Missouri men’s basketball (9-2) overpowered the North Florida Ospreys in a home nonconference win on Saturday.
The Tigers did just about everything right in their 85-51 victory, the team’s fourth straight.
Senior forward Jordan Barnett continued his streak of strong outings, scoring 18 points and grabbing 11 rebounds to lead Missouri to victory. It was his second double-double of the season, after he recorded one in a loss against West Virginia on Nov. 26.
Coming off a career-best 28 points in last Saturday’s win over Green Bay, junior guard Jordan Geist turned in another solid effort off the bench, adding 11 points and shooting 4 for 7 from the floor.
As a team, Missouri shot the ball well, shooting 50.7 percent from the floor and 40 percent from 3.
Defensively, Missouri recorded five blocks and forced eight Osprey turnovers. Most notably, the Tigers shut down North Florida on the perimeter and inside the arc, holding the team to 30.8 percent shooting from the field.
Missouri played conservatively in the second half to nurse a 27-point lead. The win marked Missouri’s ninth of the season, surpassing its total from 2016-17.
“Win totals don’t really mean anything to me,” head coach Cuonzo Martin said postgame against Green Bay after the Tigers tied last year’s win total. “It’s more important to take it game by game.”
Missouri returns to the court on Tuesday with another nonconference matchup when the Tigers host the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks on Tuesday. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
_Edited by Joe Noser | jnoser@themaneater.com_