Shooting woes sink Mizzou Tigers once again. Issues that emerged in MU’s loss to A&M
With just over nine minutes left the crowd at Mizzou Arena was roaring.
As Texas A&M took a timeout, the student section waved white balloons while the rest of the crowd stood on its feet. D’Moi Hodge had hit a three-pointer to cut the Aggie lead over Missouri men’s basketball to eight.
It was the most life the Tigers had shown throughout the game, one where they had struggled to defend and rebound against a Texas A&M team that came in as one of the top teams in the SEC.
Unfortunately for Missouri, that was the most life it would have the rest of the way. MU’s struggles continued, and the Aggies jumped back into the lead.
“There were runs in that game where I thought we got it down to eight or 10 and then we would turn it over,” Mizzou coach Dennis Gates said. “We didn’t give ourselves a chance to sort of get to that other side of that run.”
MU ended up losing 69-60 The loss dropped the Tigers to 19-8 on the season, 7-7 in SEC play.
For a team that could have used a win following a tough loss to Auburn, this was a tough one to take. The Tigers had their chances throughout but never were able to sustain runs long enough to win.
After a dud of a first half, Missouri did look better following the break. Though they were unable to hit the 70-point mark that has signaled a victory throughout the 2022-23 season, the shooting did improve in the second half, with the Tigers making 52.4% of their field goals.
“We played the game from behind,” Gates said. “More than 39 minutes of the game we were playing behind, and that’s a tough spot to be in. We didn’t do enough.”
Kobe Brown led the Tigers with 24 points. Hodge (12 points) was the only other Tiger in double figures.
Early issues
Last time Missouri played Texas A&M, shooting was a major issue. When the Tigers lost to Auburn last time out, shooting was a major issue.
And in the first half of Saturday’s rematch with the Aggies, the woes from the field continued. MU hit just 9 of 30 attempts from the field during the half, good for a 30% clip.
The offensive issues meant Missouri’s strong efforts on the defensive end went unrewarded. A game after the Tigers lost the turnover battle to Auburn, they returned home and forced 13 Texas A&M giveaways in the first half.
“Every time we went to the huddle they would tell us how many times we made them turn the ball over,” Brown said. “We were all just looking like, ‘How is that possible, we’re down by X amount of points?’ So we just have to come out and make shots next time.”
Missouri made 4 of 13 attempts from three-point range in the first half. D’Moi Hodge led the efforts from beyond the arc, hitting 2 of 4 tries from range.
Like most of the games in which they struggled from the field, it wasn’t immediately obvious what the issue was for the Tigers. Texas A&M had its turnover issues but was able to get numbers back on defense, which limited some of the damage Missouri could do. The Tigers also had problems missing the open shots they were presented with.
Missouri went to the locker room down 39-25. Kobe Brown led the home team in scoring, with 10 points, and rebounds, with four.
What it means
With the loss, Missouri dropped to 7-7 in SEC play and is now on a two-game skid in conference since DeAndre Gholston’s buzzer-beating three-pointer to beat Tennessee. The Tigers entered the game in sixth place in the conference, with the same record as Vanderbilt but holding a head-to-head win over the Commodores.
Missouri is still technically in the running for a double-bye in the SEC tournament, which goes to the top four teams in the standings after the regular season. However, the loss made things more difficult for the Tigers, who sit behind Auburn and Kentucky for the spot — and now one more team.
To make matters worse, with Auburn and Vanderbilt facing off Saturday night, MU dropped another spot in the standings, as Vanderbilt earned the win. The Tigers now sit in seventh in the conference.
At 7-7, Missouri now sits tied with Arkansas and Florida. The Razorbacks beat the Gators on Saturday.
Georgia had entered the day just below MU at 6-7 but got hammered by Alabama and dropped to 6-8, tied with Mississippi State. Missouri still has four more chances to improve its standing before the SEC tournament, starting with Mississippi State on Tuesday, followed by games against Georgia, LSU and Ole Miss.
The Mississippi State game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. start and will be aired on the SEC Network.
The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.
