Suddenly the depth situation doesn't look all that dire for the Missouri Tigers.
Sure, senior forward Tony Criswell missed Missouri's victory last Saturday against Auburn for a violation of team rules and his status remains uncertain for today's 6 p.m. game at Vanderbilt (ESPN2-TV). And yes, freshman guard Wes Clark is the only other reserve that averages double-digit minutes a game.
But when you look at the issues at Vanderbilt, Missouri's (13-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) problems pale in comparison.
• The Commodores dismissed leading scorer Eric McClellan (14.3 points per game) from the team last Wednesday for violating academic policy.
• Last season's leading scorer Kedren Johnson was suspended from the university for a year during the offseason.
• Center Josh Henderson was lost for the duration of the season with a knee injury eight games into the year.
That leaves Vanderbilt (8-6, 0-2 SEC) with just seven scholarship players.
"It's not the easiest thing in the world, but it is what it is," Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings said. "We have other good players and other guys that have to step up. We had some guys step up on Saturday (a 71-62 loss to Kentucky). It certainly diminishes your margin for error. If a guy is having an off night then it's a little more costly because your depth has dwindled. Our guys will adjust and we'll figure out the things that we have to do to give ourselves a chance to win. It's like an injury or anything else, you just have to adjust. Guys that are out there have to absorb more and do more."
Senior forward Rod Odom now assumes go-to scorer duties thanks to his 13.2 ppg average. Freshman forward Damian Jones (11.2 ppg) and senior guard Kyle Fuller (10.5 ppg) provide additional scoring punch.
While Vanderbilt is struggling to find players to take the court, Missouri saw the first step in the emergence of a couple bench players. Freshman forward Torren Jones grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds and tallied four points in just 13 minutes of action against Auburn, while junior-college transfer Keanau Post added six rebounds and three points in 14 minutes on the floor.
"Rebounding is effort," Missouri head coach Frank Haith said. "I thought we had a tremendous effort out of Keanau and Torren, who had not played a whole lot. ... Between those two guys that don't play a lot, 17 rebounds. We needed that. There are going to be nights where you don't shoot the ball well, which we didn't. But we got to the line 41 times and we rebounded the ball. That's what's going to give you a chance to win the game on a night you're not shooting the ball well."
What might prove to be the biggest concern for Haith is the one-of-a-kind setup at Memorial Gym. The basketball court is raised above the building's floor, with the teams' benches at the end of the floor instead of along the sideline.
"I've been in the building a couple times as an assistant, and it's tough," Haith said. "The first half is really tough. Your offense is going away from you. (In the second half) what's hard is seeing whether your defense is doing what it needs to do. They have great fan support. They'll be great energy in there. That's something we have to talk to our team about."
A terrific trio of guards give Missouri a chance in any game, though, home or away.
Jordan Clarkson boasts averages of 18.9 points, 3.7 assists and 3.7 rebounds in a dazzling first year at Missouri. Jabari Brown tosses in 18.2 ppg while Earnest Ross adds 14.2 ppg and 6.3 rebounds.
"Their perimeter play is very good," Stallings said. "They have those guys on the perimeter that can all score it at a high-rate. That's the first thing that jumps out."
After tonight's game, Missouri is back in action against Alabama at 1 p.m. Saturday at Mizzou Arena.