Comes At A Cost
Jabari Brown hit a career-high five straight 3-pointers after an early miss helping him to a career-high 22 points. Phil Pressey once again reached double digits in assists with 13 assists while chipping in 11points. Earnest Ross poured in a season-best 19 points. The 10th-ranked Missouri Tigers beat Alabama 84-68 Alabama in its SEC debut Tuesday night.But all of that was overshadowed by the looming cloud of another potential serious injury to senior forward Laurence Bowers. Bowers knocked knees with Pressey in the second half — after he had scored 16 points — and went down clutching his right knee. He was able to get up on his own accord and walk off the court, but after the game, head coach Frank Haith admitted it’s possible Bowers may have a sprained MCL. The team will conduct an MRI Wednesday on the knee to further evaluate the injury. An MCL sprain means Bowers could miss anywhere from 2-8 weeks depending on the severity. Last season, Bowers tore the ACL in his left knee. Trevor Releford had a career-best 26 points with three 3-pointers and topped 1,000 points for Alabama (8-6, 0-1), which has lost six of eight. Coach Anthony Grant lost for the first time in seven career conference openers, three at VCU and four at Alabama.Brown scored a career high 22 points on 7-for-11 overall shooting, three days after making only one of nine attempts in a two-point victory over Bucknell. The Oregon transfer has scored in double figures four of five games since becoming eligible at the semester break.Alex Oriakhi recorded his fifth double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds for Mizzou (12-2, 1-0 SEC).
