The Tigers, who were up by 16 with 13:03 remaining, had to fight once again down the stretch to secure an SEC victory. Off the back of effective free-throw shooting down the stretch, Mizzou was able to close the door on any comeback victory for Mississippi State in an 84-79 victory.
The wire-to-wire contest didn't bother Mizzou coach Dennis Gates; in fact, he more than embraced this type of matchup.
"That’s a tough position to be in, but I’ll take it any day of the week," Gates said. "I knew, and we knew Mississippi State was going to fight back. We knew that, but we gave them opportunities to fight back with empty possessions on the offensive end, which led to easy buckets, 3-point plays, and almost four-point plays."
Tigers prevail in another up-and-down performance
In this game, avoidable moments of momentum swing happened as well. Shawn Phillips Jr. was assessed a technical foul following a scuffle under the basket, which started with Anthony Robinson II exchanging words with Shaw Jones Jr.
Mississippi State converted the free throws, retained possession, and momentum switched hands. A 12-1 run by the Bulldogs gave them a 26-25 lead. The Tigers, just like they did against Oklahoma, survived and advanced that storm, going on a 12-4 run and taking a 42-35 lead into halftime.
Second-half scares have been prevalent with the Missouri Tigers, and today was no different but also very understandable. Mizzou had to survive, not just the killer instinct of Josh Hubbard, who finished with 22 points, 20 of which came in the second half. Sophomore guard Annor Boateng was taken off the floor on a stretcher after slipping up on his transition dunk, after a put-back dunk moments prior.
'I don't think it slowed us down," T.O Barrett said. "I know me personally, it messed with me a little bit mentally, just seeing my brother go down like that, and you could see the pain on his face. But ultimately we kept pushing through."
Don't know the specifics yet, but nine times out of ten he'll be out for the remainder of the season," Gates said on the injury.
At the 10:45 mark, Boateng left the game, and a Bulldog run ensued.
A 15-point lead turned into a seven-point lead by the 3:45 mark, and by the 2:22 mark, it was a one-possession margin. Missouri ultimately sealed the game at the free-throw line, making 10 of its final 12 attempts to close it out.
On the topic of free-throw shooting, Gates jokingly tooted his own horn a bit.
“Look, man, that's good coaching," Gates said. "I was able to telepathically get into their brain right there on the line, start whispering to them, calm down, calm down. And you just saw swish. So the coaching, I'll take that."
What else was good coaching was the starting lineup Gates put out. Dennis Gates’ decision to start Trent Pierce laid the early impact. Pierce drilled two early three-pointers, and the impact of the drives into the paint from T.O Barrett helped Mizzou gain an early 15-7 lead heading into the first media timeout.
13 points in 30 minutes from Pierce and a 16-point performance from Barrett have shown more than both becoming better scorers for this team in Gate's eyes. The confidence to execute is improving vastly in both as well.
"I love the development that these guys have mentally," Gates said. "As freshmen, they were just trying to be perfect, and they couldn't recover from their mistakes, and they were afraid to take the risk. Now you see the growth."
Ultimatetly, the Tigers finished out with the victory, and in a season where every game matters for this team waning on the NCAA tournament bubble, it doesn't necessarily matter how they get them.