Dec. 10, 2005
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Missouri vs. Texas A&M - Corpus Christi
Norm Stewart Court at Mizzou Arena
December 10, 2005 - 1 p.m.
Game Notes
Today's game was the first meeting between Missouri and Texas A&M - Corpus Christi on the hardwood.
With the win, Mizzou upped their record to 2-1 record this season against teams from the Southland Conference, having defeated Northwestern State and lost to Sam Houston State prior to their matchup with the Islanders. Texas A&M - Corpus Christi is one of 10 independents in NCAA Division I men's basketball, but will be joining the Southland in the near future.
The Tigers also improved their record to 66-40 (.623) record under Quin Snyder in non-conference games.
Missouri Team Notes
The Tigers had a productive first half against Texas A&M - Corpus Christi, pouring a first-half season-high 41 points. Mizzou also took a three-point lead into the break after entering the game having been outscored by an average of 5.6 points in the opening stanza this season.
The one-point margin of victory gave Mizzou its first win of the season in a game decided by three points or less. They had lost to both Sam Houston State and Arkansas before taking the win over the Islanders be the slimmest of margins.
The Tigers outscored Texas A&M - Corpus Christi 32-28 in the paint to run their record to 3-1 when they outscore their opponent down low.
Finding themselves down 60-53 with just under a dozen minutes left to play, the Tigers ripped off a 7-0 run in 2:06 to tie the game with less than 10 minutes remaining.
The Tigers' free throw percentage of 69.7 against Texas A&M - Corpus Christi ranks as the team's season high and is more than 10 percent higher than their season average of 58.8
All three of Mizzou's wins this season have come at home and the Tigers are now 15-5 (.750) all-time at Mizzou Arena.
With the win, Mizzou avoided their first three-game losing streak since they dropped four in a row from Jan. 29-Feb.5, 2005.
Mizzou improved to 2-1 on the season in games following a loss; they finished the 2004-05 season 6-10 in such contests.
The Tigers' seven 3-point field goals on the afternoon give them multiple treys in 199 of 202 (.985) games under head coach Quin Snyder.
Missouri Player Notes
Senior guard Jimmy McKinney's game-winning tip-in with nine seconds left in the game gave him a season-high 19 points.
Junior guard Thomas Gardner connected on five 3-point field goals against the Islanders to give him 24 on the season, including 13 over the last two Mizzou games. In comparison, the rest of the team has made only 20 for a team total of 44 treys this year.
Junior guard Thomas Gardner has now scored at least 30 points in his last two outings. The last player to score 30 points for the Tigers even twice in an entire season was Linas Kleiza, who had two 30-point games in 2004-05.
Junior guard Thomas Gardner scored 30 points to reach double figures for the 10th game in a row and has now connected on a 3-point field goal in 14 consecutive contests. He also led the team in scoring for the fifth time this season and the 12th time in his career.
Junior guard Thomas Gardner now owns six career games in which he has scored 20-plus points.
Senior guard Jimmy McKinney knocked down the 100th 3-point field goal of his career with two seconds left in the first half to send the Tigers into the break with a three-point lead. He is now 21 triples away from breaking into the Mizzou all-time top-10.
Senior guard Jimmy McKinney attempted 10 free throws in the first half, tying the career high he'd set twice before. He would go on to establish new career highs in free throws made (12) and free throws attempted (14).
Senior center Kevin Young finished with seven points, giving him at least seven tallies in each of his last five games. Mizzou has a winning record (3-2) when Young gets at least seven points, and is winless (0-1) when he fails to reach the mark.
Sophomore forward Marshall Brown got off to a quick start against the Islanders, scoring six of Mizzou's first 13 points.
Though sophomore guard Jason Horton's four assists on the day were almost two below his season average, he kept his assist-to-turnover ratio right around 2-to-1 with only a pair of giveaways on the day.
Texas A&M - Corpus Christi Team Notes
Texas A&M - Corpus Christi dropped their all-time record against Big 12 schools to 3-20 with their loss at the hands of Mizzou.
The Islanders' efficiency rate of 57.9 percent from beyond the arc was their highest of the season.
Down 34-24 with just over five minutes left in the first half, the Islanders went on a 14-4 run to tie the game with under a minute left before the break only to see Mizzou guard Jimmy McKinney's 3-point buzzer-beater send them into the locker room down three.
Texas A&M - Corpus Christi Player Notes
Junior guard Josh Washington poured in a career-high 23 points, on 9-of-11 shooting, against Mizzou.
Junior center Chris Daniels entered the game with a field goal percentage of 71.9. He lived up to that mark, hitting five of seven shots for a 71.4 rate en route to a 14-point day.