Sean East II scored 21 points as Missouri rallied to defeat South Carolina State 82-59 Wednesday in Columbia, Mo.
Nick Honor scored 14 points, Noah Carter had 13 and Anthony Robinson II added 10 for the Tigers (3-2).
Davion Everett scored 21 points and had seven rebounds for the Bulldogs (2-3), who have lost three straight games.
South Carolina State built a 16-point lead in the first half before Missouri mounted its comeback. The Tigers picked up their defensive play, outscoring the Bulldogs 47-22 in the second half.
Missouri built a 33-26 rebounding edge and blocked 12 shots.
The Bulldogs broke out to an 8-2 lead, with Everett getting to the basket twice.
They used a 9-2 run to push their lead to 19-8. Drayton Jones started the sequence with a follow shot, and Caleb McCarty capped it with a slam dunk.
South Carolina extended its margin to 29-13 with 7:45 left in the first half, with Mitchel Taylor and Omar Croskey scoring fast-break baskets.
After calling a timeout and making substitutions, the Tigers finally came to life with an 18-2 surge to pull even at 31-31. Center Connor Vanover triggered the comeback with a steal at the defensive end and a 3-point jumper in transition at the other end.
Honor powered the run with a trio of 3-point jumpers from the corner, and Vanover and Aidan Shaw energized the home crowd with dunks.
Everett stabilized the Bulldogs with a pair of fast-break baskets before East's driving basket cut South Carolina State's lead to 37-35 at the half.
Missouri opened the second half with a 26-2 burst to move ahead 61-39. Robinson sparked the run by scoring on two drives to the basket and feeding Tamar Bates for a layup.
The Bulldogs stabilized with six unanswered points, with Everett scoring two baskets inside, but they could not climb back into the game.
--Field Level Media
South Carolina State | Missouri | |
Davion Everett 21 | Scoring | Sean East II 21 |
Drayton Jones 2 | Assists | Sean East II 4 |
Davion Everett 7 | Rebounds | Aidan Shaw 7 |
Drayton Jones 2 | Free Throws Made | Noah Carter 5 |
Omar Croskey 3 | Steals | Sean East II 2 |
Caleb McCarty 1 | Blocks | Aidan Shaw 5 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
South Carolina State | 59 | 47.3 | 2-10 | 5-8 | 13 | 24 | 1 | 9 | 15 |
Missouri | 82 | 53.4 | 9-24 | 11-13 | 16 | 30 | 12 | 11 | 13 |