In Saturday’s tilt against the top-20 Arkansas, the luck of number 73 seemed to die out in Fayetteville.
Heading into the game, the Tigers were a perfect 18-0 if they reached at least 73 points. However, Billy Richmond III and the Hogs matched Mizzou offensively and shut the door on the visitors. After both teams had an emotional mid-week matchup, neither team wanted to crack but ultimately Mizzou could not find a second gear late in the game.
To start the game, Mizzou was able to keep the Hogs at bay defensively. The defense in the paint was shining and Trent Pierce and Mark Mitchell were lighting up the scoreboard. However, a bit of foul trouble and lineup changes later, an 8-point lead was evaporating.
At the end of the first half, Arkansas had embarked on a 23-9 run that completely dismantled the Tigers and their momentum. They entered the half with a six-point advantage and never lost the lead again.
Richmond III was assessed a Flagrant One at the end of the half as well as tensions began to rise inside the arena. The aggressiveness translated into the final twenty minutes and the Razorbacks pushed themselves to the free throw line.
Both teams made it to the charity stripe for just above twenty attempts, but Arkansas saw a 14% higher success rate which proved to be a lethal edge.
The Tigers found themselves in foul trouble early as well. At the conclusion of the game, four players reached four fouls apiece. T.O. Barrett reached four early in the second half and while he wasn’t contributing much offensively, the guard was pushed to the bench for a majority of the game.
Arkansas also outplayed the Tigers off of turnovers. Committing a total of ten turnovers, the Razorbacks were able to exploit 18 points off the errors. The Hogs are also a smaller team but out-rebounded the Tigers for 15 second chance points.
It truly was a game of inches. Both teams had field goal percentages above 50 percent but small ball can win big games and Arkansas showed that in various ways.
For Mizzou offensively, the Tigers also weren’t able to get a rhythm from beyond the arc. Shooting just 33 percent, no one looked quite comfortable from three as the basketball consistently clanged against the rim or missed the net entirely.
Even with all the negativity and a missed Quad One road victory opportunity, Mitchell continued to shine on a national stage. Another 26-point night for the big man as he led the team offensively. Pierce also notched another 20-point night. Shawn Phillips Jr and Jayden Stone were the only other players to reach double digits.
Mizzou will have time to regroup before hosting the Tennessee Volunteers Tuesday night at Mizzou Arena. It’s time for the home stretch.