Thrilling Showdown: Men’s Basketball Ends on a Heartbreaking 80-77 Loss in Braggin’ Rights Clash

ST. LOUIS – The University of Missouri men’s basketball team narrowly lost, 80-77, in the McBride Home Braggin’ Rights to Illinois on Sunday afternoon at Enterprise Center, which attracted 18,497 spectators. The Tigers had their 10-game winning streak halted, bringing their season record to 10-2, while the Illini improved to 8-3.

MIZZOU LEADERS

Graduate Tony Perkins and junior Mark Mitchell paced the Tigers. Both athletes scored the team-high of 18 points and secured six rebounds each. Perkins achieved this on 5-for-11 shooting, whereas Mitchell did so on 6-for-12 shooting.

Senior Tamar Bates contributed 17 points and matched a team-high with three steals in the matchup.

GAME RECAP

Missouri engaged in a back-and-forth contest from the beginning, inspired by five initial points from Mitchell. The Illini began to heat up from three-point range as the quarter progressed, but an eight-point surge by Missouri allowed the Tigers to capture a late first-half advantage, highlighted by a slam dunk by Perkins. Illinois retaliated with their own run to establish a five-point lead at halftime, 37-32.

The exchanges continued in the second half as both teams traded scoring bursts, resulting in Illinois’ lead oscillating between two and eight points for the first 13 minutes. Missouri narrowed the deficit to two at the midway point of the second half, culminating in a Perkins putback dunk, but each time the Tigers drew within two, Illinois promptly responded with two points.

Illinois finally attained some distance in the score, stretching their lead to 10 before Missouri initiated an 11-0 run of their own—sparked by a Jacob Crews three-pointer and a Trent Pierce layup, granting the Tigers a one-point lead, 68-67, with 4:13 left.

It set the stage for a thrilling finish between the rivals. Bates tied the game at 75, sinking a three-pointer with 74 seconds to go. Both teams then exchanged free throws before Illinois secured the lead permanently with a jumper with 45 seconds remaining. The Tigers had one last opportunity to force overtime, but their three-point attempt at the final buzzer fell short, ending with an 80-77 score.

TEAM STATS

Missouri concluded the game shooting 39.7 percent from the floor, while Illinois made 43.9 percent of their shots. The Tigers converted 28-of-37 from the free-throw line, while Illinois excelled at the stripe with a rate of 22-for-23.

The Tigers coerced Illinois into 17 turnovers, dominating the fastbreak points, 16-8. Illinois, however, outperformed Mizzou on the boards, 42-30, which allowed them to garner 11 second-chance points in the first half and 13 overall.

UP NEXT

The Tigers are set to face Alabama State on Monday, December 30 at 6:30 p.m. The game will be broadcasted on SEC Network+.