MO State HS Sports

Florida Defeats No. 20 Missouri

Tre Gomillion

Gainesville, Fla. – A second-half run lifted Florida over the 20th-ranked Missouri men’s basketball team on Saturday afternoon, 73-64. The nationally-ranked Tigers drop to 13-4 and 2-3 in SEC play, while the Gators improve to 10-7 and 3-2 versus league foes.

Senior Kobe Brown led Mizzou with 21 points – his fifth game of 20-plus points this season – while matching his career high with five steals. Noah Carter and Tre Gomillion also scored in double figures with 12 and 11 points, respectively.

The Tigers started the contest strong and scored the game’s first 11 points. Mizzou, however, couldn’t maintain its early offense as the team made just five of its final 23 field-goal attempts in the half (started 5-of-7), allowing Florida to tie the game heading into the locker room, 28-28.

The teams played a tight first 10 minutes of the second half with neither team leading by more than a single possession. However, Florida would make its run and the Tigers were unable to keep pace. Trailing, 47-45, the Gators used a 12-3 spurt to move in front by seven points, 57-50. The Tigers made just 1-of-11 field goals during the six-minute stretch, allowing Florida to take its largest lead of the game to that point.

Mizzou would not pull closer than six points the final five minutes of the game as Florida prevailed at home, 73-64.

The Tigers converted 41.7 percent of their field goals but were just 3-of-18 from beyond the arc. Florida shot at a 47.1 percent clip, going 10-of-23 from 3-point range.

UP NEXT
The Tigers return home to Mizzou Arena, where they are 2-0 in SEC games this season, to host two-straight top-15 teams. Mizzou opens against No. 15 Arkansas with a Wednesday night contest at 8 p.m.

This article is provided by University of Missouri Athletics