Mizzou’s Noah Carter falls to the floor after pulling down a rebound in the Tigers’ game against Georgia, Saturday at Mizzou Arena. (Photo: Cedric Williams)

NCAA Men’s Basketball12Final
Georgia (11-3, 1-0)403575
Missouri (8-6, 0-1)383068

Terrance Williams
Staff Writer

COLUMBIA, MO — After taking the lead in a back and forth contest, Saturday at Mizzou Arena, the University of Missouri men’s basketball team scored just three points in the final 4 minutes and 45 seconds, which proved to be not enough in a 75-68 loss to the University of Georgia, in the Southeastern Conference opener for both clubs.

Missouri trailed by as many as 17 points in the first half, but battled back to take the lead late in the second. Unfortunately, the Tigers went cold in the final minutes and couldn’t hold their lead against the hot-shooting Bulldogs, who made two straight three-pointers to re-take the lead with less than four minutes to go.

Mizzou missed six of its final seven shots and even two free throws in the final minutes of the game.

“I thought we were able to execute a game plan, regardless of the deficit in that first half, but our guys fought back,” Mizzou head coach Dennis Gates said. “Ultimately, we were able to cut that lead and get some easy plays and easy baskets. But in that second half, I think we were up three. There was a 9-0 run by UGA. They had that in-and-out three that hit every part of the rim, and then another three at that point, which allowed them to catch the lead and didn’t look back.”

The loss moves the Tigers to 8-6 (0-1 SEC) on the season, as the Bulldogs improve to 11-3 (1-0 SEC) with its ninth-straight win.

Sean East led the Tigers with 18 points and eight assists in the game, as well as chipping in six rebounds and a pair of steals. East II’s 18-point performance gives him 1,000 career points in collegiate basketball.

Junior Tamar Bates scored in double figures for the fourth-straight game with 15 points. Sophomore Aidan Shaw added a career-best 14 points to go with six boards, while Noah Carter added 13 points and three assists.

“The fight is something that they bring up in our team a lot,” Carter said. “We’re out there trying to hunt and we never get too down, too high. We stay middle grounded. We’re going to go out there and play our best ball as long as we can. It’s the mindset that we have and you know, we’ll take that, you know, every possession that we have.”

Assisted by a pair of early Carter triples and East buckets, the Tigers and Bulldogs would stay close to open the game before Georgia used a lengthy run to pull in front by double digits. A 16-0 spurt where the Tigers missed 11-straight field goals allowed the visitors to turn a 19-18 edge into a 35-18 lead.

The Tigers would remain competitive, using six points in just over a minute from Bates to pull within 10 with 3:30 left in the opening stanza. An emphatic Shaw block would energize the crowd and continue the momentum swing toward Missouri, helping piece together a 12-0 run for the home squad. Overall, the Tigers used a 17-2 run to pull within a pair at the break, 40-38.

Coming out of the half, Georgia would maintain the distance in the first five minutes, stifling Mizzou’s attempts to retake the lead. Aided by their ability to draw fouls, UGA would hold three separate five-point leads before Shaw would again ignite the home fans with a slam to pull within two at the 13-minute mark. East’s layup with 11 to go in the frame would give MU the 57-56 advantage, its first lead since the opening two minutes of the game.

The Bulldogs, however, would eventually retake the lead, using a 9-0 run to turn a 65-63 deficit into a 72-65 lead with just 71 seconds remaining.

Georgia’s early hot-shooting allowed the visitors to make 48.0 percent of its field goals despite the Tigers holding them to 36.0 percent in the second frame. The Bulldogs were also able to take advantage of the charity stripe, outscoring Mizzou, 15-6, from the line. The Tigers, meanwhile, made 44.4 percent of its shots.

Mizzou will another stiff test in its next outing, which will come on Tuesday, January 9, when the Tigers will travel to Lexington to play No. 6-ranked Kentucky. That game will tip off at 6 p.m., and will be televised nationally on ESPN.

Georgia 75

##PlayerGSMINFG3PTFTORB-DRBREBPFATOBLKSTLPTS
54Tchewa,Russel*295-50-08-94-7112120118
03Thomasson,Noah*326-93-60-01-340210115
04Demary Jr.,Silas*262-41-25-61-562030010
01Abdur-Rahim,Jabri*313-83-60-00-33421009
10Sunahara,RJ*80-00-00-01-01110000
11Hill,Justin295-124-82-60-220430116
15Melendez,RJ141-71-50-00-00110013
00Cain,Blue201-40-10-00-22011002
23DeLoach,Jalen111-10-00-00-11000102
TMTEAM00-00-00-01-34001000
Totals–20024-5012-2815-218-26341012121475

Missouri 68

##PlayerGSMINFG3PTFTORB-DRBREBPFATOBLKSTLPTS
55East, Sean*409-200-20-02-462801218
02Bates, Tamar*326-111-32-31-344120015
23Shaw, Aidan*267-80-00-03-361020014
35Carter, Noah*354-103-42-20-333321013
10Honor, Nick*371-71-52-20-22321025
13Carralero Martin, Jesus121-11-10-00-22001303
00Butler, Jordan60-20-10-01-12100100
75Vanover, Connor60-20-10-00-00100000
04Lewis, Curt20-10-10-00-00000000
11Pierce, Trent20-10-10-00-11200000
14Robinson II, Anthony20-00-00-00-11100010
TMTEAM00-00-00-02-13000000
Totals–20028-636-196-79-2130181486568

2023-24 Mizzou Tigers Men’s Basketball Schedule

DateTimeAtOpponentLocationTV
January 9, 2024 (Tuesday)6 p.m.Away#6 KentuckyLexington, Ky.
January 13, 2024 (Saturday)2:30 p.m.HomeSouth CarolinaMizzou Arena
January 16, 2024 (Tuesday)6 p.m.AwayAlabamaTuscaloosa, Ala.
January 20, 2024 (Saturday)TBAHomeFloridaMizzou ArenaESPN or ESPN2
January 23, 2024 (Tuesday)8 p.m.AwayTexas A&MCollege Station, Texas
January 27, 2024 (Saturday)Noon CTAwaySouth CarolinaColumbia, S.C.
January 31, 2024 (Wednesday)7:30 p.m.HomeArkansasMizzou Arena
February 3, 2024 (Saturday)2:30 p.m.AwayVanderbiltNashville, Tenn.
February 7, 2024 (Wednesday)8 p.m.HomeTexas A&MMizzou Arena
February 10, 2024 (Saturday)7:30 p.m.HomeMississippi StateMizzou Arena
February 17, 2024 (Saturday)7:30 p.m.AwayOle MissOxford, Miss.
February 20, 2024 (Tuesday)6 p.m.Home#5 TennesseeMizzou Arena
February 24, 2024 (Saturday)11 a.m.AwayArkansasFayetteville, Ark.ESPN or ESPN2
February 28, 2024 (Wednesday)5:30 p.m. CTAwayFloridaGainesville, Fla.
March 2, 2024 (Saturday)7:30 p.m.HomeOle MissMizzou Arena
March 5, 2024 (Tuesday)8 p.m.HomeAuburnMizzou Arena
March 9, 2024 (Saturday)7:30 p.m.AwayLSUBaton Rouge, La.
March 13-17, 2024 (Wednesday)TBABridgestone ArenaSEC TournamentNashville, Tenn.