Sean East II scored 20 points as Missouri pulled away to a 68-50 victory over SIU Edwardsville on Monday night in Columbia, Mo.
Noah Carter had 15 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots for the Tigers (2-1).
Missouri starting guard Nick Honor exited the game with 13:13 left due to an apparent left hand injury. He had five points prior to his departure.
Damarco Minor scored 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead SIU Edwardsville (1-2).
The Cougars shot just 14-for-49 (28.6 percent) from the floor overall and 3-for-24 (12.5 percent) during the second half.
Missouri blocked eight shots and outscored the Cougars 24-8 in the paint for the game.
SIU Edwardsville started well, building early leads of 2-0, 4-2, 10-7 and 12-9. Minor got the Cougars rolling while scoring 10 first-half points.
John Tonje drew his first start for Missouri after playing just two minutes prior to Monday. He hit two free throws and a 3-pointer to get the Tigers’ offense started.
Carter hit 3-pointers on three straight possessions to put the Tigers up 18-14 with 12:04 left in the first half. Missouri didn’t trail again for the rest of the period.
Missouri called timeout and ran a designed final play of the half for Honor, who hit a 3-point baseline jumper to give the Tigers a 38-31 halftime lead.
Caleb Grill hit a transition trey to open the second half and give the Tigers their first double-digit lead.
After Lamar Wright hit a baseline jumper to steady the Cougars, Grill hit another 3-pointer to push the Missouri lead to 44-33.
Carter’s triple and East’s steal and layup extended the Tigers’ run to 13-3 and increased their lead to 51-34.
Minor hit three free throws to break SIU Edwardsville’s scoring drought, but the Tigers kept pressing on defense and attacking on offense. Tamar Bates hit a transition 3-pointer that made it 58-37 with 7:22 left to effectively finish off the Cougars.
–Field Level Media