COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri closed the final minute at the free-throw line and held off Tennessee 73-69 on Tuesday night in a physical, high-intensity SEC matchup.
The Tigers improved to 19-1 this season when scoring 73 points or more.
Missouri’s crowd was on its feet for much of the night as both teams battled through contact on nearly every possession, with momentum swinging repeatedly in the second half.
Fast start undone by turnovers
Tennessee opened sharply, making five of its first seven shots during a 10-0 run that produced a 12-2 lead in less than two minutes. Crisp ball movement created multiple open looks, and Jakobi Gillespie sparked the early surge by jumping a passing lane and finishing for a layup.
A baseline feed to Nate Ament for a 3-pointer extended the lead to 21-12, but the rhythm shifted as turnovers mounted. Five giveaways in a three-minute span allowed Missouri to claw back into the game.
A miscue near midcourt marked Tennessee’s seventh turnover just over 13 minutes into the half. Missouri capitalized again later, converting another turnover into a transition dunk to claim its first lead.
Gillespie steadied the Vols late in the half, knocking down a 3-pointer to regain the advantage before drilling a long 2-pointer just inside the arc as time expired. Tennessee’s defense held Missouri without a 3-pointer or a free-throw attempt in the first half.
Okpara answers inside
The physical tone intensified after halftime, particularly in the paint.
Felix Okpara emerged as Tennessee’s most consistent presence. He recorded two early blocks, then converted an alley-oop finish off a drive from Bishop Boswell. Moments later, Okpara proved productive on the boards and finished with eight.
Boswell found Okpara again for a three-point play to pull Tennessee within 34-30. Okpara followed with a dunk off a pass from Gillespie to tie the game at 36 and added a layup on the next possession.
Matched against 7-foot-5 Trent Burns, Okpara connected on a hook shot to move to 7 for 7 from the field. He finished with 15 points and, at one stretch, accounted for four of Tennessee’s six field goals as the Vols briefly took a 40-38 lead.
Late execution decides it
Missouri reclaimed control behind aggressive defense and steady shot-making.
T.O. Barrett, who scored 12 points in the first half, added 16 more after the break and repeatedly attacked the rim.
With the Tigers leading late, Gillespie briefly quieted the arena after a buried a long-range 3-pointer with 2:19 remaining to cut the deficit to 67-65.
Barrett responded by banking in a runner high off the glass to extend Missouri’s lead to 69-65, forcing Tennessee to call timeout with 37 seconds remaining.
Out of the break, Gillespie’s 3-point attempt was off the mark, but Ament secured a contested rebound and finished through contact for a layup, to trim the deficit to 69-67 with 25 seconds left.
Missouri answered at the free-throw line to push the lead to 71-67.
Tennessee went back on the attack, but Gillespie’s drive into a crowded lane was stripped as he lifted the ball toward the rim.
The 15th turnover of the game and all but iced the game for the Volunteers. The most since Auburn on Jan. 31, when they also had 15.
The Vols were forced to foul, and Missouri made two more free throws to extend the lead to 73-69 with 2.4 seconds remaining.
Tennessee could not answer in the final stretch as Missouri sealed the win in front of a charged home crowd.
