Missouri Basketball: Studs and Duds vs Auburn
The Missouri basketball team added to an upset-filled Saturday with an 85-73 win over the No. 11 ranked Auburn Tigers. Mizzou powered their way to their biggest upset in seven years.
Columbia was rocking on Saturday night when Missouri basketball upset a then 22-2 Auburn Tigers team that was looking in on the top 10 in the AP rankings.
Missouri shot 54% from the field and from three en route to a 12-point victory. The Tigers in black and gold led for most of the game and held a hot shooting Auburn team to just one three-pointer on 17 attempts.
The win is huge for Mizzou as they look to catch fire down the final stretch of the regular season.
Studs vs Auburn
Stud #1: Xavier Pinson
Just over a week ago, Xavier Pinson notched a career high 24 points in an overtime win against Arkansas. While that performance was great, it pales in comparison to what he did against Auburn.
Pinson scored 28 points on 10/12 shooting while connecting on two of three attempts from downtown.
The sophomore guard took over late in the game and helped preserve Missouri’s upset bid. He wasn’t alone, however, as his backcourt mate also had a career night.
Stud #2: Dru Smith
Dru Smith exemplified why Missouri is better when he shoots more. He came out firing against Auburn on his way to 18 first half points and 28 points in total. He was 7/14 from the field and 12/13 from the free throw line.
Smith showed a little more emotion than fans may be used to, which was a good sight to see. Everyone in Mizzou Arena saw a Dru Smith that hasn’t been much this year, but its a Dru Smith that can make this Tiger team deadly.
Stud #3: Kobe Brown
Kobe Brown finally looked like the Kobe Brown that opened SEC play on fire. He played hard and finished with 10 points and nine rebounds. He outworked and out-hustled every Auburn player and his passion spread to the rest of the team.
As a freshman, seeing this kind of game from Brown shows the strides he is making during his first season in Columbia. While his season has been up and down, hopefully he can end it on a high note.
Duds vs Auburn
Dud #1: Mitchell Smith
Mitchell Smith did not play a bad game. He was great and played with great energy, but someone has to make this list.
Mitchell Smith was 1/6 from the field and fouled out late in the game. He played hard but the ball didn’t bounce his way this game. He still played a great role in the victory though.
Dud #2: Reed Nikko
Reed Nikko makes this list for a similar reason, but there is more to complain about here. Nikko fouled out but during the first half, his pick-and-roll defense was severely lacking. Auburn picked him apart and he struggled to adjust.
He still had a couple of dunks to shift momentum, but Austin Wiley had his way and finished with 22 and 10.
Dud #3: Tray Jackson
Tray Jackson played well again, be he moreso makes this list because he only played 10 minutes. While that falls on Cuonzo Martin and not Tray, it would’ve been nice to see some more from number two.