The Maneater Volume 86 Issue 14

M THE MANEATER The student voice of MU since 1955

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Vol. 86 issue 14

MLK

MLK Day events shine light on past, present social justice issues

University specific and citywide events recognize the accomplishments of Martin Luther King Jr. and encourage modern day activism.

ALEX FULTON

| GRAPHIC BY EMILY MANN

The event is co-hosted by MU, the Division of Inclusion, Diversity & Equity, the Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention Center, the Women’s Center, the Department of Black Studies, the LGBTQ Resource Center and MizzouEd Bridge.

University News Staff Writer Tension and stress run high in Botswana Blackburn’s classroom in early October as students take their capstone midterms for the School of Health Professions.

Near the end of the test, Blackburn looks outside her classroom window and sees her husband with balloons and flowers accompanied by a TV camera. The tension breaks as the room breaks out in celebration of Blackburn’s receival of the William T. Kemper Fellowship.

The William T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence was established in 1991 and awards a $10,000 stipend to five outstanding teachers at MU each year.

This year, the receipts of the award were Botswana Blackburn, Jennifer Fellabaum-Toston, Donald G. Meyer, Peter P. Motavalli and Brian Silvey. All of the fellows stressed the importance of a strong relationship with their students as well as a continual pursuit of knowledge.

AUSTIN WOODS

Student Politics Staff Writer

School of Health Professions Professor Blackburn started as a professor in the School of Health Professions after several years working in the Kansas City, Missouri and Iowa health departments. The move to MU and the opportunity to work with students allowed Blackburn to focus more on her role as a teacher and mentor.

“I look at teaching as an opportunity to inspire some students, to get people to look at their futures and figure out what’s best for them,” Blackburn said. “I look at teaching as a way to impart some lifelong knowledge, not just temporary, so it’s a fine balance. I really want the students to appreciate learning.”

Service and campus involvement play a huge role in the way Blackburn approaches teaching. She serves as the campus adviser for Alpha Eta National Honor Society and the MU chapter of UNICEF, as well as a leader for the office of Fraternity and Sorority Life and the Health Professions Freshman Interest Group.

“Service is also a part of being a teaching faculty,” Blackburn said. “But I think being actively involved on campus, I can get a pulse for what’s going on with my students, so I won’t give a huge paper on the weeks coming up to homecoming.”

AWARD | Page 4

HOME | Page 4

king | Page 4

Kemper Fellow recipients emphasize hands on, continual learning in classroom

LUCY CAILE

Homelessness initiatives continue in Columbia

As part of its 2020-24 consolidated plan intended to combat increasing housing prices, the city of Columbia recently unveiled plans to establish a 24-hour resource center for the homeless population.

According to Steve Hollis, the human services manager at Columbia/Boone County Public Health and Human Services, more homelessness initiatives are planned for the near future.

One of these upcoming initiatives is a new cold weather emergency overnight warming center program that will be implemented this winter. When temperatures reach single digits, an overnight warming center will open in a city facility to be used by the homeless.

The city also plans on expanding the Stepping Up initiative, which aims to decriminalize homelessness and mental illness, which are often linked.

According to Hollis, Public Health and Human Services is looking to hire social workers to help keep people who are mentally ill and homeless out of the justice system. Furthermore, a street outreach team has been

AWARD

The award honors five outstanding faculty members each year with a $10,000 stipend.

COLUMBIA

These initiatives include a 24-hour resource center and a new cold weather emergency overnight warming center program.

University News Editor Motivational speaker Gwendolyn Elizabeth Boyd will deliver a keynote address at the annual MU Celebrates Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. event Thursday at 7 p.m. in the Missouri Theatre.

Boyd’s speech will center on the importance of women and people of color representation in STEM fields. Tickets are free and can be redeemed on the Eventbrite website.

The theme of this year’s event is STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) at Midnight: King’s Vision for Science in the Social Order and draws upon one of King’s lesser known speeches “A Knock at Midnight.” According to the event’s Facebook page, the speech “examined the possibilities and limitations of science as a tool for advancing the beloved community.”

January 22, 2020

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INSIDE THIS THE MANEATER The Student Voice of MU since 1955

Vol. 86 Issue 14 2509 MU Student Center • Columbia, MO 65211 573.882.5500 editors@themaneater.com www.themaneater.com

Twitter: @themaneater Instagram: @themaneater Snapchat: @the.maneater facebook.com/themaneaterMU The Maneater is the official student publication of the University of Missouri and operates independently of the university, student government, the School of Journalism and any other campus entity. All text, photos, graphics and other content are property of The Maneater and may not be reproduced without permission. The views and opinions expressed herein are not necessarily the views of the University of Missouri or the MU Student Publications Board.

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T H E M A N E AT E R | N E W S | JA N UA RY, 2 2, 2 0 2 0

PSYCHOLOGY

Research finds how human brain’s functions are altered after limb loss The study, conducted at the MU Brain Imaging Center, consisted of 48 participants, 19 of which had previously lost a hand.

HANNAH NORTON

University News Staff Writer Typically, when a person touches something with their right hand, a certain area in the left hemisphere of the brain is ‘lit up,’ and vice versa with the left hand.

In a recent research study, Scott Frey, the department of psychology’s Miller Family Professor in Cognitive Neuroscience, set out to answer the question of what happens to those brain areas when someone loses a hand.

Previous studies have been conducted to model

this information with animals, but Frey’s was one of the first of its kind to collect data directly from humans.

Frey and his team ⁠ — which consisted of Noah Marchal and Carmen Cirstea from MU, as well as researchers at Bangor University in Wales and Washington University in St. Louis ⁠ — utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging scans (fMRI). “[fMRI] is sensitive to changes in neural activity ⁠ — it kind of tracks the small changes that happen when an area is more metabolically active, is processing more information,” Frey said. “It’s using more oxygen, and at that time there is increased blood flow to that area, and the kind of measurements we take are sensitive to that, so we can literally map activity in the brain with this technique.”

Consistent with animal-based studies, Frey and

COLUMBIA

his team found that when there’s no longer stimulation in an area of the body because a person lost a limb, that area of the brain is then used to process information from the remaining limbs.

“There’s like a reorganization that takes place, and now instead of just one side of the brain processing information from that healthy limb as normal, both sides start to do it,” Frey said. “So it’s like you can imagine, it appears that all the resources that were devoted to the now missing limb become repurposed and dedicated to the healthy one.”

Marchal is a programmer analyst at the MU Center for Eldercare & Rehabilitation Technology.

Marchal has worked with Frey for over ten years

limb | Page 5

RESEARCH

MU freshman hopes to represent students Researchers monitor stress on Columbia City Council levels in adolescents with Giving students a voice on autism through sweat the Columbia City Council is just one of many reasons an MU freshman hopes to earn Columbia’s First Ward City Council seat.

Eight adolescents from the ages of 13 to 20 years old who are severely affected by autism and other comorbid conditions participated in the study.

LUKAS PARRISH

HANNAH NORTON

Student Politics Reporter One MU freshman hopes to improve student voter turnout in city elections and, along the way, win a seat on the Columbia City Council.

Greg Pierson has only been on campus for four months but already feels like he could make a difference for students.

“I think that there are certain issues that I believe need to be addressed by the person serving the seat,” Pierson said. “Whether that's me because they're the issues I care most about or if it's somebody else. Just by my presence in the race, I think those issues are going to become important.”

Prior to arriving in Columbia, Pierson grew up in Clayton, Missouri, which is a suburb of St. Louis. He attended Clayton High School, where he played varsity soccer for three seasons.

Since coming to MU, Pierson has become highly involved on campus. He’s a Missouri Students Association senator and a member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, which is currently rebuilding after being shut down by the fraternity’s national chapter in 2017 for not living by the Sigma Phi Epsilon values. No member from that 2017 class is still with the chapter.

“I have a really hard time turning down leadership opportunities and Sig Ep was a

University News Staff Writer

fantastic leadership opportunity,” he said.

“It was really a chance to jump right in on campus and just really have an impact from day one. I'm currently holding an executive officer position for the chapter.”

As unprecedented as a student running for a seat on the Columbia City Council may seem, Pierson says it’s been done before.

As humans, we sweat when we are stressed or nervous.

This helps us gauge how we are feeling and potentially change the situation before something goes wrong. But for many individuals who are severely affected by autism spectrum disorder, they often do not realize when they are stressed or are unable to let others know.

Bradley Ferguson is an assistant research professor of health psychology and a postdoctoral fellow at the Thompson Center for Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders. He partnered with researchers at a residential research facility called The Center for Discovery in Harris, New York, to study sweat and stress in eight adolescents, whose ages ranged from 13 to 20 years old.

Sweat monitors were attached to the participants’ wrists or ankles, depending on the person. The monitors recorded how much sweat each individual produced in real time while performing a variety of tasks and activities in a classroom setting.

“These individuals with autism, they’re severely affected, so most of them are non-verbal, meaning they don’t speak,” Ferguson said. “They may be able to give you a one- or twoword sentence like ‘want more’ or ‘no, thank you,’ but they’re not able to tell us when they’re getting stressed out.”

This is where the sweat monitors come in. The monitors are used to determine when the individual is getting stressed before they engage in a variety of problem behaviors.

“What typically happens is you’re asking them to do

pierson | Page 5

sweat | Page 5

MU freshman Greg Pierson entered the race for Columbia’s First Ward City Council seat and hopes to improve student voter turnout in city elections. | PHOTO COURTESY OF KMIZ

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KING

Keynote speaker Boyd became the first African American woman to earn a Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering Continued from page 1 from Yale. Additionally, in 2009 Boyd was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the US Senate to serve as a trustee for the Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence Foundation. Then, in 2014 Boyd returned to her undergraduate alma mater, Alabama State University, to serve as the institution’s first female president.

After Boyd’s keynote address, the MLK Planning Committee will recognize this year’s recipient of the MLK Award, City of Refuge, at the committee’s annual Unity Benefit Concert at 7 p.m. on Jan. 25 at the Missouri United Methodist Church. The award honors individuals or groups who make significant contributions to the race relations, social justice and human rights fields and uphold King’s legacy.

Patrons are encouraged to bring donations to the free concert, co-hosted by

AWARD

Throughout her teaching career, Blackburn has focused on strong relationships with students and appreciates when students return and express their gratitude for her work in Continued from page 1 the years after they graduate.

“I want students to know that I have an open door policy,” Blackburn said. “I don’t want to be a faculty member that students can’t approach … What I love most about teaching is seeing my students succeed. When alumni get in touch with me or students come back or someone reaches out to me on LinkedIn or Facebook it’s really rewarding.”

College of Education Professor Associate teaching professor in the College of Education, Jennifer Fellabaum-Toston, was near tears on an early Monday morning when fellow faculty members and friends surprised her in a meeting with the reveal that she was awarded a Kemper Fellowship.

Fellabaum-Toston balances the roles of mentorship and teaching the classroom, finding ways to manage both, so that her students earn the most out of their time at MU. “I try to bring some of the mentoring into the classroom,” FellabaumToston said. “The graduate students tend to be in a class for a common purpose. So I try to think about how I can connect the program to something bigger. Helping students connect coursework and their lives is a really important thing.”

As she fills multiple roles of mentor and teacher, Fellabaum-Toston also remains a learner. She strives to continue learning more about the way to teach, as well as learn from the faculty and students around her.

“I approach my teaching style as a co-creator of knowledge,” FellabaumToston said. “I like to say I know enough but not everything. So I may have some expertise, but so do my students, and they’re bringing that into the classroom which is enriching the learning for all of us.”

She also ascribes to the philosophy of life-long learning and therefore never stops finding ways to enhance her curriculum and the ways in which she guides and mentors students. This happens through personal research, going to conferences and learning from her colleagues and faculty.

“As technology, students, and as myself grow, develop and change, you have to reflect that and my courses have to reflect that as well,” FellabuamToston said.

College of Agriculture Professor Professor Peter Motavalli from the MU College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, approaches the classroom the same way he takes on life, with a sense of adventure. As a professor of soil fertility and plant nutrition Motavalli strives to inspire students to appreciate soil science and t o understand its relevance in solving multiple environmental and agriculture issues.

“To have a successful teaching program, you must be constantly modifying and assessing your approach,” Motavalli said to the MU News Bureau.

“Teaching has allowed me to be creative, and I’ve appreciated that.”

Motavalli takes a hands-on approach to the classroom, teaching students

HOME

established to build relationships with individuals who are homeless.

Hollis said these Continued from page 1 are part of a larger series of previously established initiatives, all of which fall under an approach called “housing first.”

“We operate under the simple notion that the solution to homelessness is a home,” Hollis said.

“That sounds simple, but it’s not the way our country went about handling homelessness for many, many decades. We used to say, ‘you have to get sober, take your meds and behave yourself, then maybe you’ll get housing.’ Now we say, ‘we’re going to get you housing and put you on the road to where you want to be.’”

Hollis said the goal of meeting people’s housing needs is a difficult one largely due to the city’s lack of affordable housing — an issue that can be partially accounted for by the population of college students.

Despite this, the rate of homelessness in Boone County has decreased through the city’s hard work, according to Hollis.

However, Hollis said eliminating homelessness is nearly impossible on the local level and that big changes, namely the expansion of Medicaid, need

Choral Arts Alliance of Missouri, with all of the money raised going towards City of Refuge.

In addition, on Jan. 20 the MU Chapter of the Black Law Students and MU Law co-hosted a screening and roundtable discussion of the film “Just Mercy” at Regal Columbia & RPX. Also on that day, the Columbia NAACP held their annual celebration that began at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial at Battle Garden, then continued with a motorcade to Second Missionary Baptist Church. Mayor Brian Treece and First Ward City Councilman Clyde Ruffin were both in attendance to speak on the importance of unity.

Faculty, students and community members are all encouraged to visit the replica of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial in Ellis Library as a reminder of King’s numerous accomplishments.

Edited by Leah Glasser lglasser@themaneater.com the “flipped classroom” learning style where students do projects like writing manuals for soil and plant testing to delve deeper into the curriculum.

Students also continue expanding on their studies by walking around campus and learn about storm water drainage, water pollution and multiple environmental monitoring stations.

Motavalli credits his adventurous classroom spirit to the plethora of traveling he did while he was young as well as his time as a Fulbright Scholar in Sudan and time spent in London.

College of Business Professor Professor Don Meyer from the Trulaske College of Business was very surprised and honored when he won the award.

As an individual who is very well versed in the business of business, Meyer hopes that his years of experience help students reach their goals through his hands-on approach to teaching.

Meyer’s interest in business started in high school with his job at an auto parts store. His interest continued through college and after graduation as he worked at Anheuser-Busch for 12 years.

“I think what I bring to the classroom is a real practical understanding that all of the time this stuff doesn’t work,” Meyer said. “Even if you give your best efforts, you fail. You want to fail fast and move on. So I think I bring a practical experience as a practitioner doing marketing, sometimes things work out spectacularly and sometimes they don’t.”

His classes consist of trips to Target and Chick-fil-A to learn about supply chain management. He also likes to bring in speakers and teachers that align with the goals of his lectures to give more of a real-world view of his teaching.

“So they have their textbook that they read, and we have their lectures and a lot of that is theory so if you can wrap in some stories it helps put learning in context,” Meyer said.

School of Music Professor Brian Silvey, professor in the School of Music, was surprised when a crowd of people burst into the rehearsal room when he won the award.

Silvey advocates for hard work and perseverance when he approaches teaching student musicians. He refers to the music that students take and rehearse over several weeks and the perseverance that students need to accomplish that.

For musical education students as well, it takes a lot of patience to work with students towards their goals.

“It’s not easy to get in front of middle and high school students and motivate them to do their very best,” SIlvey said. “So it takes time to be patient but also to work very diligently towards your musical goals.”

Silvey appreciates seeing his own students teach their future students. He attends elementary school performances of his past students and sees the love for music that goes into the shows.

Silvey hopes his students are empowered and motivated by his teaching so they can learn and become the best musical teachers in the years to come.

Edited by Alex Fulton afulton@themaneater.com

to be implemented to do so.

“If we get somebody housing but they don’t get access to mental health care, they’re probably going to have a hard time keeping that housing,” he said. “They’re sure as hell going to have a hard time getting a job with unmanaged mental health issues.”

Dale Fitch, director for the School of Social Work, agreed with the notion that combating homelessness requires addressing deeper issues.

“Some [factors], if they’re just income-related, can be more manageable and can be addressed more readily,” Fitch said. “Then if you move into mental health and substance issues, you need to have access to those services. Those are sometimes lacking in the community, or they could be there but the waiting lists are really long.”

Fitch said eliminating homelessness is also made difficult through commonly held stereotypes surrounding people who are homeless.

“We have this notion that if people just worked hard enough then they wouldn’t be homeless, and that is one of the biggest myths that continues to perpetuate the problem,” he said.

Fitch has been working with the homeless for over 30 years and currently serves on the board for Welcome Home, a local homeless shelter for veterans. He’s worked with hundreds of people who are homeless over the years and said he

has never met somebody who embodies the stereotypes.

Jennifer Graves Hickam is the fiscal manager for True North of Columbia, a local service program for people fleeing domestic and sexual violence.

Domestic and sexual violence is considered a category of homelessness by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Graves Hickam said that through her work with people who are homeless, she has also found that many individuals who are homeless find themselves in their situation on account of problems beyond their control.

She said that while Columbia has great resources in place to aid the homeless, they aren’t nearly enough. Because of this, she said it’s important when community members and MU students pitch in. “[It’s necessary to] volunteer at organizations and to provide a sounding board to homeless individuals,” Graves Hickam said. “Sometimes just hearing their stories is affirming, and helps them work past it. When you’re dealing with so many issues it can really cloud your head, and getting clarity on where you are and what strategies might put you in a better place is really important for every individual who is homeless.”

Edited by Ben Scott bscott@themaneater.com

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T H E M A N E AT E R | N E W S | JA N UA RY 2 2. 2 0 2 0

LIMB

on the data analysis and software programming side of various studies.

Marchal co-built and later modified

Continued from page 3

an apparatus that delivered puffs of air to participants’ chins and fingers, allowing the research team to monitor the stimulation and corresponding neural activity.

“When we do the analysis here, you can see which areas are involved with this, and it’s like a titration method ... their physical level that they

reacts to this.”

Then, Marchal normalized all of the data collected from the participants, due to their wide variety of levels of rehabilitation and other variables. He collapsed all the data down to a group level and collected averages.

The research team is still working to further understand the deeper behavioral implications of this data, such as the ways in which people’s brains perform with the use of prosthetic limbs.

self report using this physical test,” Marchal said. “Then when you apply

Edited by Laura Evans

sensation to the same area and adjacent areas, [you can see] how the brain

levans@themaneater.com

PIERSON

Continued from page 3

“I think what makes me unique is that I'm really

of those years. Pierson doesn’t know the exact

“A lot of this is a learning experience for me,”

number of residents in Columbia’s First Ward,

he said. “What do I need to learn about this

alone.

want me to work on. Things like food security

but he believes there are at least 10,000 students “I think that, honestly, in my mobilization

quite new here on campus,” he said. “I've been

efforts just with students alone I might be able

spent very much time in Columbia.”

think that is something that makes this a winnable

way to go before he could represent the Columbia

students in large numbers, because there's a large

community and what things does the community

and gun safety have been really big issues in the last few years and I think those are things I'll

here just a couple months, and I really haven't

to come up with that many votes,” he said. “So I

But Pierson understands that he has a long

district for anybody. If you can really turn out

Fowler, the current chair of Columbia’s Historic

number of students here, then you can win this

before Pierson.

community effectively.

One issue Pierson will be heavily focused on is

election.”

“I like to emphasize as much as I can my

offering solutions to issues they want solved.

student involvement in the election.

intentionality about getting students involved

Preservation Commission, filed to run just days “She's been a tremendous public servant for

Columbia for a long time now, and I think she's

He wants to improve the overall quality of life

Pierson said.

for students in Columbia and believes a big part of

[especially] in the process of collecting signatures

one of several issues he hopes to pursue as a city

order to do that, I registered 49 students to vote

He also hopes to gain the support of local

that I've been passionate about for years now, but

that lies within their wallets. Affordable housing is

to petition to run. You need 50 of those and in

councilman.

in about six days.”

residents of Columbia. He understands this group

with a total of 327 votes. In 2017, he won with

but hopes to focus his campaign on some issues

475 votes. Less than 1,500 people voted in both

Currently, Pierson has only one opponent. Pat

Pierson hopes to gain the support of students by

in this process,” Pierson said. "That's something

In 2015, Clyde Ruffin won the First Ward seat

absolutely address as soon as possible.”

of people will be more difficult for him to reach, they want dealt with as well.

done some really great things in this community,” She was a vocal supporter of the election of

current Mayor Brian Treece and will most likely receive the same support from him in this election.

Pierson will have a lot of ground to make up

with the permanent residents of Columbia’s First

Ward, but a high student turnout could make some of it up.

Edited by Ben Scott

bscott@themaneater.com

SWEAT

something and [they seem] okay and all of a sudden they just have a behavioral episode,” Ferguson said.

Continued from page 3 These episodes can range from an adolescent hitting his or her head repeatedly against a hard surface, hitting others, biting himself or herself, running out of the room and more. Ferguson and his colleagues hope to decrease how often these episodes occur by tackling the issue before it actually happens.

In order to do so, Ferguson set up cameras in the study room. He collected data from the eight students over the course of a year and looked at when problem behaviors occurred on film in relation to their respective sweat levels.

“Let’s say in the video, [a student] is doing some type of task at 1 p.m.,” Ferguson said. “When we go back, we can match it up, so what I would do is I would look for when they had a problem, when they started hitting themselves -- and then I would work backwards from there and see what their sweat levels looked like right before they engaged in that problem behavior.”

The study found that 60% of the time, the adolescents’ sweat levels rose before the episode occurred.

Ferguson feels that given these data, parents and educators can intervene before the problem behavior occurs when they see a child’s sweat levels rising. This can come in the form of giving the student a fun task to do, taking them to another room or doing other activities of that nature.

Ferguson says that when problem behaviors occur for children with autism, it isn’t just a fleeting moment. He found that the adolescents’ sweat levels only returned to their baseline 40% of the time, meaning they were still actively stressed, a phenomenon that often affected the entire group.

He does not know what exactly this study will extend to, but Ferguson hopes the data can be used for other people with autism. He says that many people on the autism spectrum — including those who are higher-functioning — have sensory problems and may not realize when they are getting stressed, not unlike the adolescents in the study.

“Perhaps we could use this as a tool, kind of like what’s called biofeedback with these sensors, in the future,” Ferguson said. “You could develop an app that would maybe vibrate, and it would tell you ‘Hey, you’re starting to get stressed,’ and then you know that this is what it feels like to get stressed.”

ECHO Autism is an MU program in which information and data regarding autism is collected within teaching hospitals and academic centers and

MU researchers at The Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders used sweat monitors to measure the amount of sweat individuals with autism produced in classroom settings. | PHOTO COURTESY OF THE THOMPSON CENTER FOR AUTISM AND NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS

then given to general practice and primary care facilities. Alicia Curran is the director of operations of ECHO Autism and the mother to Sam Curran, a 19-year-old who has autism. Curran says that she appreciates research studies like this because they help her and many other families gain more knowledge about autism as a whole.

“As a parent, I have a lot of questions, and the one thing I know is that knowledge is power,” Curran said. “The more I know, the less scary autism is and the more I feel equipped to support my child because research always gives you solid answers and you know it’s not just somebody’s opinion.”

Curran’s family has participated in autism studies in the past. Curran says this is because she wants to give others the same hope and resources that she has found.

“It's very fulfilling as a family to be able to participate and know that I'm not only helping my child, but I'm helping everybody else with autism,” Curran said. “You know, you have this situation that you know, I didn't know anything about it, and it is what it is, but at least I can be part of making this better and more supportive for families and individuals.”

Edited by Laura Evans levans@themaneater.com

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| PHOTOS COURTESY OF MANEATER PHOTO ARCHIVE

FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

We want to hear your voice.

Submit a letter to the editor by emailing editors@themaneater.com.

EDITORIALS REPRESENT THE MAJORITY OPINION OF THE MANEATER EDITORIAL BOARD.

THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED BY THE MANEATER COLUMNISTS DO NOT REPRESENT THE OPINIONS OF THE MANEATER EDITORIAL BOARD.

ROGER THAT

COLUMN: Let everyone have their tearjerker Romantic comedies seem to be getting more diverse, but they still have one foot in the toxic depths of the genre.

ABIGAIL RUHMAN Opinion Columnist

Abigail Ruhman is a sophomore journalism and political science major at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about student life, politics and social issues for The Maneater.

Not to sound like a teenager who didn’t get an invitation to the prom, but I hate romantic comedies. Hate is a strong way to say that I’ve enjoyed my fair share. Despite being a quiet but avid audience of the worst romantic plotlines in history, it’s hard to not pay attention to how toxic romantic comedies are. Even if you can look past

However, as much as I, and thousands of other people enjoyed these films, they are still playing into a lot of toxic ideas and are scraping the surface of diversity.

When you look closely at the films, they fail to consider their position in the medium.

For example, “Love, Simon” plays into the normalcy of high school life but shows a landscape that is wildly outside of the norm, specifically in relation to socioeconomic class. Simon Spier starts off the film by stating, “I'm just like you. For the most part, my life is totally normal.” This declaration is followed up with a shot of a house that would probably make both of the Property Brothers cry and a car that Simon got from his parents for his birthday. The claim that he’s just like “you” erases a lot of the privilege that he has.

the toxic ideals that are presented about romantic

He continues by stating, “So, as I said. I'm just

relationships, which you really shouldn’t, romantic

like you. I have a totally, perfectly normal life.

comedies are made for upper-class, cisgender,

Except I have one huge-ass secret.” The scene then

straight, heterosexual couples.

goes on to show that Simon is gay. Apparently, the

While recent steps toward diversity deserve

only thing that makes Simon any different than the

to be celebrated, films that make these steps

78% of Americans who live paycheck to paycheck,

shouldn’t automatically be treated as the pinnacle

according to a study by CareerBuilder.com, is the

of diverse films. Finding comfort in these films is

fact that he is gay.

valid and, honestly, really freeing, but that doesn’t mean they are immune to criticism.

While “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” was important because it featured an Asian American

| GRAPHIC BY EMILY MANN

helped make films that represent people who are rarely presented, but how inclusive is the shift? Romantic comedies are failing to make plots that include disabled individuals, differing economic classes, non-stereotypical depictions of race, and fair queer and gender-nonconforming representation. Films that are diverse play a game of remaining just typical enough to engage in the norms and tropes of the genre, but this ultimately leaves diverse audiences in a game of supporting even when they want something that should be a standard.

People shouldn’t have to beg or offer rewards to get good representation in the media. Romantic comedies shouldn’t be a game of how to play the diversity card without committing to the

There have been a few romantic comedies that

lead, it also played into harmful stereotypes within

have challenged the toxic environment that the

American media. According to ProAsian Voice, an

genre tends to offer. With the release of films

advocacy group that focuses on the representation

able to do that, but everyone deserves the chance

like “Love, Simon” and “To All the Boys I’ve

of Asian voices in media, “the phenomenon

to see themselves on the screen. Everyone deserves

Loved Before,” it felt like there was a new era

of white men-Asian women couplings was also

a romantic comedy that they can see themselves in

of romantic comedy. Diversity is valued in this

pervasive in media.” The framing of a white man

while they avoid thinking about the fact that no

film genre because communities who rarely see

as the ideal takes steps towards diversity and turns

one invited them to homecoming in high school.

themselves on the screen were excited to get a

into a slow shuffle towards possible progress.

sliver of representation.

The modern shift to be more inclusive has

responsibility. No film or media genre should be

Edited by Bryce Kolk bkolk@themaneater.com

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THE DOUBLE TAKE

COLUMN: Who gets to use the N-word?

It’s 2020. Let’s leave racial slurs in

slur toward black people. From slavery to the Jim

actions and word choice blatantly tell black people

the past.

Crow era, and even today, the word is derogatory

that white people think they are better than them.

toward black people. Although the word is said to

Yet, for some reason, non-black people still

have originated as a term for black, it has been

seem to believe they have the right to say the word

degraded into a harmful slur that should not be

because it is used in the black community.

ELIZABETH OKOSUN

Opinion Columnist

Elizabeth Okosun is a sophomore journalism at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about social issues.

In recent years, pop culture has witnessed nonblack celebrities saying the N-word. Although they claim they’re not being racist by saying it (it’s in the song!), the act of saying the word when you’re not black is still racist. The most recent incident was actress Gina Rodriguez, who is Latina, singing the word while listening to “Ready or Not” by The Fugees. Rodriguez, who has made comments perceived as anti-black in the past, claimed she grew up listening to the song and meant no harm by it. She issued a non-apology, saying she was sorry “if” anyone was offended by her words.

However, people were offended by her words.

Saying “if” singles out those offended by her racist remarks, basically saying that they are overreacting to what she considers to be harmless

used by non-black individuals. By the 1800s, it

Black people have reclaimed the word in

was recognized as a vulgar term for black people.

modern times, using it with a softer ending rather

During the slavery era, black people were not

than the harder “er” that was, and is, used to

seen as human beings. They were captured and

denote racism. It is used as a term that bonds

beaten, lynched and killed; their existence was

other black people together through a similar

not seen as human. Laws, such as the Three-Fifths

understanding of black oppression and the culture

Compromise, at the time stated that enslaved

as a result of it. For years, it has been used in rap

people were not people in the ways that white

and R&B songs by black artists, two genres created

people were.

by black people as a creative outlet for the pain

Part of this degradation of human life was

faced by our community.

calling black people slurs, such as the N-word. It

This brings up the issue of whether or not non-

was used as a way to mock black people, telling

black people can sing it in a song. I, and other

them that they do not deserve the decency of

black people, have heard the age-old comment:

being called by their name.

“They wrote it in the song. So I can’t sing it?” No,

For generations, the N-word has continued to

you can’t. Whether it’s with an “a” or a hard “er,”

be used derogatorily. Although there has been a

the word becomes a slur when used by the very

reclamation of the word in black spaces, it is still

people who made it into something vulgar.

a slur when uttered by non-black people.

Others argue that there’s a difference between

Just recently, a white woman in Los Angeles

the slur and the shortened version of it, but the

was caught on camera screaming obscenities and

fact is that the modern usage of the word did

other things, including how she would kill all

not exist without the former. It is something

black people if the law permitted.

that black people reclaimed. We as a community

Another white woman at a Holiday Inn Express

have reformed the word for our own usage and

Unfortunately, Rodriguez is not the only non-

called an employee the N-word simply because he

meanings — it is special to us. When used by

black celebrity to use the slur with reckless

was not able to book her a hotel room on short

people outside of the community, whether it is

abandon and not feel bad about it. Jennifer Lopez

notice.

meant to be harmful or not, the pain of the past is

actions.

has used the word in a song. Although the lyrics

This month, a group of white students decided

dredged up. It is not something that can be left at

were written by a black artist, it does not deflect

to walk around their campus at the University of

the door when racist people are still using it with

from the fact that she is a non-black person saying

Connecticut and yell the racial epithet.

a negative connotation.

a word with such a loaded history. When asked

In these three cases, and the many others in

about it, she pointed fingers to Ja Rule, the writer,

which the slur is used, they are not using it as

rather than taking accountability.

a term of endearment. It is meant to garner fear

Edited by Bryce Kolk

in the very people victimized by the slur. Their

bkolk@themaneater.com

In U.S. history, the N-word was used as a vulgar

The N-word was meant for us; its usage and meaning will be determined by us.

9

T H E M A N E AT E R | O P I N I O N | JA N UA RY 2 2, 2 0 2 0 ROGER THAT

COLUMN: Life isn’t like Google Docs — it shouldn’t come with templates The expectation that everyone should want to follow a predetermined script in life is unfair and harmful.

of resignation when you’re

looking at it from the vantage point of a single person, once

you take the plunge and do it, you’ll probably be relatively content.”

ABIGAIL RUHMAN

Despite the heteronormative

Opinion Columnist

Abigail Ruhman is a sophomore journalism and political science major at MU. She is an opinion columnist who writes about student life, politics and social issues for The Maneater.

undertones the

of

underlying

the

article,

assumption

that everyone wants to get

married and have kids follows the societal norm. For people

who do want that life, the

prospect of not getting it can be terrifying, but for the people who don’t want the

I used to have a book where I would plan out my

life. The torn-up, yellow college-ruled notebook was filled with lists of children’s names, sketches

of the classroom I would teach in and estimations of when I would get married or move out. Second grade me went all out, but the notebook found its

way to the trash as the predictions became more and more wrong.

The notebook was filled with the expectations

society tells people are important, but literally, none of the predictions were right. I’m not lying

when I say that second grade me was dumb. She

had assumed that because society had useless checkpoints, she had to follow the path. That’s not how life works. If there were a standard life people

experienced, the world would get really boring really fast.

The expectation of a standard life disregards the

differences between people and their resources.

Even the smallest components of life are judged on an invisible timeline. When I tell people that I

stereotype, this pressure can push them into something

they don’t even vaguely want.

Settling for a less-than-great

relationship isn’t the solution.

The act of settling is built on

| GRAPHIC BY EMILY MANN

the idea that this is something

you have to do. Settling for

someone you don’t love simply because you can like them just enough doesn’t help you. Settling

for a relationship so that society can stop pushing

you to do so isn’t going to help you either.

Relationships are a personal choice. To dictate

who has to be in one at a certain point removes

their social agency. Are you dating because you want to or because enough people told you to?

Relationships aren’t inherently wrong, but the

pressure to participate in specific versions of

them is extremely harmful. My 20-year-old friend regularly claims she is going to die alone because

she hasn’t dated yet. Relationships and life don’t

didn’t get my driver’s license until I was 19, they

follow checkpoints, despite what society claims.

The pressure to keep up with the unspoken

a happy and fulfilling life without a romantic or

this doesn’t just relate to driving. The feeling of

Of course, the invisible path isn’t just linked

impact on the number of mental health issues he saw.

The expectations society puts on students isn’t

fair, but it also isn’t fair to expect everyone to go to college. College is expensive and it's unrealistic

to expect lower income students to participate in

a system that neglects them. Expecting student

loans to solve the problem ignores the impact the massive debt can have on people.

However, another problem for pushing college

is that not everyone wants to go to college. While the general public pushes the idea that college is

necessary for economic fulfillment, not everyone

wants to go. College is hard, and a lot of the time it’s harder than it needs to be. In addition, some

tend to act like I broke a rule.

This framework also ignores that you can have

checkpoints can have negative consequences, and

sexual relationship.

having to meet certain life goals is ingrained in

to relationships. Education, career and social

without them even realizing it. From careers to

follow a set path. According to a column published

people want at certain points in their life.

school students told the American Psychological

narrative creates a culture of cutting corners

depression, and the number one cause of stress

want or can’t have them seem inferior.

deserve. Lori Gottlieb, a psychotherapist who

young as 5 years old coming in with migraines or

where I am today, but it did show me that I was

in a relationship. Her argument was rooted in

The expectations school puts on students has a

to come up with kids’ names, diagrams of a

in families in order to be happy. Gottlieb cites

to college as well. Past the stress of trying to get

that I didn’t fall behind. If you don’t follow

unhappy when they’re single after 30.

more academic stress. A professor at the Saint

because life doesn’t have a script or outline. Don’t

might be an equally viable option, especially if

alarming amount of stress and depression among

assignment. You deserve better than that.

American culture and can make choices for people

development are also presented as needing to

relationships, there is a generalization of what

by The New York Times, one in three high

careers don’t require college. Whether people directly enter the workforce or invest in vocational

or trade schools, college isn’t a necessary part of every single life plan.

The assumption that everyone wants the same

thing isn’t fair. Societal checkpoints aren’t fair

for people who don’t want the standard. Wanting

a relationship or a degree isn’t a bad thing, but

standardized

Association that stress leads them to sadness and

making them the standard makes those who don’t

or accepting something less than what people

was school. Doctors have reported patients as

My yellow notebook did little to get me to

writes for The Atlantic, argued in favor of settling

ulcers linked to stress.

living someone else’s expectations. My motivation

the belief that women need to be married and

massive impact on their health, and this applies

classroom and an entire life plan was to make sure

the opposition to settle as the reason women are

into college, college students are still exposed to

society’s yellow notebook, you aren’t falling behind

Gottlieb explains, “Marrying Mr. Good Enough

Louis University School of Medicine noticed an

settle just because you haven’t hit some invisible

The

constant

push

for

the

you’re looking for a stable, reliable life companion

… While settling seems like an enormous act

his students. He implemented a set of changes that, over the six-year program, actually made an

Edited by Bryce Kolk

bkolk@themaneater.com

BASKETBALL

Team of the decade: Who made The Maneater’s best men’s basketball team from 2010 to 2019 Missouri has had five NCAA Tournament appearances in the past 10 seasons.

MAX BAKER

Senior Writer

IAN LAIRD

Reporter

In the past decade, Missouri men’s basketball has seen its share of historically good and bad seasons.

The Tigers have had four different coaches, moved from the Big 12 to the Southeastern Conference, won a conference tournament championship and qualified for five NCAA Tournament berths. Here’s a look at the top players from the past decade.

Point guard: Phil Pressey Pressey is the first of many Tiger players from the 2011-12 squad to make the list. In Pressey’s three seasons at Missouri, he facilitated a Tiger team that made, the NCAA Tournament every year. The Tigers combined record in his career was 76-27, including a 30-5 record and Big 12 Tournament Championship in the 2011-12 season.

Pressey is most remembered for his unselfishness with the ball. In 2012, he set a Missouri singlegame record with 19 assists against UCLA. He also holds the Missouri single-season record for assists with 240 in 2012-13, breaking his own record from 2011-12. He is the all-time leader in assists in Tiger history. Pressey was also a nightmare for opponents on defense. His 196 steals are tied for the most in school history. It’s fair to wonder if anyone would ever touch Pressey’s records had he not declared for the NBA after his junior season.

Pressey went undrafted and bounced around the NBA for a few seasons with his most minutes on the Boston Celtics. While he averaged three turnovers per game at Missouri, his electric playmaking ability makes him the top Missouri point guard of the decade, and it’s not really even close.

Honorable Mention: Jordan Clarkson Clarkson only played at Missouri for one year but it’s hard to argue that he shouldn’t make the team. While other former point guards like Jordan Geist spent multiple productive seasons for the Tigers, Clarkson’s talent alone is enough to at least earn him an honorable mention. After transferring from Tulsa, Clarkson finished second on the team in scoring during the 2013-14 season, averaging 17.5 points per game. On a team that lacked frontcourt production, Clarkson, Jabari Brown and Earnest Ross led the Tigers to a 23-12 record, barely missing the NCAA Tournament. The wins would be vacated three years later. Clarkson also led the team in assists with 3.4. After forgoing his senior season for the NBA Draft, Clarkson was selected with the No. 46 pick by the Washington Wizards. He was traded on draft night to the Los Angeles Lakers where he spent over three seasons.

In 2018, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in a deal that involved Isaiah Thomas. He scored a career-high 42 points against the Nets on February 13, 2019. Clarkson has averaged double digit points in every season in the NBA. Had Clarkson played at Missouri for more than a year, he might have a case to be a starter on the all-decade team.

Shooting guard: Marcus Denmon

Coming out of high school, Denmon, a threestar recruit on Rivals, didn’t have a tremendous amount of hype. But he left as one of the best players in program history. In his first two seasons, he primarily came off the bench. His most memorable moment during his freshman season came against No. 2 seed Memphis in the Sweet 16 in 2009. He drained a half-court shot at the end of the first half and helped lead Missouri to the Elite Eight. Denmon showed great improvement from the three-point line during his freshman and sophomore years. He shot 40% from beyond the arc during his sophomore season after shooting just 30% the year before. In his junior and senior seasons, he averaged 16.9 and 17.7 points per game respectively and was a consensus second team All-American in the 2011-12 season. His 141 games played is tied with Kim English for the most in a Missouri uniform and he is the fifth highest scorer in Tiger history. Denmon, English, Laurence Bowers and Steve Moore also have the most wins for any senior class in Missouri men’s basketball history. Since his time as a Tiger, Denmon was drafted but never played an NBA game. He has played in several different countries overseas with his last stint coming on the Zhejiang Golden Bulls.

Denmon is an easy pick for shooting guard.

Honorable Mention: Jabari Brown If the all-decade team needs a bucket, Brown, at least in his senior season, is the guy. He transferred from the University of Oregon after playing in just two games for the Ducks. In Brown’s first year with MU, he averaged 13.7 points per game and helped Missouri reach the NCAA Tournament for the fourth consecutive year. In his senior season, he made a significant leap. He transformed into a knockdown three-point shooter at 41% and averaged 19.9 points per game. His 19.9 points per game led the conference and earned him a spot on the First Team All-Southeastern Conference team.

His 698 points in 2013-14 are the seventh highest by a Missouri player in a single season. In addition to his scoring, he grabbed 4.4 rebounds and had nearly two assists per game. After forgoing his senior season for the NBA Draft, Brown went undrafted but signed with the Lakers after playing for the Houston Rockets in the Summer League.

In 2015, he played 19 games for the Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 11.9 points primarily off of the bench. Since then, he has played for multiple international teams as well as the Santa Cruz Warriors. If Brown had played for Missouri for four years, he’d have a strong case to be a starter on this team.

Small Forward: Kim English As a freshman, English started slightly over a third of Missouri’s games, but he would average only 6.5 points per game. He had a big impact in the NCAA tournament as he came off of the bench to hit two go-ahead free throws to knock off Marquette. In the 2009-10 season, English was elevated to a larger role, starting in 29 of the Tigers’ games. His 14.0 points per game led the team and was enough to help earn him a spot on the All-Big 12 Third Team. His junior year though, English struggled to replicate the success he had the previous season seeing his per game averages for points, steals and rebounds all fall along with his field goal percentage and threepoint percentage. In his fourth and final season, though, English rebounded to finish once again as

an All-Big 12 Third Team member. He averaged a career high 14.5 points per game and helped lead Missouri to the Big 12 Tournament championship earning the honor of Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player. His 1,570 points in his career is the 13th most in program history, and his 239 three-pointers is the fourth most in Tiger history.

English was drafted by the Detroit Pistons with the 44th pick in the 2012 season. He would go on to play 41 games in the NBA before spending two years overseas. After returning to the U.S., English became an assistant coach on the staff of former Missouri head coach Frank Haith at Tulsa and now coaches at Tennessee. He was one of the key pieces for Missouri’s brief run of success in the early 2010s, and his sweet shooting stroke from beyond the arc helped get him a spot on this team.

Honorable Mention: Earnest Ross Missouri has struggled to find reliable wing play after DeMarre Carroll left the program for the NBA in the late ‘00s, so there aren’t a lot of options at the position after English. Ross showed some ability on both ends of the court, though, which is just enough to earn him an honorable mention. Ross began his college career at Auburn where he spent two years before transferring to Missouri. Ross struggled heavily in his first season at Auburn, shooting only 28% from the field and averaging only 2.8 points per game. As a sophomore, though, Ross made a massive leap to average 13.1 points per game while also averaging a team high 6.6 rebounds. After transferring to Missouri, Ross was forced to sit out the 201112 season. In his redshirt junior year he was the top SEC bench scorer with 11.0 points per game in conference play. Across the entire season, Ross averaged 10.3 points and 5.0 rebounds per game and was second on the team with 49 made three-pointers. In his final college season, Ross started all 35 games and averaged 14.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game while hitting the second most three-pointers with 57.

After leaving Missouri to play professionally, Ross has played for a multitude of teams, in countries ranging from Australia to Denmark to Qatar.

Power forward: Laurence Bowers A finalist for Tennessee’s Mr. Basketball award in high school, Bowers selected Missouri over a host of other Division 1 programs. In his first season, Bowers saw limited action, averaging only 6.9 minutes per game, though he showed flashes throughout the season of potentially becoming a well-rounded starter. In the 2009-10 campaign, Bowers was third on the team in scoring despite coming off the bench most of the season and only starting 11 games. In his junior year, Bowers made the jump to becoming a starter and delivered on the expectations that came with his elevated role. He was a Big 12 All-Defensive Team pick and blocked eight shots against Colorado, tied for the most in a single game in program history. On the season, he averaged 11.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. The next season, Bowers took a medical redshirt due to a torn ACL in his left knee, which he suffered in the preseason. Bowers bounced back to set a career high in minutes played per game at 27.1 and points per game at 14.1. Bowers would sign a Summer League contract with the Memphis Grizzlies, but didn’t make the roster forcing him

BALL | Page 11

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BALL

Continued from page 10

just

been

an

honorable mention, but

for

a

team

that has lacked some frontcourt production it’s hard to argue against putting Bowers into the starting lineup.

Honorable Mention: Kevin Puryear Puryear spent his entire four-year career at Missouri after growing up in the suburbs of Kansas City Missouri. As a freshman, Puryear averaged 11.5 points and 4.6 rebounds per game which was good enough to earn him SEC All-Freshman Team honors. As a sophomore, Puryear would average 11.8 points per game while leading the team with 6 rebounds per game. He would have a career-

Center: Ricardo Ratliffe A two-year player at Missouri from 20102012, Ratliffe joined the program as the top

Missouri record books despite having a shorter career than most players.

junior college recruit after spending two seasons at Central Florida Community College. During Ratliffe’s prolific career at CFCC, he set the record for the highest single season point total as a freshman. He then reset the record his sophomore year to become the leading scorer of all time at CFCC. In his first season at Missouri, Ratliffe experienced similar levels of success being named Postseason Newcomer of the Year.

He was an All-Big 12 honorable mention while averaging 10.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game, and also led the Tigers in double-doubles with five on the season. The

Honorable Mention: Alex Oriakhi A McDonald’s All-American in high school, Oriakhi initially went to the University of Connecticut for three years and was a part of its 2011 National Champion team. A starter all three years at UConn, Oriakhi was named to the Big East All-Rookie Team his freshman season. In his sophomore campaign Oriakhi showed improved production averaging 9.6 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. His junior year, though, he took a step back as star freshman Andre Drummond cut heavily into his minutes, limiting his opportunities and touches. After the season,

best 30 point performance against Auburn in the

next season Ratliffe shot 69.3% from the field,

first round of the SEC tournament where he hit

which led the nation and was the highest single

as a result of his limited minutes, but largely

an overtime, buzzer-beating, three-point shot to

season total in Missouri and Big 12 history until

because of a postseason ban that UConn had

win. The next year he would have some more late-

Kansas’s Udoka Azubuike broke the record in

received for the 2012-13 season. At Missouri,

game heroics with another game-winning three-

the 2017-18 season. He averaged 13.9 points,

Oriakhi averaged career highs in points and field

pointer against Mississippi State. Otherwise, it

7.5 rebounds and 1 block per game which was

goal percentage with 11.2 points per game and

was a season of regression for Puryear statistically,

good enough to put him tenth on the all-time

63.9% shooting from the floor and racked up

who only averaged 8.6 points and 4.3 rebounds

blocks list at Missouri despite only playing two

eleven double-doubles. After his college career

per game. In his final season, Puryear started

seasons. After finishing his career at Missouri,

Oriakhi was selected 57th overall in the NBA

30 games to bring him to 119 career starts, fifth

Ratliffe was drafted sixth overall in the Korean

Draft by the Phoenix Suns and has since bounced

all time and just five fewer than the program

Basketball League where he became a naturalized

around playing for 13 professional teams in 11

record. Once again, though, he took a step back

citizen to play for the South Korean national

different countries. If Oriakhi had spent multiple

in terms of production with just 7.1 points and

team, adopting the name Ra Gun-ah. At the 2019

years at Missouri he very easily could have been

4.8 rebounds per game. Puryear struggled to ever

FIBA World Cup Ratliffe would go on to lead

the starting center as he became one of the

replicate the scoring ability he showed in his first

all players in the tournament with his 23 points

focal points of Missouri’s attack in the low post.

two seasons, but his steady presence and the sheer

and 12.8 rebounds per game. Ratliffe is the clear

Unfortunately, a lack of volume and longevity to

number of games he started is enough to earn him

starter at center for this team as he was one of

his career at Missouri keeps him as an honorable

an honorable mention.

very few players who consistently showed a high

mention.

Oriakhi decided to transfer to Missouri, partially

Edited by Wilson Moore

level of offensive output. He was also a solid

wmoore@themaneater.com

rim protector who managed to get himself into

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