Missouri basketball failed to break up with its 10-game losing streak on Valentine’s Day Saturday.
The Tigers were unable to overcome an 11-point halftime deficit and fell to Mississippi State 77-74 in the Mizzou Arena for their 11th straight loss. The Tigers last won Jan. 8 in a 74-67 overtime victory at home against Louisiana State.
That was 38 days ago. Mizzou’s relationship with the streak has now lasted about twice as long as the average middle-school romance.
The Tigers’ love for the three-ball backfired on them early on. After senior guard Keith Shamburger opened up the game with a 3-pointer, the Tigers went 3-13 on threes for the remaining 19 minutes of the first half.
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs hit four of their first five three-point attempts, finishing 5-11 on the game.
It wasn’t solely long-range shots that plagued the Tigers. Mississippi State shot 66.7 percent from the field in the first half. Meanwhile, the Tigers entered halftime shooting 38.7 percent and down 11 points.
This performance did not sit well with the Mizzou fans, many of whom might have been looking for an exhilarating Valentine’s Day date, but instead witnessed their home team in a double-digit halftime deficit to the Southeastern Conference’s second-worst team.
“In order to win in the SEC you have to play two halves,” Mizzou coach Kim Anderson said. “I see bright spots. We just have to be able to play 40 minutes.”
The Tigers were paced by an “angry” Johnathan Williams III out of the break, who scored 23 of his career-high 27 points in the second half. Mizzou climbed to make it a four-point deficit five minutes into the second half.
Mississippi State went into the bonus moments later, but the Tigers continued their surge. Junior forward Ryan Rosburg slammed home an alley-oop and blocked a Bulldog shot on the other end, and the Mizzou Arena crowd of 8,278 was the loudest it had been all game.
Mizzou was within three points with eight minutes to go, and within two with five minutes left.
A hook-shot from senior forward Keanau Post put the Tigers ahead for the first time since the first minute of the game, nearly two hours earlier.
But fouls caught up with the Tigers. Whenever they scored a basket, the Bulldogs responded on the other end by drawing a foul rewarding them with two free throws.
“Every possession it seemed like there was a foul,” Rosburg said. “We didn’t get stops when we needed to get stops.”
Mizzou finished the game with 31 team fouls, and Mississippi State went 26 for 33 from the free-throw line.
Mississippi State coach Rick Ray said those free throws were crucial.
“I thought our guys did a great job of going up there and knocking those down,” Ray said. “Anytime you’re in a tight ballgame, you’ve got to score when the clock is stopped.”
Time ran out on the Tigers’ comeback as they continued their slide to 7-18 on the season and 1-11 in conference play. The Bulldogs improved to 12-13 overall and 5-7 in the SEC.
“Obviously things haven’t been going well,” Rosburg said. “There’s been a lot of people down. Going through this you have to find positives.”
A positive could come this upcoming week as the Tigers hit the road to Fayetteville, Arkansas for a rematch with the No. 24 Razorbacks Wednesday in the Bud Walton Arena. The game is set to tip-off 8 p.m. Central time and will be televised on the SEC Network.
“We can win these last six or seven games,” Williams III said. “We just have to believe in each other. That’s it.”