marable (165) make their way through the wrestleback brackets, where they could earn third place. Todd Schavrien (133), Marcus Hoehn (141) and Dorian Henderson (184) have been eliminated from further action.
At the end of the third session, before the semifinals and wrestlebacks begin at 6 p.m., Missouri ranks No. 7 in the team standings with 40 total points. Ohio State leads with a score of 61.5.
Session six, which will be held on one mat and feature the finals and awards ceremony, begins at 5:30 p.m. Saturday night.
Posted on
March 19, 2009 by Shane Epping
Photos by Shane Epping
Mary Ann Gowdy, a teaching assistant professor in the Division of Plant Sciences and the program leader for Tiger Garden, holds the attention of about 20 budding gardeners at the gardening workshop “Brown Thumbs Don’t Exist.” Future gardening workshops will be held April 2, 9, 16, 23 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 115 Natural Resources Building. For a full schedule, visit http://tigergarden.missouri.edu/classes.php
Debbie Ricker takes notes during Dr. Gowdy’s presentation.
Posted on
March 17, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
In what has become a pre-spring break tradition on the MU campus, the Wellness Resource Center will host its annual Safe Spring Break 2009 event Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Students and faculty looking to pick up some safety tips before heading out of town can go to the fair, enjoy free pizza and soda, and pick up T-shirts and other freebies. The event, which has been running for two decades, will be held in a different location this year — Stotler Lounge in Memorial Union — as construction of the New Student Center is completed.
With nearly 20 booths, the event covers a wide range interests while offering interactive activities and education on subjects such as safe sex, safe driving and sexual assault.
Kim Dude, director of the Wellness Resource Center, said the goal of the program is to help students stay safe during spring break no matter where they go or what they do.
“Every decision you make, no matter what it is, has a consequence,” Dude says. “You need to be intentional with every decision you make because there are some powerfully negative consequences to those choices, and they can impact you for the rest of your life. I certainly want students to have fun and relax, but there are ways to do that without making potentially dangerous decisions.”
In addition to topics covered every year, this year’s Safe Spring Break event addresses recent troubles in Mexico that have prompted U.S. government warnings.
The State Department has issued an alert about recent increases in violence and crime throughout Mexico. While millions of citizens visit the country each year, many Mexican and foreign bystanders have been injured or killed in violent attacks in cities across the country. In recent years, dozens of U.S. citizens have been kidnapped. Robberies, homicides, petty thefts and carjackings have increased as well, with notable spikes in Tijuana and northern Baja California. It is suggested that visitors to Mexico:
- Visit only legitimate business and tourist areas only during daylight hours.
- Be aware of your surroundings at all times.
- Leave your itinerary with a friend or family member not traveling with you.
- Avoid traveling alone.
- Check with your cellular provider prior to departure to confirm that your cell phone is capable of roaming on GSM or 3G international networks.
- Do not display expensive-looking jewelry, large amounts of money or other valuable items.
- Avoid areas where prostitution and drug dealing might occur.
- Register with the appropriate U.S. Embassy or Consulate on the State Department’s travel registration Web site.
“The State Department’s not telling people not to go,” Dude says. “They’re saying if you go, here’s how to stay safe. Really, it’s the same kinds of things people need to do no matter where they go.”
If an emergency involving U.S. citizens in Mexico occurs, travelers should contact the closest U.S. Embassy or Consulate. The U.S. Embassy is located in Mexico City.
- Telephone from the U.S.: 011-52-55-5080-2000
- Telephone within Mexico City: 5080-2000
- Telephone long distance within Mexico: 01-55-5080-2000
- E-mail: ccs@usembassy.net.mx
The center does its best to educate students, but workers are aware there’s only so much they can do.
“We evaluate every year at the end of [spring break], and students say they’re more likely to make safer choices,” Dude says. “It’s our responsibility to educate them and just hope they go out and make good decisions.”
Posted on
March 16, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
The Mizzou men’s basketball team took care of business this past weekend, and in turn, the NCAA selection committee took care of the Tigers.
After toppling Texas Tech in its first game of the Big 12 Tournament, Mizzou went on to beat No. 7 seed Oklahoma State 67-59 on Friday and No. 9 Baylor 73-60 in Saturday’s championship. It was Mizzou’s first Big 12 championship in any men’s sport and Mizzou’s second Big 12 championship this academic year, on the heels of the women’s soccer team’s championship in the fall.
The Tigers were rewarded with the West’s No. 3 seed in the Big Dance, where they will play Ivy League champion No. 14 Cornell in the first game Friday at 2 p.m. in Boise, Idaho. Assuming Mizzou wins, a safe bet for 3-14 matchups, the Tigers will play the winner of No. 6 Marquette and No. 11 Utah State on Sunday.
If Mizzou makes the Sweet 16, play shifts to the regional location of Glendale, Ariz. There, the Tigers could possibly play Conference USA champion No. 2 Memphis, a team that has won more than 60 consecutive games in conference. No. 1 in the region is UCONN, a powerhouse in the basketball-rich Big East Conference, which received three No. 1 seeds in the tournament.
Follow the brackets on NCAA.com, and check back for updates on the Live Wire Blog throughout the tournament.
Posted on
March 13, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
Things couldn’t have gone better Thursday for Mizzou at the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament.
After a back-and-forth first half against Texas Tech, the Tigers (26-6) used a 17-2 run early in the second to build a 15-point lead. And they never looked back in the 81-60 quarterfinal beatdown of the Red Raiders.
DeMarre Carroll led Mizzou with 19 points, and J.T. Tiller and Matt Lawrence each scored 13. Zaire Taylor couldn’t be contained in any aspect of the game; he had eight points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
In addition to the win, the tournament bracket couldn’t have set up any better for the Tigers. No. 1 seed Kansas was knocked off by No. 9 Baylor to start the day. No. 5 Texas took down No. 4 Kansas State, and No. 2 Oklahoma lost to in-state rival Oklahoma State.
Sure, the teams that lost were considered, along with Mizzou, to have the best odds of winning. But it’s especially significant because No. 3 seeds are the lowest to ever win the Big 12 Tournament. The physical and mental stress of winning four games in four days for the lower-seeded teams has proven to be too much to overcome. So it would appear the path for the Tigers, the tournament’s No. 3 seed, has opened up widely.
Mizzou takes on No. 7 Oklahoma State at 8:30 p.m. Friday. Should the Tigers continue their run, they will play for the title Saturday at 5 p.m. on ESPN.
Posted on
March 12, 2009 by Karen Pojmann
Unlucky Friday the 13? Nonsense. Beware the Ides of March? Pshaw.
If you’re lucky enough to be on the MU campus this weekend, you’ll find March 13-15 packed with perfectly safe fun and rare opportunities.
Art in Bloom
The Museum of Art and Archaeology shows ornate fresh flower displays inspired by its art and artifacts collection — along with items from the MU Historic Costume and Textile Collection. Friday through Sunday
Driven
While you’re at the museum, check out Driven, an exhibition of work by artists with disabilities. Through April 19
Etching by Jessica Merrell
An Evening With Edgar Allen Poe
Celebrating both the goth writer’s 200th birthday and Friday the 13th, Friends of the MU Libraries and the Life and Literature Series present dramatic readings of Poe’s work. Friday
Darwin symposium
Like Poe, Charles Darwin would celebrate his 200th birthday this year. Mizzou honors the scientist with a three-day symposium titled “Darwin’s Ongoing Revolution: Evolutionary Thoughts in Emerging Fields.” Friday through Sunday
Picture Incomplete: A One Man Musical
Mizzou alumnus Trent Armand Kendall performs his acclaimed show at the Rhynsburger Theatre. Saturday and Sunday
Golden Dragon Acrobats
The University Concert Series presents acrobatics, traditional dance and fancy costumes. Saturday
Peng Peng
Even more entertainment from China: The Concert Series presents 15-year-old prodigy pianist and composer Peng Peng. Sunday
Taste of Arts and Science
Mizzou professors give presentations on everything from Mark Twain and Hugh Hefner to musicals and photography. Saturday
Model Citizen Fashion Show
Volunteers take to the runway to raise money for the MU Thompson Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders. MU alumna Jann Carl of Entertainment Tonight fame is the mistress of ceremonies. Saturday
Science Olympiad
Top scientists from the state’s secondary schools compete on campus.
Women’s History Month
Watch the film Sisters in Law, a story of social justice in West Africa, Friday. Sit down to the
Intergenerational Feminist Tea Sunday.
Mizzou Gymnastics
In the last home meet of the season, the MU Women’s Gymnastics Team competes against Oregon State. Friday
Posted on
March 9, 2009 by Ryan Gavin
Category: 2008-09 Basketball
Several Tigers were awarded All-Big 12 postseason honors this season.
Senior DeMarre Carroll was named to both the Coaches’ and Associated Press All-Big 12 First Team. Additionally, Carroll was named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team. He has led the Tigers in scoring (17.1) and rebounding (7.3) and is the only player in the conference to rank among the Top 10 in scoring, rebounding, field goal percentage and steals. In the classroom, Carroll excelled with a 3.70 grade point average in graduate school this year after earning a bachelor’s degree from Mizzou in 2008. For more on Carroll, please click here.
Fellow senior Matt Lawrence made the Academic Second Team and was picked by the coaches as the co-Sixth Man, given to the best bench player. Lawrence, who started several games this season and throughout his career, is third on the team in scoring (8.6) this season and third in Mizzou history with 222 three-pointers made.
Leo Lyons, another senior, was named to the Coaches’ and Associated Press Third Team. Lyons was second on the team in scoring (14.4) rebounds (5.8) and free-throw percentage (74.5).
Junior J.T. Tiller was named co-Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year and selected to the All-Defensive Team. He led the team in steals (57) and assists (112) and was Mizzou’s most accurate free-throw shooter (75.7 percent). Junior transfer Zaire Taylor was picked to the All-Rookie Team.
Mizzou kicks off postseason play on ESPN2 Thursday at 8:30 p.m. in Oklahoma City. The third-seeded Tigers await the winner of Wednesday night’s game featuring No. 6 Texas A&M and No. 11 Texas Tech. For the rest of the bracket and future TV schedule, please visit the Big 12 Conference site.
Posted on
March 5, 2009 by Karen Pojmann
We can presume they weren’t in it just for the free sandwiches.
The crowd of business students who packed Bush Auditorium for a chance to hear from Jimmy John Liautaud, founder of Jimmy John’s, the nation’s fastest-growing restaurant chain, wanted insight. At 45, Liautaud is a multi-millionaire. The sandwich shop he started in Charleston, Ill., at age 19 has morphed into a billion-dollar, 850-store empire.
Liautaud’s persona matches his carefully controlled “Freaky Fast, Freaky Good” ad campaign. His straightforward, high-speed, seemingly ADHD-affected speech is peppered with “dude” and “the deal” and “straight sh—” and summaries of how this or that might “rock” or “suck.” At a glance, he seems like a regular guy.
Though tuned in to the college-age demographic, in many ways Liautaud is everything yesterday’s rapt audience is not. He graduated from high school second to last in his class and never went to college. When trying to open his third and fourth sandwich shops on the heels of his first two locations’ success, he was denied bank loans because he didn’t have — or know how to put together — a business plan. He talks with exasperation about out-of-touch business and government leaders and the top-notch, MBA-bearing “fancy, trained guys” who nearly ran his franchise division into the ground.
In the current economy, Liautaud’s business anti-plan is working, and business students want to know why.
So what advice did he have for budding entrepreneurs?
- Simplicity. Jimmy John’s makes 25 sandwiches from two breads, one cheese and seven meats.
- Attention to detail. Liautaud has single-handedly revived slumping franchises. In board meetings he talks about bread-baking methods and delivery times. “When you take care of the small stuff, the big stuff takes care of itself.”
- Living in reality. “Tell the truth. Shoot it straight. Focusing on what has to be done, focusing on your bank balance every day and keeping yourself out of debt forces us to live in reality. The fact that those bankers were tough on me back then forced me to be a better operator.”
- Taking one step at a time. “Do the job. Finish it. Do a good job, and then go to the next job.”
- Thinking about other people. “Exceed people’s expectations. Give people more. Place others’ interests before your own, and you’ll always be taken care of. If it’s about what you ‘give,’ the ‘get’ is gonna follow.”
- Working hard. “Come early, stay late, and be there Saturday and Sunday.”
- Wasting not. “It’s no fun being inefficient. It’s fun to rock.”
The results?
“Is it hard? Yeah,” Liautaud says. “Is it rewarding? It’s the most fulfilling, most incredible thing in the world to be in charge of your own destiny. It’s a drug, man. It’s absolutely addicting to be in charge of your own destiny.”
