Mizzou Tigers takeaways vs. Texas: Is Anthony Robinson II getting back on track?

A jovial scene laid before the crowd at 7:45 p.m. Saturday at Mizzou Arena.

Mizzou players were running through their normal warmups, but the sight of them dancing and joking with one another was laced with the happiness from their victory earlier in the week over Texas A&M. The road win was one the Tigers weren’t favored to walk away with, yet they did.

At 10:30 p.m., long gone were the smiling faces and dance moves. In its place was a glaring loss on the record, what started as a back-and-forth contest that had deteriorated into a cushy 85-68 win for Texas.

Though the loss has further implications, there were some glimmers of promise between the unanswered buckets from the Longhorns. The brightest of which was junior guard Anthony Robinson II’s shine coming back in the form of an and-one layup and two 3-pointers from deep.

Robinson has steadily been marching up the hill, firing shots in hopes of finding what feels right again. Against Texas, he finally saw a 3 splash in. Not just any 3, but a step-back that earned him a trip to the line.

His free-throw to turn a 3-pointer into four didn’t fall, but it did earn the Tigers another opportunity to score when Texas hit the ball out of bounds.

In the second period, the captain made up some of the distance by sinking another 3, this time a contested shot from right on the arc. On the next possession, he drove the lane and secured both a layup and a foul. This time, Robinson sank the free-throw and earned the extra point for the Tigers.

Robinson ended with 11 points on the night as one of three Tigers who scored in double-digits against the Longhorns.

Mark Mitchell’s offense fizzles in second half

From the start of the game, it seemed like it was senior Mark Mitchell’s night. Though Mitchell is a consistent offensive presence for the Tigers, his aggression and determination to score inside reached a different level in the first half.

He all-but-willed his first hook shot into the basket, a line-drive straight into the net from right outside the restricted area. His next few attempts held the same vigor, sometimes shooting over three or four Texas players and still scoring.

At the end of the first, Mitchell had 12 points. At the end of the second, he had 16.

The Longhorns were able to hold Mitchell to only one field goal in the second half, with his other two points coming from the charity stripe. Still, Mitchell ended as one of the leading scorers, tied with graduate Jayden Stone.

Though his offensive efficiency wore out, Mitchell still was a dominant force on the defensive end, but not enough to stanch the scoring inside from Texas.

Shawn Phillips’ early technical deflates Missouri

Senior center Shawn Phillips Jr. entered the game off one of his best performances of the season when he silenced Texas A&M with an alley-oop dunk and strong defensive stop. Against the Longhorns, Phillips handed over any lingering potential for a repeat performance when he elbowed Texas center Matas Vokietaitis in the neck/face area with 17:24 left in the first half, resulting in a technical foul.

Phillips picked up another foul on Missouri’s next offensive possession, once again against Vokietaitis, when he was posting up.

His two fouls in the first five minutes of the half didn’t deflate the Tigers’ play initially, but slowly flattened as the competition continued.

Nicholas Randall makes big plays with more minutes

On one end of Phillips’ technical foul was squandered momentum, and on the other end was freshman Nicholas Randall’s performance. Randall has been first off the bench in many of Mizzou’s recent matchups, but rarely does he get on the board anywhere but the fouls column.

Saturday, Randall used his minutes to slam home two dunks. The first off a steal from sophomore T.O. Barrett, who found junior Trent Pierce on the wing. Pierce spotted Randall waiting down low and lobbed one of the only passes that connected for an alley-oop dunk.

The second was from a stumbling Barrett, who drove the lane and desperately threw an underhand shot up toward the hoop. Randall took it as an invitation, grabbing the ball and throwing it down as a Texas defender jumped ineffectually next to him.

Randall had five points in his nine-and-a-half minutes, tying with Phillips and Barrett.

Mizzou looks to get back in the win column at 8 p.m. Wednesday against No. 19 Vanderbilt at Mizzou Arena.

Copyright 2026 Columbia Missourian

This story was originally published February 15, 2026 at 1:18 PM with the headline "Mizzou Tigers takeaways vs. Texas: Is Anthony Robinson II getting back on track?."