No. 14 Mizzou Hoops' Valiant Effort Falls Just Short at No. 4 Tennessee

There's simply no way to accurately describe how good the SEC has been this season. After sending eight teams to the NCAA Tournament last year, the conference may very well send as many as 14 this season.

Never has there been a conference as strong as the SEC, yet the Tigers continue to compete, beating some of the top teams within it. Wednesday night served as an example of how thrilling these games can be, even when they don't feature two of the top teams in the conference.

Mizzou struggled to hold onto the game after controlling it throughout the entire first half, a theme that's been evident in several games this season.

Despite an early 5-0 deficit, partly due to a pair of turnovers by the Tigers, the visiting squad responded quickly, tying up the game and taking control.

Offensively, the first half was up and down for both teams. However, it was encouraging to see the three-point shooting remain strong, even compared to the historically good shooting performance in their previous game against Mississippi State.

The deep shooting looked just as good as it did in the victory last Saturday afternoon, picking up right where they left off in that regard.

Mizzou drained six three-pointers in the first half, and this time, it wasn't all Caleb Grill. Though he did hit a 40-footer, the story of the half was easily guard Tony Perkins.

The fifth-year player, who has barely surpassed 30% from three this year, was a perfect 4-for-4 from the field, with three of those attempts coming from beyond the arc. He finished the half with 12 points in 11 minutes of play.

The Tigers led for the entire first half after falling behind 5-0 to start the game, and they led by as much as seven against one of the strongest offenses in college basketball this season.

At the end of 20 minutes of play, Mizzou led 34-28. A minimal lead, but an impressive one nonetheless.

The other side of the ball wasn't bad either. Given the challenge of facing the No. 4 team at home, they defended inside the paint well, allowing just seven total shots to be made. However, the Volunteers converted 4-of-5 from deep, something head coach Dennis Gates had hoped to improve on during the break.

Apart from that, the Tigers forced eight turnovers in the half, compared to committing just two of their own, both coming within the first few minutes of the game.

A strong start to the second half saw Mizzou open with a 7-0 run, stretching the lead to as high as 11.

But just as the first half started with a quick comeback by the visiting team to take control, the Volunteers responded similarly in the second half, quickly tying the game at 43 apiece five minutes in.

Aside from a Tamar Bates triple, the offense slowed after the initial run to start the half. To make matters worse, guard Anthony Robinson II, who had been quiet as of late and logged nothing in the first half, picked up four early fouls, limiting his aggressiveness on the defensive side of the ball.

Suddenly, threes began to rain for Tennessee, and they took a 46-44 lead with 15 minutes to go in the game. This marked their first lead since the opening few minutes of the contest.

For the Volunteers, their stars were shining bright in the second half.

Through the first 10 minutes of the second half, senior Igor Milicic Jr. had 16 points, 7 rebounds, and 5 assists on perfect 7-for-7 shooting.

Meanwhile, senior Zakai Zeigler had a strong showing of his own, accumulating 15 points and 7 assists on 5-of-7 shooting from the field. Both players got extremely hot early in the second half, especially from deep.

The offense stayed somewhat strong throughout the second half, but they couldn’t stop Tennessee's attack, and found themselves trailing by 11 points with under six minutes to play.

A run of nearly six minutes without a field goal for the Tigers did not help the hole they found themselves in as the contest progressed. The lead grew to 14 after a missed free throw by Bates led to a highlight-worthy and-one dunk by the Volunteers.

Bates did contribute heavily, draining four threes and putting up 20 points overall, all in the second half. While he stole the show in the second half, hitting 20 points for the fourth time this year, it still wasn't quite enough, as his offense failed to support him at the level needed.

Despite a late run by Mizzou to cut the lead to five, fueled by a 12-3 run, it was too little, too late. Both teams played impeccable defense and struggled offensively in the second half, but Tennessee outplayed the Tigers overall and defended their home court, winning 85-81.

The matchup ended up mirroring a game they won against then-No. 4 Florida in early January: a strong first half nearly outweighed (or, in this case, was outweighed by) a disappointing second half.

It's a tough loss, but not a bad one. It took the Volunteers' stars playing the best they have all season to close out against this team, a sign that both teams have the potential for late runs in March.

As long as Coach Gates installs a bulletproof game plan for Saturday's contest against No. 10 Texas A&M, there's no reason Mizzou can't find a way to get back on track and keep themselves within the Top 25.