
Missouri Tiger fans will have a chance to fulfill legendary coach Norm Stewart’s maxim of never spending a dime in the state to the west, as Mizzou’s road to the Final Four will take them to Wichita.
The 22-11 Tigers have the sixth seed in the West Regional, which will see them play Thursday evening at the Intrust Bank Arena. Their opponent is the 11th-seeded Drake Bulldogs, who rolled to a Missouri Valley Conference championship. Several Bulldogs are familiar with the Show-Me State, including first-year head coach Ben McCollum, who led Northwest Missouri State University to four NCAA Division II national titles. Four Bearcats followed McCollum to Drake, including guards Isaiah Jackson and Bennett Stirtz.
Should Mizzou get past Drake, they’ll face the winner of Texas Tech and UNC-Wilmington. In the event Mizzou gets to the Sweet Sixteen, an arch-rivalry could play out in San Francisco, as Kansas have the seventh seed and will face 10th seed Arkansas to start the tournament. The winner of that game in Providence, R.I. will face either Nebraska-Omaha or the Big East champions St John’s.
Tipoff for Mizzou’s game Thursday night is currently scheduled for 6:35 p.m.