NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Finally, after a decade in the Southeastern Conference, the Missouri Tigers broke through the blockade.
The No. 25 Tigers earned the coveted double bye for a straight shot into Friday’s quarterfinals and for the first time since joining the conference they’re in the semifinals with a 79-71 victory over No. 17 Tennessee at Bridgestone Arena. The Tigers (24-8) finished the game on an 18-7 run.
Getting a monster game from D’Moi Hodge, Mizzou extended its winning streak to five and punched a ticket to face top-seeded Alabama in Saturday’s semifinal, a noon CT tipoff.
It’s a rematch of Alabama’s 21-point win at Mizzou Arena on Jan. 21, but the Tigers played that day without All-SEC forward Kobe Brown.
Brown was enormous Friday, along with sidekick Hodge, who led the way with 26 points. Brown added 24 points and nine boards.
With Zakai Zeigler out with a knee injury, Mizzou planned to crank up the pressure and force the Vols into turnovers. At the first media timeout, Tennessee had already turned it over five times, giving the ball away on four straight possessions.
But as both teams settled into the flow of the game, MU’s own turnovers proved costly during a 10-3 Vols run.
Tennessee’s momentum didn’t last long as Hodge’s corner 3 gave Mizzou its first lead, 21-20, with 6:15 left.
It was an eventual half for Hodge, who seemed charged up to prove his defensive prowess after not making the SEC coaches’ all-defensive team. He gave up an uncontested 3 to Vescovi then got him back on the next possession, drawing a foul, Vescovi’s second, on a 3-point attempt, putting the Vols’ primary ball-handler on the bench for the final five minutes of the half.
The teams traded the lead three times in the final five minutes of the half. Brown’s 3-pointer from the wing with 9 seconds left evened the score, but Jahmai Mashack had just enough time to fling a 30-footer at the buzzer, good for the 33-30 go-ahead basket heading into halftime.
Brown was a machine for the Tigers in the first half, scoring 12 points while playing all 20 minutes. Mizzou played with a short bench again with Tre Gomillion recovering from an injury and Isiaih Mosley back in Columbia.
An early orange barrage gave Tennessee a 38-30 lead, but Mizzou responded with a 12-3 run, regaining the lead on Noah Carter’s three-point play on a baseline drive.
Neither team could gain much separation, but Brown and Hodge continued to put on a show to keep Mizzu’s hpes alive. With 5:20 left, Brown snatched a defensive rebound and zipped a pass to Hodge more than half the length of the court for a go-ahead dunk, 65-64.
With 1:41 left, the Tigers crossed their magical 70-point threshold on Honor’s 3, good for a 72-69 lead. Mizzou began the tournament unbeaten when scoring 70 points. Even better for the Tigers, Hodge forced the Vols to mishandle the inbounds pass, resulting in a turnover. Hodge drilled a 3 on the next possession, the final touches on a victory more than a decade in the making.
