Athens, Ga. – No. 21/22 University of Missouri men’s basketball controlled the second half in a road SEC win at Georgia on Saturday, outscoring the Bulldogs by 16 after the break en route to an 87-74 win.
With the victory, the Tigers improve to 19-6 and 8-4 against SEC foes, while the Bulldogs drop to 16-10 and 4-9 in league play. The 13-point victory also was Georgia’s largest home defeat of the season with its previous two setbacks by a combined three points.
MIZZOU LEADERS
Sophomore Anthony Robinson II led the Tigers to the victory, leading Mizzou with 15 points, seven assists, five rebounds and four steals. Robinson was especially strong in the second half as he recorded 13 of his 15 points and three of his four steals after the break.
Graduate student Caleb Grill matched Robinson with 15 points, five rebounds and four steals on the day, while junior Mark Mitchell and senior Tamar Bates also scored in double figures with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
GAME RECAP
The teams played a tight opening 20 minutes with neither school grabbing much of an advantage. Outside of a less than two-minute stretch where the Tigers led for two possessions, neither team led by more than three points the remainder of the half as Georgia scored the final five points for a 41-38 advantage at the break.
The second half, however, was a different story. The Tigers connected on their first seven field goals of the period during a 17-6 run, quickly taking an eight-point lead, 55-47.
The real damage, though, was done a couple of minutes later. Leading by four points, 58-54, Mizzou used a 15-0 stretch behind its defense and Robinson to move the lead to double digits. During a nine-point stretch of the run, Robinson forced two turnovers and turned them into transition buckets, connected with Mitchell for an alley-oop and hit a step-back triple as the Tigers led by 19 points, 73-54, with 9:26 remaining.
From there, the closest Georgia was at 13 points at the final whistle as Mizzou earned its third road SEC win of the campaign.
TEAM STATS
The Tigers finished the game by shooting 47.1 percent, including a 58.8 percent performance in the second stanza with four 3-pointers after the break.
Mizzou won the game in points off turnovers and rebounding. The Tigers dominated after miscues, outscoring Georgia, 18-2, while also holding a 36-27 advantage in rebounds that included 17 on the offensive glass.
UP NEXT
The Tigers return home for another ranked matchup at Mizzou Arena. Missouri hosts No. 2 Alabama at 8 p.m. on Wednesday night on SEC Network.
