Win keeps playoff hopes alive

MU hopes to make the NCAA tournament.

By Mike Bushnell

Published Feb. 26, 2008

In a season that has featured some major highs and crippling lows both on and off the court, Missouri knew the odds were in their favor heading into Saturday’s game against Colorado. After all, the Buffaloes haven’t won a game on the road since January 2006. Ahead by 18 points in the second half, the Tigers saw their lead dwindle to just two with four minutes left. MU needed clutch shots from senior guard Jason Horton and junior forward DeMarre Carroll to earn what became a much-needed 60-53 win. “We kind of fell asleep a little bit in the second half,” sophomore guard Keon Lawrence said, who led MU with 16 points. “But we picked it up at the end and found a way to win.” The win was crucial because it keeps Missouri (15-12, 5-7 Big 12) just one game out of fourth place in the conference. Keon Lawrence said assistant coach Matt Zimmerman made the team aware of their situation before the game with a note on the locker room’s bulletin board. “Coach Zimmerman put it on the board and said we were one game from fourth if we won and one game from last if we lost,” he said. “So we knew what we had to do.” But at the start of the game, the Tigers looked anything but focused. Colorado stormed out to a 10-2 lead, led by senior guards Richard Roby and Marcus Hall. But MU went on a 30-10 run in the next 20 minutes, buoyed by their bench, which outscored Colorado’s bench 20-0 in the first half. “We came out in the first half and started slow,” Missouri coach Mike Anderson said. “Guys came off the bench and gave us a lot of energy.” Senior forward Darryl Butterfield hit three long-range jump shots in the first half that seemed to energize the bench and earn the support of fans who have often groaned when he takes those shots. “I feel like I proved some people wrong,” he said. “We all knew we had to step up and I just wanted to do my part.” In the second half, the Tigers were leading 40-22 with 17:02 left, when the Buffaloes (10-16, 2-10) went on their own long run, outscoring MU 26-10 in the next 13 minutes. Anderson said his team let up defensively. “We started trying to win with offense,” he said. “We’re a team that has got to hang its hat on defense. They were able to attack and get inside.” But the Buffaloes were never able to get closer than 50-48 with four minutes left, largely because MU kept Colorado off the free-throw line entirely and rarely turned the ball over. “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a game where a team shot no free throws,” Anderson said of Colorado, who never went to the foul line on Saturday. “But it worked out in our favor.” The Tigers also had just four turnovers, a stark contrast from last Saturday at Kansas State, when MU gave up the ball 24 times. “To come home and take care the ball like we did was huge,” sophomore guard Matt Lawrence said. The win gives a lot of importance to Tuesday’s game against Oklahoma State, who is also 5-7 in the conference. The loser will almost certainly be eliminated from any thought of NCAA Tournament contention or a shot at the four seed in the conference tournament in Kansas City. “It’s crazy how everybody is up and down in the Big 12,” Keon Lawrence said. “It looked like we were out of it but now it seems like were still right where we need to be.”