Laurence Bowers came up big for Missouri once again and helped the 12th-ranked Tigers rally from a big deficit.

Bowers scored a career-high 26 points to help Missouri come from 10 points down at halftime in an 81-65 win against Southeast Missouri State on Tuesday night.

”He can do everything,” Keion Bell said. ”His skill set is so diverse that you can’t really come up with a game plan of how to stop him. You can try to contain him. But Laurence, he can just do everything on the floor. He’s a hard, diligent worker, and his hard work is paying off.”

The Tigers trailed for 17 minutes before Bowers made a turnaround jumper to give Missouri a 57-56 lead with 10:56 remaining, part of a stretch of 19 consecutive Tigers points scored by either Bowers or Phil Pressey.

An alley-oop dunk by Bell with 4:16 left stretched Missouri’s lead to 73-62, and the Tigers led comfortably the rest of the way.

Pressey added 17 points for the Tigers (7-1) after making only 3 of 14 shots from the field in the first half, including 1 of 6 from 3-point range. After a missed jumper with 1:10 remaining in the first half, Missouri coach Frank Haith quickly turned his back to the court and slapped his hands in the first of many signs of frustration with his team.

Haith said he needed to remind Pressey to remain poised, as well as saying the junior guard doesn’t need to be the team’s entire offense.

”Teams are going to make shots; people are going to make shots,” Haith said. ”And I thought we rushed things. And Phil’s got to get better at that. Just in terms of the trust factor.

”There may be a night where we want Phil taking 18 shots, but that’s not his game right now.”

Southeast Missouri (6-5) provided its in-state opponent with a scare for the second consecutive year after taking an early lead thanks to eight 3-pointers in the first half. The Redhawks entered the game having won three consecutive games while shooting 27 for 39 on 3s during that stretch. However, they made 1 of 11 from beyond the arc in the second half against the Tigers.

Corey Wilford scored all of his 14 points in the first half to lead the Redhawks, who have played eight of their first 11 games on the road. Nino Johnson and Missouri transfer Tyler Stone both added 13.

Wilford’s drive down the lane for a layup with 4:53 remaining in the first half capped an 8-0 run for the Redhawks, giving them a 38-27 advantage for the team’s largest lead of the game. Missouri answered with six consecutive points, but Southeast Missouri rebounded to make take a 45-35 lead at halftime.

”We didn’t bring it second half,” Stone said. ”First half, we brought it. We came out with the right tenacity. We didn’t bring it second half to be honest.”

Stone is leading Southeast Missouri State in scoring (15.5) for the second consecutive season after transferring from Missouri after his freshman year, when he scored 22 points in 12 games.

Coach Dickey Nutt lavished praise on Stone, saying he has improved both on and off the court.

”Everything about his life has changed for the better, and that’s why we’re so proud and pleased to have Tyler,” Nutt said. ”He’s certainly a high-major athlete. He’s gotten better and better every play, every game out. Let me tell you, no one hurts and will be eat up with this loss worse than him.”

But Stone wasn’t enough to break Missouri’s added defensive pressure along the perimeter in the second half, after the Tigers received words of ”encouragement” from Haith during halftime.

Previously saying his team struggled with slow starts in its first two games of the season, Bowers said energy wasn’t the problem Tuesday night. Rather, mental focus and lack of execution may have been the culprits.

Bell added 12 points and 11 rebounds for Missouri after coming off the bench for the third consecutive game. Bell’s averaged 12 points in those three games while playing 26.3 minutes, an increase of 4.3 per game from when he was starting.

Haith has asked Bell to become the team’s best perimeter defender, rather than being the team’s leading scorer, as the Pepperdine transfer is used to being.

”I’ve always had the potential to be an excellent defender,” Bell said. ”I still haven’t reached that potential yet, but I believe that I made steps in the right direction.”

Tony Criswell scored a season-high 13 points for Missouri, which extended its home winning streak against non-conference opponents to 70 games. The Tigers moved to 7-0 all-time against Southeast Missouri two games after guard Michael Dixon announced his intention to transfer.

”Glass always half full for me,” Haith said. ”I look at how we played in the second half and that’s how good this team can be, if we buy in and we play the way we’re capable of playing.”

— Associated Press —

David Yost has resigned his position as University of Missouri assistant head football coach, after spending the past 12 seasons on Head Coach Gary Pinkel’s staff at Mizzou.  Yost cited personal reasons for his decision, which is effective immediately.

The departure will end a 17-season association between Pinkel and Yost.  He initially joined Pinkel’s staff at Toledo in 1996 as a graduate assistant, and from 1997-2000, was Pinkel’s quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator, until moving to MU in the same position.

“First off, I want to thank Coach Pinkel for an amazing 17 years,” said Yost.  “He has done so much for me and I’m just so grateful for the faith that he showed in me and all of the opportunities that he sent my way.  I also want to thank Mike Alden for the support he has given me personally, and to our program.  Mizzou is a special place, and I know that we’re positioned to do great things going forward,” Yost said.

“There are a lot of factors that played into the process of coming to my decision,” Yost said.  “I feel like I’ve had a great run here and that it’s just the right time to turn it over to someone else.  On one hand, it’s a really hard decision to make, but on the other hand, I feel good that it’s the right decision at the right time for me,” he said.

“I’m going to miss our staff, they’re like brothers to me, and not being around our players, that’s hard to think about how tough that will be,” he said.

Part of the original staff when Pinkel was hired at Mizzou prior to the 2001 season, Yost was the first staff member to join Pinkel in Columbia, and he initially served as quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator, staying in that role through 2008.  Prior to 2009, Yost was promoted to offensive coordinator, and in the fall of 2011, he had assistant head coach added to his title.

Three of Yost’s protégés at quarterback are playing in the National Football League, in Brad Smith (Buffalo Bills), Chase Daniel (New Orleans Saints) and Blaine Gabbert (Jacksonville Jaguars).  The trio also earned 12 different all-conference honors between them, and Daniel emerged on the national stage in 2007 when he was a Heisman Trophy finalist, eventually finishing fourth in the voting.  Smith became the first quarterback in NCAA FBS history to throw for 8,000 yards and rush for 4,000 yards in a career.  Gabbert followed Daniel and became an eventual first-round NFL Draft pick.

Yost also coached placekickers, and he worked with four kickers who won all-conference honors.  Two of his kickers – Grant Ressel and Jeff Wolfert – earned national honors, with Ressel being named a 1st-Team All-American in 2009, while Wolfert preceded him as an honorable-mention All-American in 2007.

“It is very difficult to imagine not having David as part of our staff,” said Pinkel.  “I asked him to reconsider, but I respect his decision.  He has been such an instrumental part of our program and everything we‘ve built since we came here.  There’s hardly an aspect of our program that he hasn’t had a hand in, and we’re going to miss his leadership and energy.  He was responsible for a lot of things, and he did them all very well.  He was an outstanding representative of Mizzou who busted his tail for our program.   He’s going to be tough to replace,” he said.

Pinkel said that he will conduct a national search for Yost’s replacement, but that he will also consider internal candidates.  There is no timetable for the timing of the hire.

— MU Sports Information —

No. 16 Missouri handled its first test after guard Michael Dixon announced he would be transferring.

Of course, the Tigers have had plenty of time getting used to going without a player considered one of the nation’s best sixth men last season.

”We really came together after the Mike situation,” forward Laurence Bowers said after matching his career high with 23 points in a 72-56 victory over Appalachian State on Saturday.

”He’s our brother and we hate that it happened, but it did.

”We’ve just got to continue to build the chemistry on this team because this is the team we’ve been playing with since the beginning. We’re going to pray for Mike.”

Bowers matched his career best set against Georgia in 2010 despite taking just one shot in the second half – a thunderous one-handed dunk off an assist from Phil Pressey that made it 61-36 with 6:18 to play.

He emphasized the early points came on shots in the rhythm of the offense.

Earnest Ross added 13 points and nine rebounds off the bench for the Tigers (6-1), who have won 69 in a row at home against non-conference opponents going back to 2005.

Two more reserves scored in double figures with Keion Bell getting 12 points and Tony Criswell 10.

Jay Canty had a career high 29 points for Appalachian State (1-6), which has lost six in a row since opening with a victory over NAIA Montreat.

Canty was 11 for 19 and added six rebounds, but the rest of the Mountaineers were just 10 for 40.

”I didn’t think I had to do that, at all,” said Canty, a transfer from Xavier. ”I thought we were going to come out and do it together, but we struggled a little bit and I felt like I had to do something to try to pick our guys up.”

It’s the Mountaineers’ longest losing streak since dropping eight in a row in 2004.

”We missed probably nine layups in the first half, which changes the complexity of the game if we make those layups,” coach Jason Capel said. ”I think Missouri had a lot to do with that.

”But are we going to be able to get to the rim like that against teams in our league? Absolutely.”

Dixon elected to leave the school Thursday after two sexual assault claims against him became public this week. Dixon had been expected to take a major role in his senior season but never played.

”Obviously, we talked about adversity, distractions, all those things,” coach Frank Haith said. ”They understand we must play a game today, we’ve got to get ourselves ready to play and move forward.

”As we do the rest of the year.”

Missouri has several options at guard opposite Pressey.

The field includes Bell, Ross, freshman Negus Webster-Chan and Oregon transfer Jabari Brown, who’ll be eligible at the semester break.

Webster-Chan made his second straight start at guard ahead of Ross on Saturday and was scoreless in 28 minutes on 0-for-4 shooting.

For now, Haith likes Webster-Chan starting because he’s also the backup point guard.

”This is my theory behind doing this: He’s getting a sweat, he’s getting lathered up,” Haith said. ”So it’s not like going in dry.”

Haith said Brown has played a lot with the first unit in practice, adding ”he’s got to be ready right away,” but would not start in his anticipated debut Dec. 17 against South Carolina State.

Bell, a transfer from Pepperdine, is making the adjustment from a player whom Haith characterized as one who once ”monopolized the ball” to a more complementary role.

Bowers outscored Appalachian State by himself most of the first half, settling for a 21-all draw when the Mountaineers scored six points in the final 1:04 to make it 39-21. He was a perfect 3 for 3 from 3-point range and made all but 10 attempts overall.

He has been a second-half player in the early season, averaging 11.5 points after the break and 14.2 points overall entering the Appalachian State game.

”About the flip-flop,” Bowers said, ”it just happened that way.”

— Associated Press —

University of Missouri junior defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson has decided to forego his final year of collegiate eligibility, and will make himself available for the 2013 NFL Draft, to be held April 25-27.

Richardson had a breakout season for the Tigers in 2012, as he led all Southeastern Conference defensive tackles, and ranked second on the MU team overall, with 75 tackles.  The St. Louis, Mo. native played in 11 games (starting all 11), and added 10.5 tackles for loss and 4.0 quarterback sacks this season, while also forcing three fumbles, recovering two, breaking up three passes, and blocking one kick.

For his Tiger career, Richardson saw action in 24 games (making 13 starts total), and made 112 tackles in all.

“This has been my dream ever since I was a little kid,” said Richardson.  “It’s still not easy leaving Mizzou like this, but I know I’m ready.  I really appreciate all of the support I got here at Mizzou, and I know that they will help me and my family with this next step.  I’ll always be a Tiger,” he said.

“I’ve always said that when guys have opportunities like these, if they’re ready to go, then they should go,” said MU Head Coach Gary Pinkel.  “I have no doubt that Sheldon is ready to play in the NFL, and while we’d love to have him for another year, the important thing is that this is the right decision.  It will be fun watching him play on Sundays,” Pinkel said.

— MU Sports Information —

Suspended Missouri guard Michael Dixon left the team Thursday after two sexual assault claims became public this week.

Dixon, who was not charged in either case, has been benched all season for No. 13 Missouri (5-1). The senior averaged 13.5 points as Missouri’s sixth man last season and was a projected starter.

Neither Dixon nor the university addressed the allegations in the university’s two-sentence announcement of his departure.

“It’s been a challenging few months and while I appreciate the support of many in the Mizzou community, including my coaches and teammates, it’s in the best interest of me, my family and the University of Missouri for me to finish my career elsewhere,” Dixon said.

The one-time prep star from suburban Kansas City was briefly suspended for violating unspecified team rules in December 2010 by former Missouri coach Mike Anderson, who is now at Arkansas.

That suspension came after allegations against Dixon by a woman who told The Associated Press on Thursday that she declined to press charges in part to avoid embarrassing her family.

The woman, who is now 25 and a university employee, asked that her name not be used because of safety concerns.

The AP also does not generally identify alleged sexual assault victims.

At the time of Dixon’s alleged assault, she was a recent graduate who worked for the school’s athletics department. She said she reported her concerns to campus police, who encouraged her to file charges, and complained to school officials, including Anderson.

One of Dixon’s teammates then warned the woman “to keep her mouth shut,” she said.

“At the time, I did what was right for me by not pressing charges,” she said. “It was a very personal decision.”

Over the weekend, a female student accused Dixon of sexual assault, disclosing the allegation publicly in a Twitter exchange with former Missouri guard Kim English, now a Detroit Pistons reserve. The woman also filed a police report in August, copies of which were publicly released this week, but Boone County prosecutors decided on Nov. 16 to not file charges.

The absence of criminal charges in both cases prompted a groundswell of support for Dixon’s reinstatement among Missouri fans, with some Twitter posts calling for the school to “Free Mike Dixon.”

English was among the most vocal supporters, defending his former teammate’s “poise, class and professionalism” while also praising Missouri coach Frank Haith and chancellor Brady Deaton. But he called a university disciplinary board apparently investigating Dixon “a joke” and said his alma mater “should be ashamed!” Those criticisms were later deleted — as was the 19-year-old sophomore’s online accusation that prompted English’s comments.

Dixon posted his own defense that “I’ve done nothing wrong!” on Twitter after a loss to No. 2 Louisville a week ago at a tournament in the Bahamas — a tournament he traveled to with the team — but later had it removed.

Haith had declined to discuss the reasons for Dixon’s suspension, which he said did not involve NCAA matters or legal issues — a characterization subject to interpretation given that the case remained under review by local prosecutors until two weeks ago. Most recently, Haith said he would not talk about the “rumors and allegations” involving Dixon.

The woman who first accused Dixon two years ago said she struggled with the mostly unwavering support he received during his most recent suspension.

“It’s really difficult for me to see someone praised by such a large group of people when I know how he hurt me,” she said.

The woman also said that Dixon laughingly threatened to “kick her in the stomach and push her down the stairs” if she became pregnant. She had told him earlier that she was not using birth control.

Dixon, who won the Show-Me Basketball award in 2009 as the state’s top high school player, did not respond to several messages left on his cell the past several days seeking comment. The Columbia Missourian reported Thursday that Dixon sent a friend a series of text messages confirming his departure, alluding to the earlier assault complaint and insisting that “I have never harmed anyone.”

— Associated Press —

Johnny Manziel threw for 372 yards and three touchdowns and ran for two more scores as No. 9 Texas A&M handled Missouri 59-29 on Saturday night.

The Aggies (10-2, 6-2 SEC) scored touchdowns on their first six drives to build a 42-7 halftime lead and coast to their first 10-win season since 1998.

About the only drama in this one came when Manziel, the Heisman Trophy hopeful, was shaken up on a tackle at the end of a run in the first quarter.

But Johnny Football missed just four plays before returning with a brace on his left knee. And it didn’t seem to slow him down one bit.

The Aggies were up 21-0 when he returned, and he threw touchdown passes on three straight possessions to end the first half.

He scored on an 18-yard run to start the third quarter, and added another rushing touchdown when he bulled in from 1-yard out early in the fourth.

Manziel added 67 yards rushing and completed 32 of 44 passes on Saturday. He has thrown for 24 touchdowns and ran for 19 this season.

The win snaps A&M’s three-game losing streak to Missouri (5-7, 2-6 SEC), and will keep the Tigers from becoming bowl eligible for the first time since 2004.

Backup quarterback Corbin Berkstresser started for Missouri with James Franklin out after having a concussion last week. He threw for 276 yards with two touchdowns and an interception.

Missouri’s Kendial Lawrence had 16 carries for 87 yards and a touchdown to surpass 1,000 yards rushing this season.

After Manziel’s touchdown run in the third, Taylor Bertolet hit a 50-yard field goal.

L’Damian Washington got in front of the defense on a 74-yard catch and run near the end of the third quarter to cut A&M’s lead to 52-16. Berkstresser tossed another touchdown with about seven minutes left.

Manziel was intercepted by E.J. Gaines late in the third quarter, and the Tigers capitalized on that turnover with a 1-yard run by Berkstresser early in the fourth.

Manziel’s last touchdown run came with about 12 minutes left to extend Texas A&M’s lead to 59-23. He returned for one play of the next drive before being going to the bench to a round of applause as he flashed the Aggies’ ‘Gig ‘Em’ sign.

The Aggies are hoping that Saturday’s performance will give Manziel a final push before Heisman voting closes. A group a fans unfurled a homemade sign that read (hash)heisMANZIEL during the game.

When he was shaken up, Manziel was brought down by a tackle to his left leg and held his left knee. He remained on the turf for a couple of minutes while trainers checked him out. The crowd was silent for a bit before a chant of ”Johnny, Johnny” erupted.

He was helped to his feet and walked off the field on his own power. Backup Jameill Showers went in for the next play and Christine Michael scored his second touchdown on a 38-yard run to push A&M’s lead to 21-0. Manziel missed the first three plays of A&M’s next possession, before returning to start the second quarter.

He capped his first drive back with a 4-yard touchdown pass to Ryan Swope to make it 28-0.

Texas A&M got the ball back after a fumble. Manziel was under heavy pressure on the ensuing drive, and escaped two diving defenders to throw a 5 yard touchdown pass to Mike Evans on the run.

His next touchdown pass was much the same as he wriggled out a defender diving at his leg and juked another defender before running to the opposite side of the field and finding Uzoma Nwachukwu to make it 42-0.

The Tigers used a fake punt to extend a drive and Lawrence scored on a 4-yard run just before halftime to leave A&M up 42-7.

Michael got A&M going with a 1-yard touchdown run on its first drive to make it 7-0.

A 2-yard run by Ben Malena pushed the lead to 14-0.

— Associated Press —

Phil Pressey had a tough semifinal at the Battle 4 Atlantis. He made up for it in the third-place game.

The junior guard and Southeastern Conference preseason player of the year had 11 points, eight assists and two huge shots to lead No. 13 Missouri to a 68-65 victory over VCU on Saturday.

It seemed as if the loss to No. 2 Louisville when he committed eight turnovers was a lot more than a day ago.

”It’s a good way to start your season off, because we played three great teams,” Pressey said. ”We learned something new every single game.”

Like Pressey can make big 3-pointers and baskets that go directly to the highlight reel.

Pressey gave the Tigers (5-1) the lead for good with a 3-pointer with 1:17 to play. That capped a run of five straight possessions where the teams exchanged the lead.

The Rams (3-3) turned the ball over with 57 seconds left. The Tigers called a timeout with 10 seconds left on the shot clock. Pressey took the inbounds, dribbled off a few seconds, then made a move to the basket where he ducked under a VCU player and hit a flip shot as the shot clock hit zero.

”Just the way we drew it up,” Missouri coach Frank Haith said jokingly. ”When you’re a great player you have to work on tough and awkward shots. But he does practice those one-foot shots, the step-back 3, and he goes at it full speed. If you have a chance to do it in a game you have to do it at full speed. And he does.”

Troy Daniels of VCU missed a 3 and the Tigers ran out the clock.

”During the offseason I worked on those every single day,” Pressey said of the clincher. ”My teammates have confidence in me to take those shots. It’s a big trust factor. I feel like they trust me to shoot them and that helps me out.

”I don’t look at myself as a go-to scorer. When the opportunity presents itself I score, but I’m a playmaker. Playmaking can lead to a lot of things.”

Laurence Bowers had 14 points and 11 rebounds for Missouri, which committed 23 turnovers in the loss to Louisville. They had 14 against VCU, including five by Pressey.

”It was a hard-fought game. Give a lot of credit to Missouri. They made some shots down the stretch,” VCU coach Shaka Smart said. ”Pressey has to be one of the best point guards in the country. I thought he distributed all night long.”

Negus Webster-Chan and Keion Bell had 12 points apiece for Missouri while Earnest Ross added 11.

”That’s the strength of our team: balance,” Bowers said. ”I don’t know how many guys had a good game. That was the key for us winning, having that overall balance was the key to winning.”

VCU lost to No. 5 Duke in the semifinals. The Rams had been 23-6 in games following losses under Smart.

Treveon Graham and Juvonte Reddic both had 12 points for the Rams while Rob Brandenberg added 11.

”I’m proud how we fought back both nights,” Brandenberg said. ”We played well enough to win, gut we got to take care of the little things. We’ll get better.”

— Associated Press —

Ryan Nassib threw a 17-yard touchdown pass to a wide-open Alec Lemon with 20 seconds to go, capping a 21-point fourth quarter as Syracuse spoiled Missouri’s home finale with a 31-27 victory on Saturday night.

Lemon had 12 receptions for 244 yards and two scores, including a 13-yard catch that tied it at 17 earlier in the fourth. After trailing 17-3 early, the Orangemen (6-5) followed up on a 45-26 upset of previously unbeaten Louisville a week earlier and became bowl eligible for the second time in three seasons.

Andrew Baggett’s 46-yard field goal with 1:52 to play had put Missouri, minus injured quarterback James Franklin, up by three.

Kendial Lawrence had 119 yards on 27 carries with a fourth-quarter touchdown for the Tigers (5-6), who need a victory at No. 9 Texas A&M next week to become bowl eligible for the eighth straight season. Backup quarterback Corbin Berkstresser led Missouri to 10 points in the fourth quarter after replacing Franklin, described as ”woozy” by the team’s radio broadcast after getting hit the previous drive.

Nassib was 26 for 40 for 385 yards and two touchdowns, setting a school career record for yards passing. He had entered the game only 6 yards shy of the mark of 8,466 yards set by Marvin Graves from 1990-93.

All three of Syracuse’s scoring drives in the fourth quarter, including an 8-yard run by Jerome Smith that tied it at 24 with 5:33 to go in the fourth quarter, lasted less than two minutes.

The Orangemen ended Missouri’s 18-game winning streak against non-conference opponents, the school’s best in the modern era.

Syracuse piled up 508 yards against a Missouri defense that faded without star tackle Sheldon Richardson, who did not dress after multiple reports during the week that he had been suspended for academic reasons. Richardson entered the game tied for the team lead in tackles.

Franklin threw touchdown passes on the first two drives and was 17 for 23 for a season-best 279 yards. He watched from far down the sideline as Berkstresser went 2 for 2 for 65 yards that produced Lawrence’s TD run for the lead.

Baggett’s 46-yard field goal tied his career best, capitalizing on an interception by Randy Ponder off a deflected pass.

Dorial Green-Beckham broke free for a 70-yard score on a screen pass on the fourth snap of the game and Jimmie Hunt scored on a 30-yard reception in the first quarter.

Syracuse cut the deficit to 17-10 near the end of the half on a 1-yard run by Prince-Tyson Gulley.

Green-Beckham was untouched on a screen pass on the fourth snap, a 70-yard jaunt. After Syracuse settled for a field goal when Lemon whiffed on a pass that went between his legs at the 5, Franklin hit Jimmie Hunt on a 30-yard touchdown on third-and-14 to make it 14-3.

Green-Beckham scored on his third consecutive reception and Hunt scored his fourth career touchdown on just nine receptions. Green-Beckham and Danario Alexander (2009) are the only players in school history with a pair of 70-yard TD catches in a season.

— Associated Press —

Alex Oriakhi showed off his offensive prowess on Friday night.

The 6-foot-9, 255-pound forward had 17 points and 10 rebounds in No. 14 Missouri’s 74-54 win over Nicholls State.

Oriakhi’s effort was his second double-double of the season, matching his total of last season at Connecticut.

”Usually, guys, they think they’re better than what they are, he’s one of those guys that’s the other way,” coach Frank Haith said.

Oriakhi did most of his damage at the free throw line after getting fouled several times during second-chance opportunities thanks to seven offensive rebounds, going 9 of 10. He also became the first Missouri player to pull down 10 or more rebounds in his first three games since Malcolm Thomas in 1983-84.

Oriakhi continued his struggles from the field, shooting 4 of 10. He says he’s rushing when he gets excited for close-range shots, but also thankful for Haith telling him he’ll continue to receive the ball.

”I think Coach Haith and this coaching staff are just doing a great job of giving me confidence,” Oriakhi said. ”The most important thing, he’s let me play through my mistakes. That’s something I wasn’t able to do last year.”

The Tigers (3-0) ended their tendency to start slowly – at least for one game – after senior forward Laurence Bowers promised to fix the team’s problems after Missouri shot 23 percent in the first half Tuesday night against Alcorn State.

Missouri used a 7-0 run within the first four minutes and wouldn’t relinquish the lead after that.

Despite the quicker start, Haith said his team wasn’t going ”to hit a home run in the first five minutes of the game” against Nicholls State (0-2).

”I thought we did come out with a better focus tonight in terms of our energy,” Haith said.

Fred Hunter scored 22 points and T.J. Carpenter added 14 for Nicholls State, which has dropped both its games this season to Southeastern Conference teams. The Colonels lost to Vanderbilt on Saturday in their opener.

The Colonels return four starters from last season’s 10-20 team, but Hunter didn’t play as he recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He scored 21 points and had 10 rebounds against Vanderbilt.

”I’m better than before the injury because I learned a lot sitting out,” Hunter said. ”You can always get better.”

Missouri jumped out to its largest lead of the game at 54-32 on Phil Pressey’s 3-pointer with 13:46 remaining. The Tigers used an 11-1 run over a 3 1/2-minute stretch near the end of the first half that made the score 25-14, but a 9-2 Colonels run followed to narrow the gap.

Missouri led 32-25 at the break.

”For us, I feel like we competed, we kept them on their toes, we made them nervous maybe for the first half,” Nicholls State coach J.P. Piper said.

Nicholls State took advantage of eight Missouri turnovers in the first half, scoring nine points off the miscues. But the Colonels turned it over 10 times in the second, and Missouri converted the mistakes into 17 points.

Earnest Ross added 16 points and Keion Bell added a season-high 13 for the Tigers, who travel to the Bahamas to face Stanford on Thanksgiving in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.

Haith said his team needs to focus on taking charges and blocking out, but was more optimistic than after Tuesday’s game when he said the team wouldn’t be as good as it would be in January.

”We’re really close to really getting to the level I think we need to be at,” Haith said. ”So I’m excited about where this team is headed.”

— Associated Press —