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Scoreboard

Tilmon_UIW
42
Incarnate Word IWU 0-1
82
Winner Mizzou MIZ 1-0
Incarnate Word IWU
0-1
42
Final
82
Mizzou MIZ
1-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Incarnate Word IWU 22 20 42
Mizzou MIZ 43 39 82

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | | Ryan Galbierz

Mizzou Men's Basketball Routs Incarnate Word in Season Opener

Tilmon Jr. leads Tigers with 16 points in 82-42 win

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Men's Basketball defeated Incarnate Word, 82-42, on Wednesday night at Mizzou Arena in the first game of the 2019-20 season. Led by junior forward Jeremiah Tilmon Jr. (East St. Louis, Ill.), Mizzou was able to grab control early in the ballgame and closed out the first half with a 43-22 advantage.

Tilmon set the tone on both ends of the floor all evening, collecting a career-high five blocks while pacing Mizzou with 16 points. During his career, the Tigers are a perfect 7-0 when Tilmon posts 16 or more points. Meanwhile, sophomore guard Xavier Pinson (Chicago, Ill.) dished out five assists while attacking the paint all evening to earn plenty of trips to the charity stripe, as he added eight points from the line.

The Tigers smothered the Cardinals defensively all evening, forcing 21 turnovers while allowing the Cardinals to shoot just 27-percent from the field. Mizzou was able to use its physicality to dominate the paint on both ends of the floor, outscoring the Cardinals in the paint 42 to 22 and out-rebounding Incarnate Word 47 to 37.

TURNING POINT

Led by Tilmon Jr., the Tigers went on an 8-0 run with 5:25 remaining in the first half. The run started with a thunderous dunk from the Mizzou big man followed by a couple tough finishes in the paint to put the Tigers up by 14. Watson then knocked down two back-to-back three pointers to give the Tigers a 21-point lead to close out the half.

TOP TIGERS

  • Tilmon Jr.'s strong performance in the season opener was his best since posting 19 points and grabbing eight boards in a win over Vanderbilt last season on Feb. 2.
  • Pinson made a number of nifty passes in the rout, totaling five assists while dropping 15 points. It was the first time Pinson has reached double figures and dished out five assists in the same game.
  • Sophomore guard Javon Pickett (Belleville, Ill.) steadied the Mizzou effort all over the court, snatching a career-best eight rebounds while posting 10 points and not committing a single turnover through 22 minutes on the floor. Pickett reached double-digit scoring on 10 occasions last season.

NOTES

  • Mizzou has now won 25 of its last 28 season openers, and head coach Cuonzo Martin is now 3-0 at Mizzou in season openers. He improves to 2-0 versus Incarnate Word during his coaching career after earning a win in 2015 with the Cal Golden Bears.
  • The Tigers held Incarnate Word to just 42 points which was the lowest clip from an opponent since Mizzou held Georgia to just 39 points in a victory on March 6 last season. Martin's Tigers improve to 10-0 when holding opponents to 55 points or fewer.
  • Mizzou held Incarnate Word to only 2-of-12 from beyond the arc. The last time Mizzou held an opponent to only a pair of made threes was when the Tigers stifled Kentucky's shooting attack in an upset victory on Feb. 3, 2018 at Mizzou Arena. 
  • The Tigers also held the Cardinals to just 15 total field goals. Mizzou held opponents to 20 or fewer made field goals on 12 occasions last season, and Mizzou is 15-2 in Martin's two plus seasons as head coach.
  • Mizzou posted a 3-1 record last season when Tilmon Jr. was the team's leading scorer.
  • Mizzou forced 21 turnovers while only committing 14 in the victory. Mizzou was 10-2 last season when committing fewer turnovers than opponents. The Tigers last forced 21 turnovers in a win over Texas-Arlington on Dec. 4, 2018.
  • Sophomore guard Torrence Watson (St. Louis, Mo.) drilled two triples in the victory and totaled six points. Watson hit multiple threes in 11 games last season, which trailed only junior guard Mark Smith (Edwardsville, Ill.).
  • Freshman guard Kobe Brown (Huntsville, Ala.) struck twice from behind the arc in his debut and joins Pickett as the only Mizzou players to sink multiple threes in a freshman debut during the Cuonzo Martin era. Brown ended with nine points and three rebounds.
  • The Tigers 82-42 victory over Incarnate Word is the first time Mizzou has outscored its opponent by 40 or more points since defeating Wagner 99-55 on November 13, 2017
  • Mizzou snagged 47 total rebounds in the opener which was the most a Tiger team has recorded since December 16, 2017 against North Florida.
  • The Tigers 12 forced turnovers in the first half, the most in the first half of a home opener since the 2012-2013 season when Mizzou forced 14 against Northwest Missouri State.
  • Mizzou scored 28 of its 42 first-half points in the paint, the most in either half of a home opener since the 2009-10 season in a 96-33 rout of Truman State.
  • The Tigers scored 43 points in the first half, the most in the first half of a home opener since 2016 in a 99-44 win against Alabama A&M.
  • Freshman guard Mario McKinney (St. Louis, Mo.) posted seven points on 3-of-4 shooting in his Mizzou debut and threw down a pair of dunks. He also grabbed three rebounds.
  • Redshirt freshman Parker Braun (Overland Park, Kan.) found the scoring column in his first career appearance, posting three points and hauling two boards.

UP NEXT

Mizzou Men's Basketball's next task is this Friday, Nov. 8 against Northern Kentucky at Mizzou Arena. The game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. CT and will be broadcast on SEC Network +.

For all the latest on Mizzou Men's Basketball, stay tuned to MUTigers.com and follow the team @mizzouhoops (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook).

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