Missouri men’s basketball team pulls away from Miami (Ohio) for big win

Reactions to Missouri’s seven made three-pointers in Tuesday night’s second half were similar to that of people opening gifts during the holidays.

With the December chill in the air, the Tigers’ 2-of-13 shooting performance from downtown in the first half and their 29 percent number from beyond the arc for the year, the reactions from the 3,515 people in attendance made sense.

Against Miami (Ohio), the 302nd-ranked team on Kenpom.com prior to the contest, so too did the Tigers success, especially in the second half. Prior to the game, the RedHawks were allowing 74.8 points per contest. Thanks to 55 second half points, Missouri eclipsed that number and emerged with the 81-55 victory.

“I give these guys a lot of credit because these last couple weeks have been tough on them mentally after not playing well against North Carolina Central and fighting to beat Western Kentucky,” Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. “To come in here and play this team and play so well in the second half, I thought that was good.”

The Tigers (5-3) were ignited in the second half by a four-point play by freshman guard Frankie Hughes to begin the second half, but the real spark was lit before.

“I kind of jumped (on) them all (at halftime) in the respect that the idea of getting leads and losing leads — that’s not acceptable,” Anderson said. “We can’t continue to do that. ... This team will only be as good as how it reacts to adversity because they are younger guys.”

After a 6:58 scoreless drought in the first half that allowed the RedHawks (4-5) to creep back in the game and take a 24-23 lead with 1:58 remaining in the first half, Missouri sophomore guard Terrence Phillips responded to adversity by drilling a perimeter jumper to give Missouri a 26-25 halftime lead.

Sophomore forward Kevin Puryear, who finished with a team-high 19 points, also attributed some of the second half success to Phillips’ shot.

“That was definitely a big momentum booster for us in the second half,” Puryear said. “That play carried over in the second half. … In the second half we did a really good job of setting each other up and making the easy pass and making the easy play.”

Anderson agreed and was proud of his team’s 18 assists (they averaged 13.4 prior to the contest).

Asked about the second half success, Anderson reference a possession that resulted in a three-pointer by sophomore guard Cullen VanLeer by saying: “I can’t remember that last time I saw that (kind of offensive success).”

VanLeer scored all of his 14 points in the second half, but he was bested by senior center Russell Woods, who scored 15 second half points and grabbed 10 rebounds.

“We’re not that big of a team, so I know that I have to go for every rebound,” Woods said. “Our team relies on us for that.”

It wasn’t always easy-breezy, though.

Like the first half in many of the Tigers’ previous seven games, another day meant another first half dud offensively.

Missouri shot a mere 29 percent (9 of 31) from the field in the first half, but the Tigers weren’t alone. Miami seemed to catch the bug that’s plagued Missouri much of the year.

After a layup made by junior forward Logan McLane just 21 seconds into the contest, a drought ensued for the RedHawks. And boy did it last. For the next 9:03 Miami went scoreless and it trailed 16-2 at the 10:57 mark.

With 10:36 remaining in the half, Shawnee Mission North graduate and former Kansas City Star All-Metro boys player of the year in Miami freshman guard Michael Weathers poured in a three-pointer.

Weathers finished with a team-high 12 points, but fouled out with 5:49 remaining in the game, and his brother, Marcus, a freshman forward, added 11. The RedHawks, who capped off a two-game road trip with this Missouri contest, shot 27.6 percent (8-29) from the field in the first half and 30.5 percent (18-59) for the game.

Next up for Missouri is an 11 a.m. Saturday matchup against No. 20 Arizona at Mizzou Arena. A win would grant the team back their locker room chairs, the last of three things Anderson took away after the team’s loss to North Carolina Central — the others were the Missouri practice apparel and the student managers’ rebounding prowess.

“We have to prepare and be on our P’s and Q’s, but I have a great amount of confidence in (Coach Anderson) and Russell Woods and the rest of my teammates,” Puryear said. “We’re going to come out and give it our all, and it’s going to be a great test for us.”

MISSOURI 81

MIAMI (OHIO) 55

TableStyle: SP-bkwideplayersCCI Template: SP-bkwideplayers

Percentages: FG .305, FT .684. Three-Point Goals: 6-31, .194 (Wright 2-8, McLane 1-2, Mi.Weathers 1-3, Solomun 1-3, Ma.Weathers 1-4, Mills Jr. 0-1, Jovic 0-2, Wade 0-2, Harouna 0-2, Bischoff 0-4). Team Rebounds: x. Blocked Shots: 6 (Wade 2, Solomun 2, Mi.Weathers, Ma.Weathers). Turnovers: 15 (Mi.Weathers 4, Ma.Weathers 3, Solomun 2, Bischoff 2, Wright, Harouna, Kazee, Mills Jr.). Steals: 3 (Mi. Weathers, Ma.Weathers, Bischoff). Technical Fouls: None. Fouled Out: McLane, Mi.Weathers.

TableStyle: SP-bkwideplayersCCI Template: SP-bkwideplayers

Percentages: FG .373, FT .710. Three-Point Goals: 9-29, .310 (VanLeer 4-7, Hughes 3-11, Geist 1-1, Phillips 1-6, Puryear 0-1, Glassman 0-1, Walton 0-2). Team Rebounds: x. Blocked Shots: 1 (Smith). Turnovers: 6 (Puryear 2, Woods, Jackson, Walton, Geist). Steals: 9 (Phillips 5, Hughes 2, Smith, VanLeer). Technical Fouls: None. Fouled Out: None.

Half: Missouri 26-25. Att: x.

This story was originally published December 6, 2016 at 9:28 PM with the headline "Missouri men’s basketball team pulls away from Miami (Ohio) for big win."