University of Missouri
2-1
Kennesaw State
1-3
@MizzouHoops Advances to Paradise Jam Semifinals with 55-52 Victory over Kennesaw State
11/16/2018 1:25:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Puryear paces the Tigers with 17 points and six rebounds.
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Men's Basketball advanced to the Paradise Jam semifinals with an opening-round 55-52 victory over Kennesaw State on Friday. Mizzou held the Owls to just two field goals over the final 8:01 of game clock to secure the win.
With the score tied at 50-50, senior Jordan Geist knifed through Kennesaw State's zone defense and drew a foul. He made both free throws to put Mizzou up two with 1:42 left. The Tigers then got back-to-back defensive stops, culminating with a steal and a fastbreak layup for sophomore Mark Smith. That gave Mizzou a two-possession lead and the Tigers held off a comeback in the final seconds.
Mizzou's pair of starting forwards Jeremiah Tilmon and Kevin Puryear combined for 29 of the Tigers' 55 points to lead the team to victory. The duo added 15 combined rebounds to power Mizzou to the win.
TURNING POINT
With 5:35 remaining and Mizzou trailing by one, a pair of seniors stepped up and made a play when the Tigers needed it most. Geist dove for a loose ball and tapped it out to Smith, who rifled an assist to a waiting Puryear. Puryear took the feed and slammed it home to give Mizzou a 47-46 edge.
The Tigers never trailed again, converting 6-of-8 attempts at the free throw line to seal the victory. Geist and Puryear combined to make all six of those free throws.
TOP TIGERS
- Tilmon scored 12 points and grabbed a team-high nine rebounds. The nine boards were his most this season. He added two blocked shots, a career-best two assists and two steals.
- Puryear paced Mizzou with 17 points and grabbed six rebounds. He has at least five rebounds in every game this season, marking the first time he's done so since Feb. 4-Feb. 10 during the 2017-18 campaign.
- Geist scored a season-high eight points.
GAME NOTES
- Puryear reached double figures for the second consecutive game. He's scored 15+ points 20 times in his career and 10+ points 55 times.
- Puryear's 17-point night moved him to 41st on Mizzou's all-time scoring list with 1,043 career points. He moved past Jabari Brown (1,040) and is now just three points shy of DeMarre Carroll (1,046).
- Redshirt sophomore Mitchell Smith grabbed season high five rebounds.
- Geist made a season high six free throws, shooting a perfect 100 percent at the charity stripe. He added a season high five rebounds.
- Redshirt junior Ronnie Suggs scored his first point as a Tiger and added an assist and a steal in a season-high 11 minutes, providing a spark defensively off the bench.
- As a team, Mizzou recorded a season high 10 steals and made a season high 14 free throws.
UP NEXT
Mizzou has an off day Saturday before facing Oregon State in the Paradise Jam semifinals on Sunday night. Tip off is set for 4:30 p.m. CT. Head coach Cuonzo Martin is 6-1 in his career against the Beavers.
For all the latest on Mizzou Basketball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@MizzouHoops).
