With Blake Harris starting at point guard and strong performances from him, Jordan Geist, Jontay Porter, Kassius Robertson and Cullen VanLeer, Missouri's offense caught fire Thursday in its first game of the Advocare Invitational.
The Tigers romped past Long Beach State 95-58 and showed their problems on offense from the previous two games are correctable.
Porter had four blocks and Missouri outrebounded the 49ers in a solid defensive effort, forcing 19 turnovers to their 12 and dishing out 19 assists, led by Harris' nine. The Tigers got impressive performances from their guards, something that had been missing of late.
That guard play will be tested in today's semifinals against St. John's (10 a.m., ESPNEWS-TV). The Red Storm knocked off Oregon State 82-77 in the following game, led by sophomore guards Shamorie Ponds (26 points) and Marcus LoVett (18 points).
St. John's is a good team on the perimeter, but could have trouble containing Missouri's front court. Just two players, Tariq Owens and Amar Alibegovic, are 6-9 or taller for the Red Storm. Owens played 25 minutes against the Beavers, finishing 2-5 from the floor for six points, six rebounds and one assists, while Alibegovic did not see the floor.
Jeremiah Tilmon, who was 4-of-4 for nine points and three rebounds in 17 minutes, Porter (6-of-9 for 15 points and five rebounds), Kevin Puryear and Reed Nikko will all get opportunities to bully St. Johns inside.
Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin has shown during the first five games of his tenure he wants this team to play inside-out and utilize its bigs as much as possible. It didn't work against Utah, when no shots were falling, barely worked against Emporia State when perimeter shots weren't falling, and definitely has worked in big wins against Iowa State, Wagner and Long Beach State when guards were making shots.
Missouri's guards - Robertson, Geist, VanLeer and Phillips - were 10-for-20 on 3-pointers Thursday against the 49ers.