Mizzou can’t overcome sluggish first half in loss to Oklahoma
NORMAN, Okla. (KMIZ)
Mizzou men's basketball couldn't overcome an off shooting night, on Tuesday, as the Tigers lost to the Oklahoma Sooners 80-64.
With the loss, head coach Dennis Gates and company move to 20-10 on the season and 10-7 in SEC action.
Coach Gates' squad got off to a sluggish start off the opening tip, as Oklahoma went on a 8-2 run to start the game. That prompted Coach Gates to call a timeout, which the Tigers managed to respond out of. MU went on a 7-0 run over the next few minutes to take one of its two leads of game. However, by the time the game hit the midway point in the first half, the Sooners had cushioned their lead.
Oklahoma led by as many as 12 in the first 20 minutes and went into the locker room with a 35-26 lead over Mizzou.
Things only got worse for Coach Gates' squad after halftime, as the Sooners never left a doubt. Mizzou was never within 10 points in that closing half, as Oklahoma sent its seniors off with one more win on their home court.
Throughout the game, Mizzou struggled to find consistency in the scoring department. Coach Gates' team ended up shooting 47.1 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range. However, the team's first half shooting is really what did them in, as the Tigers had one of their worst first halves of the season, from a scoring standpoint.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma shot a blistering 62.2 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from 3-point range, as five Sooners got into double-digit scoring.
MU was going to need to make some major adjustments in order to bridge the gap after halftime, but Coach Gates' group couldn't find an answer for Oklahoma.
Turnovers played a pretty big role in the loss for Mizzou. The Tigers and Sooners actually turned the ball over pretty equally, on Tuesday night, as Oklahoma ended with just one less turnover than Mizzou. However, head coach Porter Moser's squad managed to score 25 points off those miscues, while MU only capitalized on 13 points.
Up next - Mizzou will return home for the regular-season finale against No. 20 Arkansas. Tip off is slated for 11 a.m. on Sunday.
