No. 15 Mizzou’s trajectory unaltered by close loss at No. 4 Tennessee: ‘We still had a great game’

Missouri was close, certainly competitive and came away from Wednesday’s clash with Tennessee thinking it could have managed a bit more.

The No. 15 Tigers fell 85-81 on the road to the No. 4 Volunteers, a result that is respectable at face value. The Vols are a projected top seed in the NCAA Tournament and Mizzou was an underdog.

Yet even after the likely victor became the legitimate victor, there was a sense that MU (17-5, 6-2) could have won the contest — and certainly could win a rematch.

Missouri led at halftime, as it often has during Southeastern Conference play: The Tigers have outscored their league opponents by 55 points in the nine first halves of conference play. They’ve led at halftime in 18 of their 22 games.

But for just the second time this season, Mizzou blew a halftime lead. The last time it had done so was the season opener at Memphis. In between had been 16 straight games in which the Tigers finished the job after taking an early lead.

That advantage swelled to 11 points early in the second half, then evaporated atop — then underneath — the flame of Tennessee’s blazing shooting. The Vols made 10 of their 15 3-pointers, including six of 10 in the second half, to catch up and pull away.

“I thought we did a good job of defending them, but when you go 10 for 15 from 3 — they were hot,” MU coach Dennis Gates told the school’s postgame radio show.

Shooting 66.7% from 3 was unheard of for this UT team. The Volunteers had been under 28% in each of their last three games and finished a game above 50% just once, early in nonconference play.

That’s what could fuel a black-and-gold hunger for a rematch. The Tigers lost by only four points to a team that shot so efficiently and effusively. Missouri had been 14-0 this season when scoring 80 or more points, snapping that streak Wednesday. If a couple of those 3s had just rattled out …

It’s a hypothetical, yes, and to a large degree pointless. The Volunteers won and showed that they have the stars, shooting and interior defense to keep an SEC upstart like Mizzou at bay. Tennessee is a team that has been a shot or two away from winning in other situations this season.

The Tigers might get their chance at revenge, maybe. MU and UT won’t play again on the regular season, but the SEC Tournament in Nashville lurks nine more games away.

Both Mizzou and Tennessee will be in the mix for the double byes that go to the top four finishers in the regular season standings. Could they meet again on a neutral floor?

That happened in 2023. DeAndre Gholston’s half-court buzzer beater snatched the regular season win for the Tigers that year, then the teams dueled once more in the SEC Tournament.

Given the back-and-forth quality of Wednesday’s game, running it back in Nashville sounds as appetizing as a hot chicken sandwich from the diner across the street from Bridgestone Arena. Mizzou’s radio broadcasters and the SEC Network commentary team independently suggested as much.

But that’s a consideration that comes with an “if” and a “when.” In the matchup that actually happened, Missouri’s guards carried the scoring load. Tamar Bates scored 22 points, all in the second half. Tony Perkins scored 16, including an 11-point burst to get MU’s scoring underway in the first half. Sharpshooter Caleb Grill, dogged around the floor like the Vols’ bluetick coonhound mascot, was held to 11 points and two made 3s.

Two players returning to the starting lineup after brief absences led the Volunteers: point guard Zakai Zeigler and forward Igor Milicic Jr. scored 21 apiece, with the latter recording a double-double.

Tennessee’s defense, considered the best in the nation by some metrics, slowed Missouri early, but the Tigers still put up the most points of any UT opponent this season. Kentucky’s 78 points in a game against the Vols had been the mark to beat.

Halfway through league play, Mizzou sits 6-3 and fourth in the SEC — level with Florida in terms of record but behind the Gators despite having a head-to-head tiebreaker. The Tigers have overachieved expectations and remain positioned as one of the conference’s more dangerous teams.

Even after losing to Tennessee, Missouri’s overall trajectory is relatively unaltered. MU is on pace for a strong NCAA Tournament seed, which comes with the opportunity for a run to the second weekend — or beyond. Who’s going to install a ceiling over the Tigers at this point?

“I’m proud of our guys,” Gates said. “We still had a great game.