THIBODAUX, La. – After a commanding exhibition win over the Mobile Rams on Tuesday night, the Nicholls State University men's basketball team returns to regular season play on Friday, taking on nationally ranked Missouri Friday night at Mizzou Arena in Columbia.
 
Friday's game will be televised on the Mizzou Sports Network, available on the ESPN Full Court television package, and on ESPN3.com.
 
The Colonels are coming off of a 73-53 exhibition win over the University of Mobile on Tuesday, getting three players in double figures and holding the Rams to just 20 points in the entire second half. 11 Nicholls players saw action on Tuesday night, as Fred Hunter led all players with 19 points.
 
The game between the Tigers and Colonels will be the second all-time meeting between the two teams, as Missouri won the first game in the series 67-56 in the 1998-99 season.
 
Missouri enters Friday's contest 2-0 on the season after getting wins over SIUE and Alcorn State, winning by an average of 25 points per game. The Tigers are holding teams to 61 points per game and outscoring visiting teams 104-66 in the second half. They begin their first season in the Southeastern Conference in late December.
 
Frank Haith is in his second season at the helm of the Mizzou program, as he led the team to a 30-5 record last season and the Big 12 tournament title in its final year in the conference. Haith was named the United States Basketball Writers Association Coach of the Year and the Associated Press National and Big 12 Coach of the Year.
 
Phil Pressey, the preseason SEC Player of the Year, leads the squad averaging 20 points per game and over 32 minutes per game. Pressey is one of only three returning letterwinners from the team last year, as the team lost eight over the offseason. Outside of the three returners, the rest of the lineup is dotted with newcomers and six transfers from other Division I schools, the most notable being Alex Oriakhi from Connecticut.
 
Tipoff for the game is set for 7 p.m. in Columbia.
 
 
TV: Mizzou Sports Network/ESPN3
Broadcast Team: Chris Gervino (play-by-play), Scott Highmark (analyst)
Radio: 100.3 FM KLRZ (Larose, La.); 1600 AM KLEB (Golden Meadow, La.)
Broadcast Team: Clyde Verdin (play-by-play)
Colonels on the Internet: www.klrzfm.com
Live Stats: www.mutigers.com