COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Men’s Basketball (4-4) was defeated by Charleston Southern, 68-60 at Mizzou Arena on Tuesday night. The two teams battled back and forth all night, until a late second half run sealed the victory for the Buccaneers (3-5). The Tigers were led by juniors Jeremiah Tilmon, Jr., and Mitchell Smith, as the two combined for 25 points.
Mizzou surged to the end of the first half with a 9-0 run at just under the seven-minute mark. With five minutes to go in the half, Mizzou’s Reed Nikko scored a quick four points while Smith added two late 3-pointers to cap off a 14-3 Tiger run.
Mark Smith opened the second half by immediately drilling a triple to extend the Tiger run to 17-3. Charleston Southern pulled within a point minutes later, until Tilmon, Jr., went on a run of his own for the Tigers. Tilmon, Jr., recorded eight consecutive points in under two minutes, pushing the Mizzou lead out to nine. The two teams battled until the final minutes, as Charleston Southern hit three late triples to push the Buccaneers to a victory.
Turning Point
At the two-minute mark in the second half, Charleston Southern’s Duncan LeXander hit two consecutive shots beyond the arc to give the Buccaneers a narrow lead. Then with a minute remaining, Travis Anderson drilled a clutch triple that sealed a 68-60 victory Tuesday night.
Top Tigers
- Redshirt junior Mitchell Smith played 12 high-energy minutes off the bench, tying his career-high with 10 points, including two triples.
- Junior Jeremiah Tilmon, Jr., recorded 15 points and nine rebounds. Tilmon, Jr., scored all 15 points in the second half, including eight of those in a 1:40 span.
- Freshman Kobe Brown recorded a career-high eight rebounds and added five points.
- Sophomore Javon Pickett scored nine points, and added six rebounds and two assists off the bench.
Notes
- Junior forward Jeremiah Tilmon, Jr., had an efficient night for the Tigers. Tilmon, Jr., posted 15 points and a season-high in rebounds with nine boards. It marked the fifth time in eight games he has scored in double figures.
- Senior center Reed Nikko was effective coming off the bench recording new season-highs in points (4) and assists (4). Nikko also played his 100th career game in a Mizzou jersey.
- Redshirt junior Dru Smith has now collected a steal in 20-consecutive games, dating back to his 2017-18 season at Evansville.
- Dru Smith has also recorded an assist in 50-straight gam
