COLUMBIA, Mo. – No. 15/19 University of Missouri men’s basketball dropped its regular season finale, 91-83, to No. 19/24 Kentucky on Saturday. Both squads enter the postseason with a 21-10 overall mark and are 10-8 in league play.
MIZZOU LEADERS
Junior Mark Mitchell led the offensive attack, tallying 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting, adding seven rebounds and three assists. Saturday was Mitchell’s sixth effort of at least 20 points this season.
Graduate student Marques Warrick provided 17 points off the bench – all of which came in the second half – for his second double-digit outing in succession. Classmate Jacob Crews added 12 points on 5-of-11 shooting, tabbing his second-highest scoring performance in conference play and grabbing four rebounds.
GAME RECAP
Thanks to a stalwart defensive effort, the Tigers jumped out to an early 11-4 on the back of 3-pointers from Tony Perkins and Caleb Grill, forcing Kentucky to miss 10 of its first 12 attempts from the floor. The Wildcats, however, were able to take advantage of Mizzou miscues to grab the lead. The Tigers committed a turnover on four-straight possession during an 11-0 Kentucky spurt as the Wildcats moved in front, 15-11.
The teams then heated down the stretch but an 11-3 Kentucky spurt turned a two-point lead into double digits before the Wildcats headed into the break with a nine-point lead, 38-29.
The Wildcats held on to their advantage throughout the second stanza, heralding a 66-51 lead with 10 minutes to play. Mizzou then responded with a 10-0 run, led by eight points and back-to-back treys from Warrick, and cut the lead to five.
From then, the two teams traded baskets down the stretch. Kentucky, though, would convert 13 of its last 14 attempts from the line to secure the road victory.
TEAM STATS
The Tigers shot 43.9 percent from the field, including 11 triples and 14-of-21 from the charity stripe. Kentucky shot 48.2 percent from the floor, 11-of-20 from deep and converted 26 free throws on 33 attempts.
UP NEXT
Having clinched a first-round bye, Missouri will begin the postseason in the second round of the SEC Tournament on Thursday, March 13 from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee on SEC Network. The final bracket is set to be released later Saturday.
