COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Mustapha Heron scored 16 points, including 12 in the second half, as Auburn defeated Missouri 77-72 Tuesday, marking its first Southeastern Conference victory of the season.

Auburn (11-5, 1-3 SEC) had five players in double figures. Bryce Brown scored 9 of his 13 points in the first half and finished 4-for-8 from 3-point range, and Ronnie Johnson had 13 points and four assists. Jared Harper and Horace Spencer added 10 points apiece and combined for nine rebounds.

Missouri forward Jordan Barnett led all scorers with 20 points to go with six rebounds. Terrence Phillips had 12 points, six rebounds and six assists, and Jordan Geist added 10 points.

Both teams’ desperation for an SEC victory dictated the pace of the game, which saw 14 lead changes.

Missouri (5-10, 0-3) made just 2 of 18 field goal attempts to start the game, but never trailed by more than two possessions thanks to its rebounding and free-throw shooting. Missouri outrebounded Auburn 28-20 in the first half and made 7 of 9 free-throw attempts as Auburn committed 13 personal fouls.

Missouri took its first lead following a 10-0 run that lasted 4:03, during which Auburn committed four turnovers and eight fouls, including three offensive fouls.

Kim Anderson called a timeout with just over two minutes remaining in the first half, and Missouri responded with a 9-3 run to take a 35-34 halftime lead.

The second half continued in a physical, back-and-forth fashion, and both teams entered the double-bonus with over eight minutes remaining, and it came down to free-throw shooting. While Auburn shot just 54.5 percent from the free-throw line, the Tigers made 6 of 6 from the line in the final minute. Missouri was 23-for-33 from the free-throw line (69.7 percent) and 22-for-68 from the field (32.4 percent.)

BIG PICTURE

Auburn: After double-digit losses to Georgia and Vanderbilt, Auburn lost a heart-breaker at home to Ole Miss January 7, dropping to 0-3 in conference play. This marks Auburn’s first SEC victory of the season, and its first win over Missouri since Jan. 10, 2015.

Missouri: This marks the third consecutive game Missouri has lost when leading at halftime and the fourth time this season. Missouri led LSU 40-35 at halftime before falling 88-77, and was up 26-20 on Georgia, eventually losing 71-66.

UP NEXT

Auburn: Visits No. 6 Kentucky Saturday. Auburn won the last meeting 75-70 on Jan. 16, 2016 against then 14th-ranked Kentucky, snapping an 18-game losing streak against the Wildcats.

Missouri: Visits Arkansas Saturday. Missouri has lost four straight to the Razorbacks, most recently 84-72 in Fayetteville on Feb. 20, 2016.

— Associated Press —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Baseball standout RHP Tanner Houck (Collinsville, Ill.) was named a Preseason First Team All-American by PerfectGame.com, announced Monday (Jan. 9). Houck was one of five starting pitchers selected to the first team with three of the five SP honorees coming from the Southeastern Conference. The PerfectGame.com first team selection for Houck comes on the heels of a third-team preseason All-America honor from Collegiate Baseball News last month. Houck was also named the No. 8 MLB Draft prospect by Baseball America earlier this month.

Houck is coming off of a stellar sophomore season during which he posted a 2.99 ERA in 105.1 innings pitched, allowing just 82 hits while striking out a career-best 106 against only 27 walks. He went 5-6 in 15 starts and was twice named SEC Pitcher of the Week while garnering Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week honors following his start against Vanderbilt. He limited batters to just .209 hitting in 2016.

Houck, who owns a 13-11 career record and 3.23 career ERA, will anchor Mizzou’s pitching staff for first-year head coach Steve Bieser. In two years, Houck has limited batters to .220 hitting and owns a strikeout-walk ratio of 5.1 (197-39). He has thrown more than 100 innings in each of his first two seasons as a Tiger and is expected to be one of the first 10 players selected in next year’s Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Missouri Department of Athletics is pleased to announce that Howard Richards, former football standout and current radio analyst for the Tiger Network, has joined the AD staff on a full-time basis.  Richards, a St. Louis, Mo. native and 1988 graduate of Mizzou, will serve as Assistant Athletic Director for Community Relations.  The St. Louis, Mo. native currently lives in his hometown and he will continue to reside there as his outreach focus will be in the Gateway City.

“We are very excited to have Howard on board to assist us in our efforts in St. Louis,” said Director of Athletics Jim Sterk.  “In my short time here, I’ve enjoyed getting to know Howard.  There’s no question that he loves Mizzou and I know he will work very hard to represent us well in his hometown and that he will help us make inroads there.  He’s got an infectious personality, great people skills, and a very well-rounded background, and I know those will be great assets for this role,” Sterk said.

“I’d like to thank Director of Athletics Jim Sterk for this opportunity to work on his team to help Mizzou Athletics build its reputation to position ourselves among the elite athletic departments in the country,” said Richards.

“I represent decades of past Mizzou student-athletes, but I am especially proud to represent my former Mizzou football teammates, coaches, trainers and other athletic department personnel that I’ve known since 1977.  I have heard their voices loudly and clearly and I want give my best efforts on their behalf to help build a better future for their school,” he said.

“I love Mizzou and my love for this institution is what will propel me to work extremely hard to affect positive change and to elevate the Mizzou brand, in order to encourage prospective student-athletes, especially those who live in Missouri, to make Mizzou their first choice.  I’m looking forward to getting to know the St. Louis community even better, from an individual and corporate standpoint – to solicit their opinions in order to assist our staff, and to increase the department’s visibility.  This is a very important time to lead Mizzou into the future, and I’m so grateful to have the opportunity to be part of that leadership team,” he said.

Richards, a standout offensive lineman at Mizzou (1977-80), was a first-round pick of the Dallas Cowboys in the 1981 NFL Draft.  He played in the NFL for seven years (six with Dallas, one with Seattle), helping the Cowboys win three NFC East Division Championships (1981, 1983, 1985).

After his playing days ended, Richards went on to a 13-year distinguished career as a special agent with the Central Intelligence Agency (1990-2003), before moving into the private real estate industry for nine years.  In 2011, the communications major realized a lifelong dream and got the gig as color analyst for Mizzou Football games on the Tiger Radio Network, where he has called games alongside partners Mike Kelly and Chris Gervino for the past six seasons.  From 2011-15, his day job was as director of public safety at Harris-Stowe State University in St. Louis, before he took over as the Mizzou College of Arts and Science senior manager for external relations in St. Louis in May of 2015.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, MO. – Mizzou Women’s Basketball (11-6, 1-2) suffered its first home loss of the season in heartbreaking fashion as Alabama (14-2, 2-1) defeated the Tigers, 59-58, Sunday at Mizzou Arena. Mizzou surged in front by two with 2.5 seconds remaining but the Crimson Tide hit its fourth three-pointer in 25 attempts with less than a second left to snatch the win.

Sophomore guard Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo.) delivered another brilliant performance for Mizzou, pouring in a season-high 24 points on 10-of-16 (62.5 percent) shooting. Cunningham scored all eight of Mizzou’s second quarter points. The sophomore also recorded six rebounds and three assists in the loss.

Sophomore forward Cierra Porter (Columbia, Mo.) continued her steady strong play in the post. Porter secured her eighth double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds in 33 minutes of tough work. She also tied her career-high with five blocked shots to help Mizzou set a new season high for blocked shots as a team with eight swats.

Mizzou was solid from the foul line, shooting a collective 83.3 percent (10-of-12) from the charity stripe. It marks the seventh time this season that Mizzou has shot over 80 percent from the free throw line in a game.

Mizzou opened the game strong on both ends, building an 11-2 lead in the first 5:32 of play. The Tiger defense was key in the first quarter as Mizzou scored nine of its 13 first quarter points off of Alabama turnovers.

Cunningham was dominant in the first half, finishing the first 20 minutes with 15 points on 6-of-10 (60 percent) shooting. Despite Cunningham’s efforts, Alabama erased an early deficit and battled back to tie the game as the two squads entered halftime with the score knotted at 21-21.

The second half started out just like the first, with Mizzou jumping out to an early lead and Alabama responding to keep the game close. After Mizzou scored the first seven points of the half to go up 28-21, the Crimson Tide put together a 12-0 run seize a 33-28 lead. Both teams traded shots to end the quarter as Mizzou headed to the final frame trailing, 39-35.

The seesaw game continued as it remained tight over the last 10 minutes of action. With the score tied at 54-54, senior guard Sierra Michaelis (Mercer, Mo.) beat the shotclock with a three-pointer from long range to put the Tigers up by three with only 1:03 left in the game.

After Alabama scored, Porter was fouled and made 1-of-2 at the line to give Mizzou a 58-56 edge with three seconds remaining. In the final seconds, Alabama’s Quanetria Bolton hit her third three-pointer of the game to hand the Crimson Tide a 59-58 victory.

Mizzou continues its SEC slate with a road contest at LSU on Thursday, Jan. 12. Tip off is set for 7 p.m.

— Mizzou Athletics —