COLUMBIA, Mo. — Mizzou Men's Basketball set an NCAA Division-I record with 54 consecutive made free throws, but fell as the Tigers lost to Texas A&M, 66-64, Tuesday night at Mizzou Arena.
Mizzou held the Aggies (9-8, 3-3 SEC) to 35-percent (6-of-17) from deep in a defensive showdown. Torrence Watson had a chance to win the game for Mizzou (9-9, 1-5 SEC) in the waning seconds of a two-point game. Mark Smith heaved a full-court inbound pass to Parker Braun, who shoveled the pass to Watson for a solid look, but the attempt rimmed out at the buzzer.
The Tigers continued their success from Saturday's program and SEC record 31-for-31 performance at the charity stripe, going 25-for-26. The effort was led by Dru Smith, who was a perfect 11-of-11 at the line. He finished with 18 points, adding eight rebounds and eight assists. His eight assists helped feed a Mizzou offense led by Mark Smith's game-high 19 points – including five buckets from beyond the arc.
Watson also finished in double figures, finishing with 11 points.
TURNING POINT
After a back-and-forth battle to open the second half, Yavuz Gultekin hit a 3-pointer with just over 12 minutes left to extend a Texas A&M scoring run to 7-0 for a six-point lead. The Aggies would hold on despite a late push by the Tigers that finished in a two-point deficit and a potential game-winning 3-pointer.
TOP TIGERS
- Dru Smith filled up the stat sheet on the night, scoring 18 points and adding eight rebounds and eight assists. He is the first Tiger to achieve an 18-8-8 stat line dating back to 2010-11.
- Mark Smith led all scorers on Tuesday night, recording 19 points and sinking five triples. He also grabbed three rebounds.
- Torrence Watson scored 11 points off the bench, going 5-for-5 at the free throw line and knocking down two threes.
NOTES
- Mizzou went 25-for-26 at the free throw line. The Tigers set a new NCAA record with 54-consecutive free throws, dating back to Saturday's 31-for-31 performance at Alabama.
- Mizzou out-rebounded Texas A&M 34-32 – the 10th time the Tigers have won the battle on the glass this season.
- Torrence Watson, Mark Smith, and Dru Smith all finished with at least 10 points tonight – the sixth time Mizzou has had at least three players reach double figures this season.
- Mark Smith reached double figures for the ninth time this season, and 26th time in his career. He has reached double figures in back-to-back games only twice this season.
- Mark Smith has now made at least two triples in seven-straight games.
- Dru Smith is the first Mizzou player to finish with a 18-8-8 stat dating back to 2010-11.
- Dru Smith's eight assists were a season high, and he has recorded at least seven assists for the 10th time in his career. It was the most assists by a Mizzou player since Blake Harris had nine against Long Beach State (Nov. 23, 2017).
- Dru Smith has recorded an assist in 58 straight games dating back to his time at Edwardsville. He has 31 straight multi-assist games.
- Mitchell Smith grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Mizzou travels to Morgantown, W.V., to take on West Virginia, Saturday, Jan. 25, as part of the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Tip off at WVU Coliseum is set for 11 a.m. CT on ESPN.
