COLUMBIA, Mo. – In the quarterfinals of the 2025 SEC Tournament, the No. 2 seed Florida Gators defeated the No. 7 seed Missouri Tigers. Jumping out to a 13-point lead at the end of the first half, Florida overwhelmed Missouri with elite shooting and ball movement en route to a 95-81 victory.

These two teams had matched up previously during the regular season. In their Jan. 14 meeting in Gainesville, Caleb Grill led the way for the Tigers with 22 points, shooting 63% from the floor and ending the game with six triples. With Mark Mitchell, Anthony Robinson II, and Tamar Bates each in double-figures, the combined offensive pressure the Tigers dished out proved to be the difference maker.

On Friday night, Florida paid back Missouri with an offensive masterclass of its own. The Gators started the game up by ten thanks to senior guard Will Richard. Scoring 8 of his 17 points in the opening 1:30, Richard jumpstarted Florida’s first-class night of play. On the back foot immediately, Missouri finally got to work with a second-chance dunk from sophomore guard Trent Pierce.

That was the trend for the first nine minutes of the game. After it allowed Florida to create a large lead early, Missouri elected to work inside the paint, but what little it offered didn’t match the production the Gators had on offense. After Missouri called timeout with 11:03 left down by 14, Dennis Gates knew his team needed a boost. Senior guard Marques Warrick provided it, with a long-range three that brought the energy back to Missouri.

For the rest of the half, Missouri played with new life, digging deep into its roster to try and find sustained success. However, the Gators’ elite guard play held up, responding to every attempt by Missouri to bring the game back to a single-digit difference.

Entering halftime up by 13, Florida seemed to be in full control. The Tigers refused to give in, though, and began the second half with a strong offensive sequence from the tandem of Bates, Robinson, and Perkins to cut the lead to nine. With 14:58 left to play, Missouri’s best chance to tie came after Grill was fouled by Richard on a 3-point attempt. The SEC’s Sixth Man of the Year went 3-3 from the line, and was followed quickly by Robinson from mid-range and freshman center Peyton Marshall with a slam. After Robinson hit another jumper, the game’s margin had slimmed to 64-60 with 13:14 left to play.

With the game in the balance, the two teams traded shots for the next five minutes. However, Florida’s multitude of weapons shone through once more, and with every make by Missouri, the Gator’s offered two more in response. As if to silence any hopes for a final late push, sophomore forward Thomas Haugh managed to draw three fouls in the final six minutes, leading the Gators to finish 18-23 from the line.

Knowing his team still had the NCAA Tournament, Gates pulled the starters out with 1:19 left to play, signaling that Missouri’s time in the SEC Tournament had ended. Missouri didn’t come home empty handed though, as sixth-year guard Jeremy Sanchez scored his first point of the season from the free throw line to the joy of his teammates from the bench.

With the loss, Missouri finished its run in the conference tournament 1-1, to match its result from the 2022-23 season in Gates’ first year as head coach. In a season defined by equal highs and lows, Missouri managed to beat over half of the opponents it squared up against in the SEC, a testament to the turnaround that the Tigers made after the 2023-24 season’s 0-18 run in conference play.