A great start and competitive finish for Missouri Tigers. In between ... not so much
In a game with one lead change, No. 20 Missouri can find plenty to build on ... and improve from its 74-68 loss at No. 13 Arkansas on Wednesday.
The beginning and the end were best of coach Dennis Gates’ team. The Tigers fired out of the gate for the third straight game. Unlike the previous contests, where Mizzou kept Illinois and Kentucky down throughout the game, the Razorbacks battled back.
With 14 1/2 minutes remaining, Arkansas took the lead and never surrendered it. But the Razorbacks couldn’t put away the Tigers, who showed fight down the stretch and kept the outcome in doubt until the final few seconds.
That’s the good stuff for Gates’ squad, who entered the rankings for the first time this week.
“I’m really just proud of our guys. We competed well,” point guard Nick Honor said. “We’re doing a lot better than anybody expected. It was a loss but definitely a lesson.”
Missouri, 12-2 overall and 1-1 in the SEC, opened a 25-8 lead. Arkansas had no response to the TIgers’ zone defense and full-court pressure, committing four straight turnovers at one point.
“We’re big on trying to make the first blow, hit the first punch and let them respond,” guard Sean East said.
For most of the first half, Missouri’s offense was crisp, and much to Gates’ delight, the Tigers were getting to the line in a physical game. They attempted 14 free throws in the first half.
That number was cut in half after the break.
“I want our guys to continue to play hard and play through contact,” Gates said.
Arkansas shot 61.8% in the second half, and freshman guard Joseph Pinion was an unexpected hero. He entered the game with 21 points on the season. But the best shooter on a team that entered the game making only 30% from beyond the arc went 3 of 6 from deep and finished with 13 points.
The Razorbacks took the lead 43-42 with a free throw, but on the next possession Pinion buried a wing three that blew the roof off Bud Walton Arena.
The Arkansas lead swelled to eight on multiple occasions, but Missouri wouldn’t go away. Honor’s free throw with 27 seconds left made it 69-66. The Razorbacks responded with a pair of free throws before East immediately scored inside with 20 seconds to play.
With Missouri needing to foul, Arkansas made three of its final four free throws to clinch a big victory.
Another factor for the Tigers: Kobe Brown, coming off games in which he scored 31 and 30 points, finished with 11. He collected his second foul before the first media timeout and played only 20 minutes in the game.
“Arkansas players did a great job drawing fouls on Kobe early on,” Gates said. “That’s part of the game.”
So, no victory over a third straight ranked team for the Tigers, which would have been a program first. That doesn’t change the program’s self-image.
“We feel like we’re one of the top teams in the country,” Honor said. “We’ll learn from our mistakes and move on.”
This story was originally published January 5, 2023 at 7:30 AM.