Missouri basketball stunned defending champion Florida

Missouri basketball opened SEC play with a stunning victory over the state champion eventually Florida.

Missouri basketball upset defending national champion Florida in the SEC opener

Mark Mitchell, on the back of a coaching challenge from Dennis Gates, who took the ball out of Florida's hands and put it back with the Tigers on the end line, received the crafty inside ball under the basket, made some contact and placed the ball with a deft left touch, turning a one-goal game into a drive and a six-point lead.

There was no elegance in the celebration.He yelled into the Mizzou Arena rafters and the room turned.

Do you believe in "Tigers"?— there is life again.Come on down, defending champions.

Missouri basketball blew out SEC play with a 76-74 victory over No. 22 and defending national champion Florida on Saturday night at Mizzou Arena.

The Tigers blew a 10-point lead in the second half and had to rally late to get the win, but five key points from Trent Pierce in his first game of the season and a late 3-pointer from Anthony Robinson II meant MU beat Florida in the regular season.

Florida had a chance to win the game with a Boogie Fland.

Mizzou's season (11-3, 1-0 SEC) suddenly sounded different after running away from the conference, which is not often inspired.

Robinson looked like an All-SEC-caliber point guard, finishing with 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists in his best night as a Tiger.Mitchell, who finished with 14 points, excelled when Mizzou needed to.Pierce (10 points) and Jaden Stone (9 points) bounced back from injuries to shine in big moments.

Missouri had better ball movement and their offense was more versatile.

Mizzou played its most aggressive defense of the season, and the Gaels looked to be outstretched in the second half.

But more than anything, two Tiger players have completely changed the look of Mizzou on both ends of the floor.

The Tigers forced the Gators (9-5, 0-1) to take most of their shots from behind the arc, and while most three-point attempts went uncontested, it was a successful strategy.The Gators went 6-of-22 from behind the arc, or 27.3 percent, to build a Mizzou lead.

Missouri, meanwhile, went toe-to-toe with the Gators.The additions to the perimeter floor, with Stone and Pierce sidelined by injuries, spread out Florida's defense and gave Mizzou more lanes to get inside.

Missouri led for more than 17 minutes in the first half, but the Gators did not go ahead by more than eight points as a Tigers offense appeared in the SEC opener that looked very different from the one in the 43-point loss to Illinois in 2025.

Stone, back in the lineup for the first time in seven games after suffering a broken hand, scored all of MU's first eight points and gave Mizzou a 3-point shooting option it desperately needed.

That opened up driving lanes in the paint, where the Tigers were able to get even against Florida's big frontcourt.Jacob Cruz, traditionally a deep ball threat, celebrated at the line.Mitchell and Robinson consistently drove to the rim as Mizzou put up strong numbers in the paint.

Perhaps the biggest spark came from an unexpected source: 7-foot-5 freshman Trent Burns hit a huge 3-pointer at the buzzer in the first half to tie the game at 39, and Mizzou ran down the tunnel to a standing ovation — a rarity in this lackluster season so far — from the Mizzou Arena crowd.

Maybe this is the night when the sleep of the tigers turns.

The Tigers travel to Kentucky on Wednesday for Game 2 of SEC play.

Mizzou is finally headed there, with a marquee win on its resume and quite a bit of momentum.

Conto live basket Missouri vs Florida

Mola U4: Missouri 64, Florida 62

UF still has a 6-0 spurt under its belt and it's a one-score game.Looks like we're going down to the wire.

The Tigers need another burst here.They managed only 2 of the previous 11 shots.However, the lead lies with the home team and a huge 4:18 away loss.

Can you close it?

The scoring drought allows the Gators to close the gap

Mizzou went 4:06 without scoring, missing each of its final six shots from the field and cutting Florida's deficit from 10 to four.The Tigers need time here.

Robinson is back in the game, which is great.He had 14 points, five rebounds and four assists with 9:04 left in what might have been his best night with the Tigers.

Mizzou opened up a 10 point lead

Trent Pierce 3. Ten point lead Mizzou.Florida timeout.

The voice is up here for them, 12:39 this will go.

Anthony Robinson sits on the bench

After stealing and breaking, Anthony Robinson seems to have landed on his right foot.From the floor to the chair.He is currently undergoing treatment.

The Tigers led by six points in the second half

Anthony Robinson, Mark Mitchell and Jacob Cruz scored as Florida failed to make a save this time, and the Tigers jumped out to a six-point lead in the fourth minute of the second half.

Halftime: The tie ball game by Trent Burns

Trent Burns hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to tie the game at halftime.It will really set people off.wow39 at the break.

U4 Halftime: Florida 35, Missouri 31

With 3:51 to play in the first half, it's a four -point game.Mizzou has been successful from the field, winning six of his last eight from the floor.The tigers increasingly find ways to reach the edge and have shown a lot of ability with the movement of their ball.

I can't think of one of Florida's last 3-point attempts -- and there were 12 of them -- that I would classify as competitive.The Tigers don't do a good job of blocking the Gators' shots, and you get the feeling that it could bite soon.

U8's timeout: Florida 31, Missouri 26

Florida fret in pull, but Mizzou has got to load the rim in the past few minutes before three-digit number.The picture of the pictures are not a little thing against this florida income.

Mizzou's ball movement is better.The Tigers had six assists on nine field goals.I like Mizzou's shots, but they need to be a little more consistent on defense to get UF.The Gators got 3 open looks.

Some... interesting lines

For one possession, Mizzou ran with Robinson, Stone, Cruz, Pierce and Northweather.am for perhaps the first time this season that the program has five players capable of shooting 3s.The Tigers opened up Pearce in the corner, but his rebound was knocked over.

After a tie ... Shawn Phillips, Sebastian Mack and T.O.Barrett check. It was not the best offensive trio in history, and Florida quickly extended its lead to 19-11 as MU led 2:23 without a point.

Jayden Stone got off to a quick start on the comeback

An incredible return of action from Jayden Stone, who scored eight points in Mizzou's opener to keep the Tigers within striking distance of Florida.

The Tigers had a lot of soft defense as the Gators got at least three wide open looks from 3-point range.

Trent Pierce came off the bench and had a solid defensive game to get the shutout in his first game of the season.

Alligators 13, Mizzou 8

Starting lineup for Missouri vs. Florida basketball

Jaden Stone, who is returning from a broken arm, is in the starting five for Missouri.Anthony Robinson II, Jacob Kruse, Mark Mitchell and Shawn Phillips Jr. are on the field with Stone to start.

Trent Pierce is not available as a starter but is expected to make his season debut today.

Florida rolls with Boogie Fland, Xaivian Lee, Thomas Haugh, Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu.

Missouri Basketball Odds: Florida is a Favorite

Nothing surprising here, but Florida is a 7.5 favorite in Vegas with over 30 minutes to go.

The reigning national champions have four losses this year, but three of them came against top-10 teams in Arizona, Duke and UConn.Another loss was to TCU.

We'll see if Mizzou's return of two key players changes the perception of the team, but the Tigers have been largely out of contention with top teams this season.

Yes, Trent Pierce and Jaden Stone are warming up

Good news, Mizzou fans.Trent Pierce and Jaden Stone were outside Mizzou Arena warming up for tonight's game against Florida.We expected both to be available.We'll go ahead and say it's happening now.

Here's a video of Trent Pierce drilling the corner 3 to cheer you up too:

When does the Missouri vs.Florida?

- Day: Saturday, January 3

- Tempus: 7:30 a.m.Ct

- Location: Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo.

On which TV channel is the Missouri vs. Florida basketball game being played?

TV Channel: SEC Network

The Florida vs. Missouri game will be broadcast live on the SEC Network.Tom Hart will be the play-by-play announcer and Dane Bradshaw will be the on-air analyst.

The game is available for fuo, offering a free trial in customers in the customers.

Stream Missouri vs Florida with FUBOHow to listen to Saturday's game

Satellite Radio: XM: 374;SXM App: 374

The Tiger Radio Network will broadcast the game live with 'Voice of the Tigers' Mike Kelly as play-by-play announcer and Chris Gervino as analyst on satellite channel 374. Fans can also tune in via the Sirius XM app on channel 374.

Missouri Damage Updates and Availability

On Friday, the day before Mizzou opens SEC play with a home matchup against reigning national champion Florida, Tigers head coach Dennis Gates said he expects combo forward Trent Pierce and shooting guard Jayden Stone to return from injuries and “play minutes” against the Gators.

"It's great to see these guys getting reps out there," Gates said."We're a very different team with those guys in the lineup, in the rotation, with their skills, their IQ, and their relationships."

The head coach also said he expects Jevon Porter to miss his second straight game.

Complete Missouri basketball schedule for the 2025-26 season

Home games are listed in bold.

Neutral-site games are listed with an asterisk (*).

All times listed are CDT

Nov. 7 | Missouri 89, SEMO 84 | Missouri Stadium | SECN+ |

||November 12 | Missouri 83, Minnesota 60 | Mizzou Arena | SECN + |

17 notes from |Missuri 91, PVAMU 73 |Mizzo Arena |SECN+ |

|wl 20 |Massuri 102, Cursed South 68 |Musazon Arena |SCN |

||November 25 |Missouri 98, South Carolina 66 |Mizzou Arena |SECN+ |

| 28. NovemberMissouri 86, Cleveland Province 59 |Arena Mizzou |Secn+ |

ARE ARE THEepys.7 | 4. 80, Kistan, Burya 60 |

|February 21 (3/3:30 p.m.) |Arkansas |Fayetteville, Arkansas ESPN/2 |

|3 Mars (6 pastte) |I'll Be There For You |

|17.March - April 6 |NCAA Tournament* |TBD |TBD |

Missouri Football Team Information

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