Mizzou Tops No. 17 Tennessee, Advances to First SEC Semifinal

Nashville, Tenn. – The No. 25 Missouri men’s basketball team continues to create history during the 2022-23 season, defeating No. 17 Tennessee, 79-71, in the SEC Quarterfinals on Friday to advance to its first SEC Semifinal in school history. With the win, the Tigers improve to 24-8 on the year with a matchup against No. 4 Alabama on Saturday, while the nationally-ranked Volunteers drop to 23-10.

Going up against the nation’s third-ranked defense that allows just 57.5 points per game, the Tigers outscored the Volunteers, 49-38, in the second 20 minutes of action. With the game deadlocked at 67 with under two minutes remaining, Nick Honor connected on a deep three with 1:45 left to give the Tigers the lead for good. After forcing a turnover on the inbounds, D’Moi Hodge added a second triple in 20 seconds for Mizzou as the Tigers never looked back in the eight-point win.

Hodge and Kobe Brown combined for 50 points to lead the Tigers to victory. Hodge recorded a game-high 26 points, while Brown added 24 points and nine rebounds.

DeAndre Gholston also scored in double figures with 10 points, while Honor added eight points – five in the final three minutes of the game – and four assists.

Tennessee opened the early lead in both periods only for the Tigers to quickly respond. Trailing, 16-9, Mizzou scored seven-straight points to square the contest and set up a tight opening period where neither team would lead by more than four points the rest of the way. The Volunteers headed into the locker room with a slight three-point advantage, 33-30, thanks to a buzzer-beating triple.

The Vols added five points to start the second frame for their largest lead of the game, 38-30. Mizzou would once again respond and used a 20-8 stretch to pull in front by four, 50-46. It all led to a back-and-forth second half that featured nine lead changes with the Tigers finally pulling out the win thanks to Honor’s and Hodge’s late triples.

Overall, Mizzou finished the contest by shooting 52.6 percent with a 10-of-26 performance from 3-point range (38.5). The Tigers were especially strong in the second half, shooting 60.0 percent from the field and 7-of-12 from beyond the arc (58.3%). MU also held the Volunteers to 44.6 percent shooting with 14 turnovers on the day.

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In their ninth attempt at the SEC Tournament, the Tigers now advance to their first-ever semifinal. Awaiting Mizzou is top-seeded and No. 4/5 Alabama with a noon tipoff on ESPN.