Mizzou Tigers are taking right steps toward March. See road victory at Texas A&M
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- Shawn Phillips Jr.'s dunk and defensive stop seal 86-85 road win.
- Mizzou out-rebounded A&M 39-26, scoring 14 second-chance points.
- Second Quadrant 1 road win lifts the 17-7 Tigers before Texas test.
Senior center Shawn Phillips Jr. threw down the game-winning dunk and followed it with a stop on the defensive end to hand Mizzou men's basketball a massive 86-85 win over Texas A&M on Wednesday night in College Station, Texas.
In a Southeastern Conference slate where road wins have been rare for the Tigers, Phillips' 12 points and nine rebounds was just one of several standout performances for Mizzou in a win that pushes it closer to the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble.
Pierce's explosive night
Junior forward Trent Pierce made his third consecutive start in what turned out to be his strongest performance of the season. Pierce finished just one point short of his single-game career-high in points (23) while grabbing a career-high nine rebounds.
"It was a fun game, we needed this one on the road," Pierce said. "I was proud of the team and how we stayed connected through their runs. When they punched we were able to punch back too, so I'm just proud of this team."
Not only did Pierce exceed 20 points for the first time this season, he did so on an efficient 10-of-15 shooting clip. Pierce also led the Tigers in 3-point shooting, making three of the Tigers' seven total makes from deep on the night.
Rebounds and paint control
Mizzou out-rebounded Texas A&M 39-26, including a 16-8 advantage on the offensive glass. The Tigers parlayed those extra opportunities into 14 total second chance points. The Aggies finished the night with just two second chance points by comparison.
The disparity between the two teams extended into paint scoring. Mizzou picked apart the Aggies around the basket, scoring 56 of its 86 points in the paint. Defensively, the Tigers curbed the Aggies ability to score in the paint, limiting them to 28 points.
"It's what we do, it's the unselfishness ..." Mizzou coach Dennis Gates said. "I wanted our guards to not settle, I wanted our shooters to make open shots but don't lean on those open 3s against a team that's pressing."
Areas for improvement
The Tigers led for just 14:04 of game time as a result of Texas A&M's 3-point shooting. The Aggies shot a whopping 15-of-33 from deep, while Mizzou finished the night at just 7-for-21 from beyond the arc.
The Tigers rolled out only seven players compared to 10 for the Aggies. Texas A&M's extra bench pieces helped them outscore Mizzou 38-14.
Potential tournament implications
The importance of this win cannot be stressed enough when evaluating Mizzou's tournament résumé. The Tigers picked up just their second Quadrant 1 road win of the season and now stand at 17-7 with a 7-4 mark in SEC play.
Mizzou has also pieced together three consecutive wins for the first time since the Tigers’ non-conference slate. They currently stand just outside the tournament field among several bracket projections, and now have a huge opportunity to make a jump with consecutive home games on the horizon.
Texas stands directly ahead of Mizzou in most tournament fields, making Saturday's game arguably the most important matchup of the season.
The Tigers take the court against the Longhorns at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Mizzou Arena.
Copyright 2026 Columbia Missourian
This story was originally published February 12, 2026 at 12:06 PM with the headline "Mizzou Tigers are taking right steps toward March. See road victory at Texas A&M."