Texas Falls to No. 9 Missouri, 84-73
Jan. 14, 2012 COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP)--Phil Pressey had 18 points, including seven straight to get No. 9 Missouri out of trouble in the second half of an 84-73 victory over Texas on Saturday. Ricardo Ratliffe made his first eight shots and had 21 points and Marcus Denmon had 18 points and 11 rebounds for the Tigers (16-1, 3-1 Big 12). Ratliffe, who takes all his shots close to the basket, entered the game leading the nation in shooting at 76.8 percent. J'Covan Brown had 34 points, including the 1,000th of his career, for Texas (12-5, 2-2). Myck Kabongo had 12 points and 10 assists and Jonathan Holmeshad 10 points and seven rebounds for the Longhorns. Pressey had 10 assists, reaching double figures for the fourth time this season and the first in conference play. Missouri is 10-0 at home, all the victories by double digits. Down by 16 points in the first half, Texas shaved the deficit to five midway through the second half with an 11-3 run--Missouri's lone points coming on a three-point play by Pressey. Pressey ended the threat with a 3-pointer, two free throws and a steal and uncontested dunk in a span of 50 seconds to make it 69-57 with 8:31 to play. After Sheldon McClellanscored from the baseline for Texas, Pressey fed Steve Moore for an inside basket. Denmon was the only Missouri player who didn't score in double figures in the last game, a victory at Iowa State on Wednesday, with six points on 1-for-5 shooting. He had 14 points at halftime on Saturday. Missouri was 8 for 11 from 3-point range in the first half, four of the 3s from Denmon, while taking a 43-30 lead. The Tigers were strong inside, too, with Ratliffe hitting all five shots from point-blank range. Texas held its previous two opponents to 51 and 49 points, but Missouri blew past that total early in the second half. Missouri was just 2 for 10 on 3-pointers in the second half. Texas had foul trouble in the first half, with Clint Chapman limited to two points in 4 minutes and reserve Alexis Wangmenescoreless with four rebounds in 11 minutes. POSTGAME NOTES INDIVIDUAL J’Covan Brown Jonathan Holmes Myck Kabongo Texas Head Coach Rick Barnes On defending against the Tigers' offense: "We got into foul trouble because Missouri penetrated up front. They've got a nice basketball team. Phil Pressey was great, he orchestrated the whole thing. He had 10 assists and no turnovers. He makes the game really easy for his teammates. Points off turnovers were the difference in the game, since they had 20 points off our turnovers and we only had two off theirs." On the Longhorns' offensive woes: "Our problem lies on the offensive end. We don't do the things we need to do to reach our full potential. J'Covan Brown had a great game today, but we've got to have everybody. Our post players didn't play as well as we needed them to. " On his team's zone defense: "Missouri hadn't played against a zone much this year. They're going to make 3-point shots, and they play with a good rhythm. We forced the tempo that we wanted, but we needed to play with more discipline." On Phil Pressey and the Tigers' unselfishness: "His performance was as impressive as any I've seen this year. I think Missouri enjoys passing the ball. They have four seniors, and they're playing with a totally different style than they've had in previous years. They don't have any egos, and their goal is to help Missouri as a team." On Missouri Head Coach and former Texas assistant Frank Haith: "I love Coach Haith. Missouri did a great job to get him, and now they've got to do all they can to keep him. He's young, and he has a great future ahead of him. People have no idea about the job he did at Miami. He's always wanted a job like this, with a terrific arena and fans that care about the program, so I'm excited for him."
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