KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Mizzou Men's Basketball (11-10, 2-7) fell, 72-60, at No. 1 Tennessee (21-1, 9-0) on Tuesday night in Knoxville. The Tigers battled toe-to-toe with Tennessee throughout the game, but the top-ranked Volunteers extended their lead late in the second half to seal their 21st consecutive home victory.

Freshman Javon Pickett chipped in a team-high 12 points to lead three Tigers in double figures. Mizzou outrebounded Tennessee, 36-34, and held the Volunteers to their second-lowest scoring output of their season.

Freshman Xavier Pinson added 10 points and a career-high rebounds while committing just one turnover against a stout Tennessee backcourt. Senior Jordan Geist contributed 11 points, while big men Jeremiah Tilmon and Kevin Puryear combined for 16 points and 11 rebounds.

TURNING POINT

Mizzou was within six at half and cut the deficit to as little as eight with 6:47 remaining, but a quick 7-0 Tennessee run pushed the Volunteers' lead to 15 with 4:26 left, and that advantage proved to be insurmountable.

Tennessee held Mizzou without a field goal for nearly four minutes of gameclock during that stretch and capitalized offensively. Pinson scored six of his 10 points in the final minutes, but it wasn't enough to pull Mizzou back within single digits.

TOP TIGERS

• Pickett reached double figures for the third time in Mizzou's last four games with 12 points. He added three rebounds and two assists.
• Tilmon played 27 minutes, his seventh consecutive game playing 26+ minutes. He finished with eight points, five rebounds, a block, two assists and a steal.
• Geist has now scored in double figures in 15 of the last 18 games after posting 11 points on Tuesday. He also dished out five assists, reaching that mark for the seventh time this season.
• Pinson's eight rebounds set a new career-high. He reached double figures for the fifth time in his career, notching 10 points. He has scored at least eight points in each of Mizzou's last five games.

GAME NOTES

• Mizzou committed just nine turnovers on Tuesday night, matching its season-low. That's now 18 total turnovers for the Tigers over the last two games, Mizzou's lowest total amount in back-to-back games this season.
• After the freshmen trio of Pickett, Watson and Xavier Pinson combined for a season-high 33 point vs. Vanderbilt, the trio contributed 25 points vs. No. 1 Tennessee.
• Mizzou has now outrebounded its opponent 15 times in 21 games this season.
• Puryear earned his 109^th career start on Tuesday, becoming just the 11^th Tiger in program history to reach that mark.
• Pinson has scored 46 combined points over the last five games. He'd scored just 40 combined points in his previous eight games prior to that.

UP NEXT

Mizzou returns to Columbia, Mo., for a two-game homestand that begins Saturday vs. Texas A&M. The Tigers bested the Aggies on the road earlier this season, earning a 66-43 victory on Jan. 19. Tip off on Saturday is set for 5 p.m. on SEC Network.

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