After exhausting all other ways to score on the possession, Xavier Pinson took matters into his own hands.
The junior guard sized up and let go of his third 3-point attempt of the first half, an off-dribble, heat check, "Well, why not," sort of shot. But it fell. It was just another bucket for Pinson, who had 19 points through the first 20 minutes.
Pinson’s scorching 27-point outing boosted his Missouri team to a major 73-64 win against Tennessee in Knoxville in a rematch of its Dec. 30 meeting in Columbia. The performance wasn’t a complete anomaly: Pinson has scored 20 points in two other games this season. But nobody has performed quite as well versus the Volunteers .
Pinson’s 27 points were the most by any player against the Vols this year. Pinson looked ridiculously confident Saturday and changed on the fly — such as recognizing burly forward John Fulkerson had switched onto him late game — and made a veteran move at the rim before demonstrating some sweet touch high off the glass.
His outburst was just one factor in Missouri’s (10-2, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) win Saturday, as all the dominos seemingly fell in line for coach Cuonzo Martin’s group.
The Tigers’ defense had one of its halves of the season to open the game, forcing 11 Volunteer turnovers by halftime. It helped that Tennessee (10-3, 4-3) came out sloppy, but much of that credit must be given to Missouri's pressure defense.
Tennessee forward Yves Pons has had some of his best offensive games against Missouri, with that trend continuing as he erupted for 20 points. But it was a fine price to pay to ensure that the rest of the Volunteers’ core couldn’t get going.
The Tigers generally flowed offensively better than usual, reversing the ball and getting others involved without going to center Jeremiah Tilmon too heavily early on. Guard Dru Smith’s 13 first half points kept the Volunteers on their toes as a compliment to Pinson's flash.
Missouri entered the game as one of the worst 3-point shooting teams in the nation, but by the half it was shooting 6-for-12 from deep. The game turned into a shootout and the Tigers defied their old identity of a slow-paced team, putting on one of their best shooting performances of the season.
Tilmon wasn’t totally necessary against Tennessee outside of drawing attention. Instead, it was the man next to Tilmon that had an extremely valuable game, one which the box score won’t completely tell.
Forward Kobe Brown made some big plays, and despite sitting for some time with four fouls, the sophomore managed to corral some huge rebounds and loose balls during the final stretch. It did wonders for a Missouri team that enjoyed a healthy lead for most of the game.
No. 19 Missouri’s upset over No. 6 Tennessee marks the fifth Quadrant 1 win for Martin and his group this season — the most of any team nationally outside of No. 1 Gonzaga's six.
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January 24, 2021 at 10:42AM
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Pinson erupts as Missouri enjoys a sound win over Tennessee - Columbia Missourian
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