Scripps college sat4/20/2023 ![]() ![]() Meanwhile, Mizzou seldom was able to disrupt Princeton’s offense, which moved the ball so deftly and precisely that it created numerous open looks. “They had a good game plan: Block the lane, stop penetration early,” said DeAndre Gholston, who led MU with 19 points. And with Princeton clogging the lane, MU struggled to hit mid-range jumpers and 3-pointers (six of 22) and went to the free-throw line a season-low seven times. Since Princeton committed only six turnovers in the first 37 minutes, Mizzou never quite ran the way it wanted to. Other than a few breakout bursts, Princeton’s defense kept MU off-kilter almost all game. MU led the game for all of 32 seconds, was pulverized on the boards 44-30, outscored 19-2 on second-chance points and managed only half as many 3-pointers as Princeton’s 12. “At the end of the day, we lost today, but we have a lot to be proud of.”Īlas, this second-round loss wasn’t part of that lot. “We weren’t supposed to be here at all in the first place …” said a red-eyed Tre Gomillion, who missed the last four games of the season with a groin injury but was among those on stage. It was about setting a tone and a foundation and a culture, notions that might have been true even without tangible results but were reinforced by a captivating team. It was about creating an instant revitalization with a galvanized team that captured the imaginations of a fan base long stranded somewhere between apathy and cynicism. It’s about Gates melding in nine new players to jolt the program out of the doldrums of a 12-win season to a 25-10 finish and its first NCAA tourney victory since 2010. None of which diminishes Mizzou’s season.īecause that overarching story isn’t about a second-round NCAA Tournament loss to a heck of a team. “But I feel like we’re supposed to be here.” “The world looks at us as two upsets,” Evbuomwan said. In fact, there was no arguing with the fact Princeton was the best team on Saturday - a team we believe has a fine chance to beat the Creighton-Baylor winner to advance to the Elite Eight. “If you want to argue,” he said, smiling, “I’m happy to argue with anybody in here.” And guard Ryan Langborg (22 points), Henderson asserted, was the best player on the floor on Saturday. Princeton’s offense revolved around forward Tosan Evbuomwan, the Ivy League player of the year whose presence is so spectacular that his arrival with the team was “like a brilliant, blinding light from heaven,” as coach Mitch Henderson put it. ![]() If you love basketball, you could love this team, which inflicted on Mizzou the most lopsided NCAA tourney victory by any 15 seed (in 14 wins). Those Tigers also beat second-seeded Arizona because they’re exceptionally well-coached, cohesive and way more athletic than people might perceive them. The Polar Bears are off until a March 18 match at Redlands.The future, of course, is its own unknowable realm.īut a miserable ending notwithstanding, the distance from MU’s dreary recent past to the promising present tells us at least something about the open-ended potential in the years to come.Īnd spare us any snark about seventh-seeded Mizzou losing to Princeton (23-8) as the No.Yu and Buckhout both forced third sets, but were unable to close out the matches at two and five respectively. The Polar Bears were unable to win a singles match.Hannah Buckhout and Kennedi Carter edged out an 8-7 win at two doubles. ![]()
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