Mizzou men’s basketball offense disappears in loss to Memphis

It was all too good to be true.

The Tigers have sold out Mizzou Arena and Memorial Stadium on the same weekend for the first time in school history. Class of 2024 five-star center Jayden Quaintance has narrowed his potential list of schools down to two: Mizzou and Kentucky.

And Mizzou men’s basketball built a 14-point lead in the first test of the season.

The going got tough before it got out of hand. Then, the magic disappeared.

Memphis stormed back in the second half to down an ice-cold Missouri team 70-55 on Saturday at Mizzou Arena.

Here are three takeaways from Missouri’s loss:

Tigers go ice cold

It looked good on Monday. It looked good for 15 minutes against Memphis.

And then, all of a sudden, Missouri’s offense vanished.

The Tigers couldn’t buy a bucket, forfeiting a once 14-point lead late in the first half. Memphis went up 38-36 and forced MU into a timeout less than three minutes into the second period.

The home Tigers went on a four-and-a-half-minute scoring drought to start the second half, missing eight of their first nine attempts from the field. Starters Caleb Grill and Jesus Carralero Martin were a combined 2 of 16 on the night.

Memphis went on run after run. Missouri managed only 19 points in the second half, making only five field goals over the final 20 minutes.

By day’s end, Missouri was 6 of 28 from deep and 18 of 56 from the field. Worse still, the Tigers only managed five offensive rebounds.

Missouri guard Sean East fights past a defender during a college basketball game against Memphis at Mizzou Arena on Nov. 10, 2023, in Columbia, Mo.

Experienced players disappear

Anthony Robinson II, Missouri’s true freshman point guard with a billing as big as the moment, stepped up to the free-throw line, Missouri down 10 points and flailing, with three chances.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

The sold-out crowd got onto its feet and let out an until-then rare second-half roar. Memphis missed a layup. Freshman Trent Pierce recovered the ball and dished it out to Sean East II, who drove forward and drew a foul.

East missed both of his free-throw attempts. The Tigers held Memphis without a bucket again and drew another foul.

This time, senior forward Noah Carter missed the free attempt.

When the moment got big, Missouri kept missing.

East and Carter had run the show in the first half, putting up 22 of Missouri’s 36 points between them. They combined for two points in the second half.

On several occasions last season, Missouri relied on sharpshooters D’Moi Hodge and DeAndre Gholston to knock down tide-turning buckets. Kobe Brown was an expert at the craft.

But nobody stepped up in their absence Friday evening when the going got tough.

Missouri’s Caleb Grill (31) fights with Memphis’ Jaykwon Walton during a college basketball game at Mizzou Arena on Nov. 10, 2023, in Columbia, Mo.

Memphis recovers from slow start

The visitors, without coach Penny Hardaway, who is serving a three-game suspension for recruiting violations, came to Columbia with cold hands.

Memphis missed all of its opening four attempts from the free-throw line and made just two of its opening nine attempts from 3. That helped Missouri build a 14-point lead late in the first quarter.

Unlike Missouri, Memphis emerged from its shooting slump.

The visitors shot 16 of 31 from the field in the second half, consistently finding success in the paint. Alabama transfer Jahvon Quinerly finished with 18 points to lead the game. Forward David Jones had 13 points.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Mizzou men’s basketball offense disappears in loss to Memphis