Missouri’s less than ideal basketball season continued Tuesday in College Station as the Tigers fell to Texas A&M. Both teams came into the game with losing SEC records. The Tigers sought their first conference win of the season, while the Aggies, a season after finishing second in the SEC, continued to fight for their NCAA Tournament lives. The Aggies avoided a quad 3 loss on Tuesday, taking down Missouri by a final score of 63-57.
It was a hot start for Missouri who got out of the gate to a 13-4 lead thanks to Tamar Bates. Bates, who had 36 points and was the KenPom MVP in Saturday’s loss to Florida, was once again the offensive catalyst scoring 9 of the Tigers’ first 13.
The fun for Missouri didn’t last long though as Texas A&M proceeded to go on a 21-2 run that involved Missouri scoring droughts of over six and five minutes. The Tigers didn’t back down though as Noah Carter gave them a boost. Missouri trailed just 30-25 at the half.
While Missouri punching back was impressive, a few of the Tigers’ key players entered the half in foul trouble. Both Bates and Carter finished the first half with three fouls apiece and despite Missouri out rebounding one of the best rebounding teams in the country, the Tigers were not in a comfortable spot with player availability going into the locker room.
Very quickly into the second half, the foul trouble spelled trouble for Missouri. Bates picked up his fourth foul before the first media timeout of the half, and Carter picked up his fourth with over 13 minutes to play. Missouri still battled though, thanks to some good defense and a solid second half from Nick Honor. Missouri even took a 39-38 lead with 13:35 to go in the second half, but that was the last lead the Tigers had.
Despite the fight, Missouri couldn’t generate enough momentum on the offensive end to get and stay ahead. The Aggies kept Missouri at an arms’ length most of the second half to come away with a home victory. Sean East and Bates both carried the load for Missouri offensively scoring 17 and 16, respectively. Wade Taylor didn’t have his greatest night scoring the ball, but still led Texas A&M with 19, and he showed at times why he is in the conversation to win SEC Player of the Year.
Missouri fell to 8-11 and 0-6 in conference in what continues to be a disappointing season. The Tigers will try their luck on the road again on Saturday as they head to Columbia East to face a surprising and dangerous South Carolina team. The Gamecocks picked off Kentucky on Tuesday night for their 16th win of the season.