Mizzou’s Aidan Shaw (23) battles South Carolina’s B.J. Mack for the ball during Saturday’s NCAA men’s basketball game at Mizzou Arena. (Photo: Thomas Grove)
| NCAA Men’s Basketball | 1 | 2 | OT | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Carolina (14-2, 2-1) | 32 | 30 | 9 | 71 |
| Missouri (8-8, 0-3) | 33 | 29 | 7 | 69 |
Terrance Williams
Staff Writer
COLUMBIA, MO — The University of Missouri men’s basketball team fell to South Carolina 71-69 in overtime, Saturday at Mizzou Arena, to remain winless in SEC play. This was nowhere near an easy win for the Gamecocks, as the underdog Tigers made this a back-and-forth affair.
Both teams entered Saturday in the top-5 in the SEC’s three-pointers made per game category, but that certainly wasn’t apparent in the first half.
The Tigers didn’t convert a shot from behind the arc until their 11th attempt, which came with four minutes remaining in the opening period. South Carolina ended the first half shooting 2-for-10 from downtown, which like Missouri, is far less than their average percentage.
“We got open looks, we got the right looks,” Missouri head coach Dennis Gates said. “I just thought the shots didn’t go in when you look at the shot count.”
Missouri had success shooting inside the key as they made 11-of-14 attempts at that point. The Gamecocks’ most efficient way of scoring was also inside the arc and through several second-chance buckets.
These methods of offense kept the first half in a gridlock battle, as the closing 33-32 score was a result of six ties and five lead changes.
Mizzou didn’t exactly switch up the game plan to open the second period. However, forward Noah Carter and 7-foot-5 center Connor Vanover helped the Tigers’ percentage by drilling their first two three-point attempts of the half.
In addition to holding South Carolina’s offense in the first 20 minutes, the Tigers also led the steals battle 5-to-1. Missouri’s defense remained stout early in the second half by tallying two more steals and not allowing the Gamecocks to make a field goal from 18:48 to 13:54.
Unfortunately, Missouri couldn’t take much of an advantage as a six-point lead after a three-pointer by Anthony Robinson II was their largest at that point. Nevertheless, Tigers forward Jesus Carralero Martin’s sixth point in the short run set a new season-high. He also was the defensive anchor during the run as he recorded a team-high three steals at that point.
Both teams played the rest of the way like it started—by trading buckets. Guards Tamar Bates and Sean East, and forward Carter were the main scorers throughout the game and that didn’t change in the final five minutes.
Carter finished with a season-high 23 points. East, Mizzou’s leading scorer for the season, had 15 points, and Bates added 12.
East hit two free throws with 43 seconds remaining to put the Tigers up by three, but 18 seconds later, Gamecocks guard Ta’Lon Cooper nailed a three-point jumper to even the score once again at 62. But it would remain that way to end regulation after East missed a contested jumper at the buzzer.
The overtime period became the Noah Carter Show as he scored every single point for the Tigers, including a game-tying three with 36 seconds left. But South Carolina guard Jacobi Wright’s jumper with 13 seconds remaining ended up being the game-winner after Carter missed a deep contested three at the buzzer—making the final score 71-69.
“We had a play, I got the ball up top,” Carter said. “I forced the shot. I would say that it felt good, it did feel good. But yeah, they got the stop and we didn’t get it done.”
Missouri fell to 8-8 on the year, while in a remarkable resurgent season, South Carolina is now 14-2.
Mizzou will be on the road for its next game, when it travels to Tuscaloosa to play Alabama on Tuesday. Tip off is set for 6 p.m., and the game will be televised on SEC Network.
South Carolina 71
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 02 | Mack,B.J. | * | 27 | 7-13 | 1-5 | 6-6 | 2-2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| 55 | Cooper,Ta’lon | * | 40 | 4-11 | 2-5 | 1-1 | 3-5 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| 10 | Stute,Myles | * | 30 | 3-7 | 2-5 | 2-3 | 0-4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| 30 | Murray-Boyles,Collin | * | 25 | 3-6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 05 | Johnson,Meechie | * | 28 | 2-6 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 0-4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| 01 | Wright,Jacobi | 29 | 3-8 | 1-2 | 4-4 | 0-3 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |
| 04 | Clark,Stephen | 9 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 12 | Davis,Zachary | 25 | 1-4 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 33 | Gray,Josh | 9 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0-1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 31 | Bosmans-Verdonk,Benjamin | 3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 225 | 24-59 | 7-24 | 16-18 | 15-28 | 43 | 17 | 12 | 16 | 0 | 2 | 71 |
Missouri 69
| ## | Player | GS | MIN | FG | 3PT | FT | ORB-DRB | REB | PF | A | TO | BLK | STL | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | Carter, Noah | * | 42 | 9-20 | 2-10 | 3-5 | 0-5 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 23 |
| 55 | East II, Sean | * | 41 | 5-14 | 1-4 | 4-5 | 0-8 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 15 |
| 02 | Bates, Tamar | * | 31 | 5-9 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 2-0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| 10 | Honor, Nick | * | 38 | 2-7 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 |
| 23 | Shaw, Aidan | * | 14 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Carralero Martin, Jesus | 24 | 2-6 | 0-2 | 2-2 | 2-3 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 | |
| 75 | Vanover, Connor | 14 | 2-2 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | |
| 14 | Robinson II, Anthony | 9 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-2 | 1-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| 05 | Tonje, John | 12 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| TM | TEAM | 0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Totals | – | 225 | 26-62 | 5-22 | 12-18 | 11-21 | 32 | 16 | 13 | 7 | 3 | 11 | 69 |
2023-24 Mizzou Tigers Men’s Basketball Schedule
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 16, 2024 (Tuesday) | 6 p.m. | Away | Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Ala. |  |
| January 20, 2024 (Saturday) | 7 p.m. | Home | Florida | Mizzou Arena | ESPNU |
| January 23, 2024 (Tuesday) | 8 p.m. | Away | Texas A&M | College Station, Texas | |
| January 27, 2024 (Saturday) | 12 p.m. | Away | South Carolina | Columbia, S.C. | |
| January 31, 2024 (Wednesday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Arkansas | Mizzou Arena | |
| February 3, 2024 (Saturday) | 2:30 p.m. | Away | Vanderbilt | Nashville, Tenn. | |
| February 7, 2024 (Wednesday) | 8 p.m. | Home | Texas A&M | Mizzou Arena |  |
| February 10, 2024 (Saturday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Mississippi State | Mizzou Arena | |
| February 17, 2024 (Saturday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | Ole Miss | Oxford, Miss. | |
| February 20, 2024 (Tuesday) | 6 p.m. | Home | #5 Tennessee | Mizzou Arena | |
| February 24, 2024 (Saturday) | 11 a.m. | Away | Arkansas | Fayetteville, Ark. | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| February 28, 2024 (Wednesday) | 5:30 p.m. CT | Away | Florida | Gainesville, Fla. | |
| March 2, 2024 (Saturday) | 7:30 p.m. | Home | Ole Miss | Mizzou Arena | |
| March 5, 2024 (Tuesday) | 8 p.m. | Home | Auburn | Mizzou Arena | |
| March 9, 2024 (Saturday) | 7:30 p.m. | Away | LSU | Baton Rouge, La. | |
| March 13-17, 2024 (Wednesday) | TBA | Bridgestone Arena | SEC Tournament | Nashville, Tenn. |