Missouri men's hoops at Utah for battle of height vs. height

Missouri's Jeremiah Tilmon (right) heads to the basket during the first half of Monday night's game against Wagner at Mizzou Arena in Columbia.
Missouri's Jeremiah Tilmon (right) heads to the basket during the first half of Monday night's game against Wagner at Mizzou Arena in Columbia.

COLUMBIA, Mo. - Though Michael Porter Jr.'s debut officially came against Iowa State nearly a week ago, it looks like Missouri fans will have to wait a little longer for his first full game as a Tiger.

As Missouri (2-0) travels to Salt Lake City to play Utah (2-0), an MU athletics spokesperson said there would be no update on Porter Jr.'s condition until later today, including whether or not he was on the team plane Wednesday afternoon. He exited the Iowa State game after two minutes because of pain in his leg and did not dress or sit on the bench Monday for Missouri's blowout win against Wagner.

The Tigers will face the Utes at 7 p.m. (CST). The game will be broadcast on the Pac-12 Network.

It will be the first big test of the season for both teams. Utah is one team that can match Missouri's height with or without Porter Jr., with 6-foot-10 seniors David Collette and Tyler Rawson and 7-foot sophomore Jayce Johnson patrolling the interior.

The Tigers will also have to contend with 6-6 senior Gabe Bealer, who has opened the season shooting nearly 60 percent from three-point range, and redshirt sophomore Chris Seeley, who has slid into the role that first-round pick Kyle Kuzma occupied last year.

Rawson (13), Collette (12.5) and Bealer (11.5) are each averaging double-digit scoring in the first two games, and Collette and Rawson are both averaging eight rebounds a game. Junior point guard Sedrick Barefield scored 22 in the Utes' opener against Prairie View A&M but did not play against Mississippi Valley State. Those four, two guards and two forwards, and guard Justin Bibbins will likely start for Utah.

Assuming Porter Jr. doesn't play, Missouri will likely start Jeremiah Tilmon, Kevin Puryear, Jordan Barnett, Kassius Robertson and Cullen VanLeer. Robertson leads all Tigers, averaging 17 points per game, followed by Puryear's 14.5, Tilmon's 10.5 and Barnett's 10. Keeping Tilmon in the game could be important for the Tigers, as his skill in the post offensively could be very valuable in a game like this.

Missouri head coach Cuonzo Martin is 3-5 all time against Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak, who has been the head coach in Salt Lake City since 2011. Two of those wins came in the 2016-17 season, as Martin's Cal Bears beat the Utes 77-75 in two overtimes at the beginning of February and again 78-75 in the Pac-12 Tournament. Utah beat Cal 74-44 at home between those two games, the second-worst loss of Martin's tenure in Berkeley.

This game is an opportunity for Martin and the Tigers to boost a potential NCAA tournament resume.