With the help of a free-throw lane violation, Missouri survived its SEC men’s basketball tournament opener against Georgia with a 73-70 victory Thursday night.
Georgia’s Justin Kier stepped into the lane with teammate Toumani Camera on the free-throw line. That took one free-throw attempt away from Camera. At the time, 19.8 seconds remained and Missouri led 69-67.
Camera missed the second. But Missouri wasn’t in the clear. After Dru Smith made two free throws to restore a four-point lead, Kier buried a 3-pointer to cut the margin to one.
Xavier Pinson then hit two free throws with 6.5 seconds remaining. The Bulldogs had a final opportunity but P.J. Horne was wide on a 3-point attempt.
Missouri, seeded seventh, will meet second-seeded Arkansas in the SEC tournament quarterfinals at 6 p.m. Friday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.
Free throws were big for the Tigers down the stretch. Pinson drew a foul while shooting a 3-pointer with 1:56 remaining. The 83% shooter made all three to increase Mizzou’s lead to 69-65.
But Georgia point guard Sahvir Wheeler, the SEC’s leader in assists, kept the Bulldogs close with his playmaking. Wheeler had 14 points and 13 assists.
“We like to make it interesting for the fans,” Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin joked after the game.
Kobe Brown played a big role for Missouri in the second half and Georgia brings out the best in the sophomore forward.
Brown’s 12 second-half points helped Mizzou open a double-digit lead. He finished with 16 points and his 3-pointers on successive possessions were the buckets that helped shift the game to the Tigers.
In the Tigers’ regular-season loss to Georgia, Brown scored a career-best 21 points. He was the focus of the offense when Jeremiah Tilmon was out because of his grandmother’s death.
Dru Smith also picked up his game in the second half with 12 of his 16 points after the break.
Pinson kept Missouri close in the first half and a very good moment just before halftime. Georgia led by four and had the ball, but Pinson came up with a steal, got the ball back on a break from Brown and knew the first half clock was about to expire.
Setting his feet, Pinson took just enough time to swish a 3-pointer as the buzzer sounded and the Mizzou halftime deficit was 33-23. Pinson had 12 points the break and was Missouri’s biggest contributor of the first half.
