How Mizzou found a way to claw past Top 10 Illinois (despite an imperfect effort)
What had been a commanding Missouri Tigers lead vanished in a matter of minutes.
It was a bit jarring. Mizzou had appeared poised to cruise to a third straight Braggin’ Rights win, wielding a 13-point lead over No. 6-ranked Illinois.
But MU men’s basketball coach Cuonzo Martin had warned his team at halftime to be ready — that the Illini were going to punch back. He joked about it last year, and the same “boxing match” principles were rearing their head. Illinois kept brawling until it used a 14-3 run to tie the score with a little more than three minutes remaining.
But it wasn’t panic time for this experienced Tigers team. Especially for one that, Martin noted, has experienced all kinds of losses, from heartbreaks to blowouts.
Mizzou guard Javon Pickett said there was no worry or sense of dread.
“We were pretty calm,” he said. “We got a lot of guys that was just encouraging one another. Just saying what we need to do better. Just stay locked in, stay focused, go out there and get the victory. To me, I feel like we were calm.”
The Illini never did take a lead in those waning minutes. The Tigers willed their way to a down-to-the-wire 81-78 victory over Illinois Saturday at Mizzou Arena.
But it was certainly a chaotic final few minutes, one ripe with confusion and whistles for both the Tigers (5-0) and Illini (4-2). Illinois center Kofi Cockburn had been charged with a technical foul on MU forward Mitchell Smith after review. The teams combined for 52 fouls. But the Tigers were the last team standing in an upset victory, their first home win over a Top 10 opponent since February 2014.
Illinois threw nearly everything it had at MU — especially guard Ayo Dosunmu — but the Tigers never wilted. They even used it as motivation, Mizzou guard Xavier Pinson said. Having their backs against the wall only made them “hungry” to finish out the upset, he said.
“That’s where the growth shows in our team,” Pinson said. “Once that starts to happen, we all just get even hungrier. We all just try to lock in and focus even more.”
It was far from a spotless effort, which Martin was quick to point out. The Tigers’ 18 turnovers represented a season high. His Tigers played hard, but the defensive effort wasn’t all the way there as Dosunmu finished with 36 points.
Mizzou found itself in a hole because it couldn’t make shots late. Dru Smith made a layup at the 7:41 mark in the second half. Then the Tigers didn’t make another field goal until a twisting Pinson layup with 51 seconds remaining — nearly 7 game minutes without a recorded field goal.
Four Tigers had more than 10 points. Even as Mizzou’s Mark Smith and Jeremiah Tilmon struggled with foul trouble and ineffectiveness, the remaining cast still found a way to win. Dru Smith (18 points), Pinson (17), Pickett (14) and Kobe Brown (12) chipped in, too.
“I feel like the title of the game explains itself: Braggin’ Rights,” Pinson said. “This game was important. We got a Top 10 team coming into our house. We’ve got to defend our home. And we had to defend the trophy. Just to get a three-peat and to be added to that type of history of Mizzou — that’s everything for me. Can’t get any better than that.”
Mizzou will likely find its way inside the AP Top 25 once those rankings are released Monday. Martin wondered aloud how many teams have a true road win and now two victories over ranked foes.
But he said he isn’t worried about such trivial things as numbers next to his team’s name on TV broadcasts. He said he understands his players and the fans love it, but he was quick to point out it’s too early to be ranking teams on small bodies of work.
“It’s all phony to me,” Martin said. “I don’t know why you rank teams anyway until after December. That’s all that buddy-buddy behind the scenes stuff. I’ve never been a fan of it, because I don’t cut side deals and I don’t have those types of relationships. I don’t worry about it because I know what it is.”
The Tigers are off to a perfect start, no blemish on their record yet. But it’s a long season, and while Dru Smith said they’ll celebrate for a day, they’ll also be gearing up for their next opponent. Martin noted how fast everything can go wrong for the Tigers — he’s seen it happen during his first three years at Mizzou.
“Anything can happen,” Martin said. “You go into league play. You lose a key guy, injuries. There’s so much that goes into it. You’ve just got to make sure you’re healthy as possible. Do the right things. Prepare to win basketball games and just stand together.”
This story was originally published December 13, 2020 at 12:34 AM.