Coming off an eight-day break, the Missouri Tigers entered their matchup against Alabama State eager to secure their 11th win of the non-conference schedule.
From the outset, the Tigers jumped out to an early 10-point lead and never looked back, cruising to a decisive victory.
Sophomore guard Trent Pierce made his first start of the 2024-25 season in place of Anthony Robinson II, who was ruled out due to illness. Pierce stepped up early, knocking down his first shot to ignite the Tigers' offense. He finished with an efficient 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting and led the team in rebounds with 8.
Caleb Grill returned to action for the first time since suffering a neck injury last month against Lindenwood. While Grill began the season as the team’s leading scorer, tonight wasn’t his best performance, as he finished with 6 points on 2-of-8 shooting (2-of-7 from beyond the arc). Despite the off night, Grill remains a vital piece of the puzzle for the Tigers as they prepare for SEC play.
Despite Anthony Robinson's absence, the guard tandem of Tony Perkins and Tamer Bates stepped up admirably, combining for 28 points. However, the defensive intensity that Robinson typically provides was noticeably missed in last night's victory.
Mizzou center Josh Gray spent much of the first half on the bench after picking up two early fouls. Although Gray has started every game for the Tigers, he has played fewer than 20 minutes in the last two contests. It’s become evident that he is not a primary scoring option for this team, rather, he's better utilized for matchups against superior bigs thanks to his rebounding abilities.
This season, Mark Mitchell has elevated his game to another level, and it was evident again last night as he delivered another solid 14-point performance. One area where Mitchell has struggled has been the free-throw line, but he showed improvement, going 4-of-5 from the stripe.
Mitchell leads the team in free-throw attempts per game but is shooting just 60.5% from the line—a number head coach Dennis Gates will undoubtedly want to see improve as the Tigers face tougher competition.
As the Tigers prepare for SEC play, getting to the free-throw line will be crucial, especially in what has been the best conference in college basketball so far this season.
With their 82-65 victory, the Tigers wrapped up non-conference play with a strong 11-2 record, already surpassing last year’s 8-24 win total.
The Tigers will travel to face No. 2 Auburn on Saturday in what is likely to be one of their toughest matchups of the season.