The Mizzou Tigers played their final home game of the season against the No. 13 Auburn Tigers, with one last opportunity to put a digit in the conference win column from home. With no Connor Vanover in the lineup due to injury, Mizzou had to switch up their game plan to compensate. Unfortunately, Mizzou would struggle in the second half, losing, 101-74.

That losing score is the most points given up at home since 2001 against Iowa State. The record is even more notable when considering that the 2001 game went into quadruple overtime. But the game wasn’t without positives. Mizzou was able to keep up in the first half.

Tamar Bates would become the main player for Mizzou in the first half, leading with 12 points and going 2-2 from three-point range. He would also be a stalwart on the other end, getting three defensive rebounds and one block. 

Mizzou overall did well at keeping up with the No. 13 team in the nation, thanks largely to their shooting across the board. Auburn shot 37.5% from the field in the first half, with Mizzou nipping at their heels with 37%. The three-point shooting couldn’t have been more different, however. 

Mizzou relied on their deep shooting heavily in the first half, ending the half shooting 50% from three-point range. In direct contrast, Auburn relied on their deep shooting a little too much, only shooting 2-14 from beyond the arch, for a three-point percentage of 14.3%. Auburn was able to get more from within the two-point range, going 50% within the arch. 

Early on after halftime, Mizzou would find itself in foul trouble. By the 13-minute mark of the second half, three different Mizzou players would find themselves getting close to fouling out. Sean East, Noah Carter, and Anthony Robinson all had three fouls by that point. Mabor Majak also got into trouble early in the second, with four personal fouls, and being assessed a technical foul after getting tangled up with Auburn’s Chaney Johnson.

As the second half wound down, Mizzou would fall further behind, with Auburn going on an 11-2 run into the final 10 minutes of the game. Their shooting bug in the first half might’ve flown somewhere else, as Mizzou would go on an extremely cold streak by not making a field goal for eight minutes and 10 seconds total in the middle of the half. All their points during that span came from free throws.

Overall, the second half became a blowout once Auburn found their own shooting bug. In the second half, they shot 6-9 from beyond the arch and overall shot 76.0% from the field. Mizzou wouldn’t even get close, putting up only 35 points and shooting 1-7 from beyond the arch. 

As the game wound down, Auburn would end up getting over the 100-point mark. Head Coach Dennis Gates, however, was not too negative with his team and the comradery that has grown with them over this season. 

“I am absolutely proud of how they hold their heads up and how they’re standing two feet down, with 10 toes in. I am proud of how they react to adversity and how they have reacted to it. They have not shied away from walking on campus,” Gates said. 

Gates also elaborated on how the players have handled this with the public and how the campus body has stood with them.

“I am absolutely proud of these dudes because, at the end of the day, you have to be an everyday person to be successful. And these guys, regardless of the conditions, are everyday dudes and they have proven that it’s easy to rally behind a sold-out crowd every game and people asking for your autograph every step of the way, but our fans have not wavered in how they feel about our guys, so they have given us inspiration,” Gates said.

While the home season may not have ended the way Mizzou wanted it to, this team will always have support where it counts from the student body. Looking forward to the final game of the season, Gates also spoke on the mindset into Saturday’s game against LSU.

“We’re always gonna go out every day in practice and give our very best, and in games, we’re always going to give our very best. I don’t want these guys to be focused on the outcomes of things. I want them to be focused on the process,” Gates said. 

While early on this game looked to be a challenge, the first half allowed Mizzou to hold on to hope for an upset against one of the better teams in the conference. The second half showed that, while Mizzou has shown that they can keep up with the tough teams for a little bit, collapse has been the story of their entire season. The final regular season game on Saturday against LSU will be the last chance to get over the collapsed hurdle. If Mizzou is going to stave off a no-win season against conference opponents, this is it.