Mizzou Earns Second-Straight Ranked Win; Top No. 19 Kentucky

Columbia, Mo. – The Missouri men’s basketball team stayed hot on Wednesday night, defeating its second-straight nationally-ranked school by double digits with an 89-75 victory over No. 19/17 Kentucky in front of a sold-out crowd at Mizzou Arena. The win moves the Tigers to 12-1 and 1-0 in SEC play, while the nationally-ranked Wildcats drop to 8-4 overall and 0-1 in league play.

Senior Kobe Brown lit up the scoreboard once again, dropping 30 points on 10-of-18 shooting (4-of-8 from 3-point range) for his second-straight 30-plus game against a ranked opponent. In 35 minutes, the senior also added six boards, two assists and a pair of steals. Brown is just the third DI player in the last 25 seasons with back-to-back 30-point games, both in wins versus ranked teams.

Four Tigers scored in double figures overall with D’Moi Hodge chipping in 15 points, while DeAndre Gholston and Sean East II contributing 12 off the bench.

After Kentucky took its only lead of the game, 3-2, it was all Mizzou from there on out. The UK edge lasted all of 23 seconds as Brown connected on his first three points of the night for a 5-3 advantage. It was part of a MU stretch where it made 7-of-8 field goals in gaining an early 10-point lead, 17-7.

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— Mizzou Hoops (@MizzouHoops) December 29, 2022

Kentucky cut its deficit down to four points only for East to respond for the Tigers. The senior scored seven-straight points in a 68-second span to push the Mizzou advantage back to double digits, 24-13. The Wildcats were never closer than eight points the remainder of the game as Mizzou headed into the locker room with a 42-30 lead.

The second half was more of the same for the Tigers. Kentucky would pull within nine, 56-47, with 12:31 remaining but an 8-0 run put the home team back in firm control, 64-47. Hodge and Brown connected on back-to-back triples before the Wildcats finally ended the spurt – only to see Brown add yet another 3-pointer for a 67-50 edge halfway through the frame. The Tigers would then lead by as many as 21 points before securing the 89-75 victory.

Mizzou shot 28-for-57 (49%) from the field, including making 10 triples from behind the arc. The Tigers also collected 18 assists to just eight turnovers, while forcing the Wildcats into 14 miscues of their own. Kentucky, meanwhile, shot 46 percent from the field with an 8-of-23 day from 3-point range.

UP NEXT
Mizzou looks to maintain their winning ways in Fayetteville for a matchup against 11-1 Arkansas next Wednesday, Jan. 4. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on SECN.