Nick Honor drilled a long 3-pointer with 7.6 seconds left in overtime to give Missouri a 66-64 victory over Mississippi State in Columbia, Mo., on Tuesday night in a back-and-forth Southeastern Conference battle that featured 12 ties and 19 lead changes.
Mississippi State’s last two shots bounced away in the closing seconds and the Tigers (20-8, 8-7 SEC) had their 15th win in 18 home outings.
Tolu Smith posted his 10th double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Bulldogs (18-10, 6-9), who were playing their second consecutive overtime game.
Kobe Brown scored 17 points and D’Moi Hodge 16 to lead Mizzou. Noah Carter and Honor finished with 10 points each.
Smith sent the game to overtime with a pair of free throws with 8.7 seconds left in regulation and Brown’s short shot off an inbounds play rolled off the rim, leaving the teams tied 57-57 at the buzzer.
After falling behind 42-36 in the first five minutes of the second half, the Tigers climbed back and took a 46-44 lead when Brown scored six consecutive points, the last two on a pair of free throws at the 9:22 mark.
Smith’s basket and free throw got the lead back for State, but Brown countered with a basket and free throw of his own, and the Tigers were back in front 49-47 with 7:37 remaining.
They were still in front 56-52 at the 3:00 mark, but Smith’s layup and three late free throws helped the Bulldogs outscore the Tigers 5-1 the rest of the way.
The first half featured a half-dozen ties before the Bulldogs closed out the period with Dashawn Davis converting three free throws to give State a 34-31 edge at the break.
The Bulldogs shot 48 percent from the field overall (12-for-25) and were 6-for-15 from 3-point range in the period while the Tigers finished 4-for-13 on 3-pointers and 12-for-29 (41.4 percent) from the field overall before the break.
The Tigers ended up 23-for-57 from the field (40.4 percent) for the game while State faded over the final 25 minutes and finished 22-for-60 (36.7).
–Field Level Media