Missouri men’s basketball’s NCAA tournament hopes may have been squandered in its most recent matchup after losing at home to the Texas Longhorns 85-68 in what was one of the Tigers’ sloppiest performances of the season. This marks just the second home loss the Tigers have suffered this season and the first home loss to an unranked opponent.
Missouri struggled to get the wheels turning offensively, particularly in the first half, in which it scored just 31 points. The second half wasn’t much better, as the Tigers recorded 37 points – 20 of which came from the free throw line.
Texas exploited the Tigers’ struggles, scoring 52 second-half points, 18 of which came from junior forward Dailyn Swain. The Longhorns also converted 21 of their 23 free-throw attempts, making 16 of 17 in the second half. This was a huge leg up on the Tigers, who shot just 26-38 from the line, as free-throw struggles continue to plague them.
Not only was this loss a tough one to stomach in the moment, but it also may have been detrimental to the Tigers’ tournament hopes. As it stands, Missouri’s record sits at 17-8 and 7-5 in Southeastern Conference play. That places them at No. 55 in KenPom rankings — on the bubble of being one of the last four teams in the NCAA Tournament.
Although the Tigers are down on their luck as of now, not all hope is lost, as their remaining schedule may present them with an opportunity to sneak in with an at-large bid. Six games remain on Missouri’s schedule, half of which are against ranked opponents, putting them in a position to make a couple of splash upsets down the stretch.
The Tigers have already proven that they can hang with the top dogs of the SEC, taking down the Florida Gators, Kentucky Wildcats and most recently the Texas A&M Aggies. These wins likely factor into the confidence head coach Dennis Gates has that his team can still make a tournament push.
“I’m proud of what we’ve been able to do, but obviously we want to continue to do more and stay positive.” Gates said. “It’s not always as good as you think it is, and it’s not always as bad as you think it is. So we want to kind of stay in the middle and bounce back, because it’s a long season.”
Of course, the Tigers could will their way into March Madness with an SEC tournament championship, but the odds of Missouri getting that hot — considering its inconsistencies this season — are slim to none.
The Tigers are back in action at 8 p.m. Wednesday to host the Vanderbilt Commodores at Mizzou Arena.
