COLUMBIA, Mo. - Mizzou Men's Basketball prevailed Monday night, beating Emporia State, 67-62, in what was a tough-it-out sort of game for the Tigers at Mizzou Arena. The Hornets came to Columbia ready to play, at one point leading by seven points. However, head coach Cuonzo Martin's squad was able to hang on to win the game, despite shooting just 10 percent from three-point range (2-of-20).

The bigs for Mizzou again led the way, as sophomore forward Reed Nikko (Maple Grove, Minn.), junior forward Kevin Puryear (Blue Springs, Mo.), freshman forward Jontay Porter (Columbia, Mo.), and freshman forward Jeremiah Tilmon (East St. Louis, Ill.) combined for 45 of the Tigers' 67 total points. Puryear and Tilmon both registered 13 points to lead the Black & Gold.

Turning Point

After starting out in man-to-man, the Hornets switched to a zone defense, which bothered the Tigers for all of the first half and parts of the second. With just over nine minutes to go in regulation, sophomore forward Reed Nikko started to take charge down low. Off of a miss, Nikko was able to grab an offensive rebound and muscle home a layup, getting fouled in the process. Nikko would make the ensuing free throw. After a defensive stop, Mizzou would go right back to the sophomore forward on the block, where he would again have a chance at a three-point play after putting down a layup while getting fouled. He would miss the free throw, but Nikko had injected life back into both his teammates and Mizzou Arena with his 5-0 solo run down the stretch.

Nikko was inserted back into the game with 3:26 to play, and again, made an immediate impact, going to work just outside the paint. This time, Nikko was able to get all the way to the rim, jamming home a dunk off of a nifty drop step. Blake Harris followed the play with a layup in transition, going coast-to-coast, driving through the middle of the defense for a soft finger roll, which would put the Tigers up by seven with 2:26 to play. Though Emporia State would cut the lead back down to two points, Jontay Porter came up huge on defense, swatting away what would've been the game-tying layup.

Top Tigers

• Freshman forward Jontay Porter registered his first double-double in a Mizzou uniform, recording 11 points with 11 rebounds, five of which came on the offensive glass. Porter was also a menace on defense, blocking three shots.
• Sophomore forward Reed Nikko was able to give Martin quality minutes again, scoring eight points in just nine minutes played on perfect 3-3 shooting.
• Freshman forward Jeremiah Tilmon registered 13 points on 6-7 shooting, while providing Mizzou with three blocks on the defensive end.
• Junior forward Kevin Puryear reached double figures for the seventh time, dating back to last season, scoring 13 points and going a perfect 5-5 from the free throw line. Puryear was also great on the offensive glass, nabbing six offensive boards to lead the team.
• Freshman guard Blake Harris led the Tigers in assists, registering a season-high four assists in 16 minutes played.

Up Next

Mizzou next heads to Orlando, where they will take part in the AdvoCare Invitational. The Tigers' first game of the tournament comes against Long Beach State. The game tips off at 10:30 a.m. CT, and can be viewed on ESPN2.