Mizzou comeback falls short against Texas A&M but Tigers break NCAA free throw record
A furious comeback attempt from the Missouri Tigers came up just short in a 66-64 loss to the Texas A&M Aggies.
The Tigers (9-9, 1-5 SEC) had two open looks at the basket on three-pointers, including one at the buzzer from Torrence Watson. But neither fell as the Aggies (9-8, 3-3) escaped with a win on Tuesday at Mizzou Arena.
For Mizzou, it was another game where the shots refused to fall. Of Mizzou’s 50 field goal attempts, 35 were three-pointers. But the Tigers only shot 25.7% from behind the arc.
“We had a lot of open looks, but they didn’t go down,” Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin said. “But you have to keep working at it. You have to play to your strengths, continue to drive the ball to get to the free throw line. All of those things. At some point, the shots will consistently fall.”
Still, the Tigers made NCAA history on Tuesday. After making 31 straight free throws against Alabama, Mizzou made its first 23 attempts for an record 54 consecutive made free throws over multiple games. The Tigers finished 25 of 26 from the free throw line.
From the onset, it was an ugly game as expected. After Mizzou guard Mark Smith made a three-pointer, the Tigers missed nine straight field goals.
After the Aggies started 6 of 11 from the field, they went through their own drought, missing their next 10 field goal attempts. The scoreless streak spanned 8 minutes, 2 seconds of game time as the Tigers took the halftime lead.
Mizzou had three players in double figures with Mark Smith leading the way with 19 points. Dru Smith scored 18 points while Watson had 11 points. It was a short bench for Martin’s team as only eight players saw the court.
The Aggies’ Savion Flagg and Josh Nebo had 14 points each.
Mizzou next plays No. 14 West Virginia at 11 a.m. Saturday in Morgantown, West Virginia as part of the Big 12/SEC challenge.
“You see them fall in practice,” Martin said. “We shoot tough shots in practice. All kinds of shots. I think as we continue to drive the ball, the three-point shot will fall. As you get to the rim, it loosens up most defenses. I thought we had great shots in the corners.”
This story was originally published January 21, 2020 at 10:26 PM.