No. 15 Missouri men’s basketball took advantage of its home court on Feb. 19, defeating No. 4 Alabama 110-98. Mark Mitchell scored a career high 31 points on 11-for-15 shooting and 8-for-12 on free throw attempts.

Mitchell looked sharp in the first half with 18 points on 72% shooting from the field. He got into the paint at will, finishing through contact.

“I’m a downhill driver – that’s my best strength and teams try to take that away, so it’s about picking and choosing,” Mitchell said. “We ran a couple sets to get me easy ones and once you get going, it opens it up, and you just have a feeling really.”

Another contributor to Missouri’s offensive success was Caleb Grill. He finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds, while drawing attention away from other shooters. Grill shot 33% from three, but found success shooting 10-for-11 on free throws.

The Tigers’ offense had Mizzou Arena roaring from tip-off, jumping out to a 12-0 lead. Anthony Robinson ll and Trent Pierce scored five each, forcing an Alabama timeout with 17:32 left in the first half.

The three-pointers fell in bunches for the Tigers, going five-for-six from long distance in the first six minutes of play. Those five makes came from five separate players, as Missouri worked to get everyone open shots. 

Preseason SEC player of the year Mark Sears kept Alabama in the game with 14 first-half points on six-for-nine from the field. Sears finished with a game-high 35 points.

Missouri held a 59-46 lead going into the half. Both teams shot 61% from the field in the half and over 40% from three. The Tigers countered the Crimson Tide offense by forcing 10 turnovers leading to 15 points.

“We just have a lot of weapons. I think we can beat you inside, obviously we can beat you outside,” Mitchell said. “We never panic.”

Missouri found themselves in the double bonus with 8:24 left to play and an 11-point lead. They got to the line 47 times as a team, their highest total of the season. Missouri failed to capitalize on those attempts, going 66% from the free throw line. Missouri ranks 185th in the NCAA with a free throw percentage of 71.9%. 

Tamar Bates put the finishing touches on the win with a transition layup and two free throws to put the Tigers ahead double digit points with under a minute left. Bates finished with 13 points and four steals.

Missouri’s 110 points is the most the team has had in a regulation conference game since its days in the Big Eight, scoring 111 against Nebraska in 1990. This marked the first time two separate Tigers scored 25-plus points since Jan. 30, 2021 against TCU.

Missouri hit the road after their upset win, playing Arkansas on Saturday, Feb. 22 in Fayetteville. The Tigers lost 92-85. 

Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com

Copy edited by Emma Short | eshort@themaneater.com

Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com