Instant Reaction to Mizzou Basketball's Loss to No. 21 Georgia

Initial thoughts on the Tigers' third SEC loss.

Jan 20, 2026; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers guard Mark Mitchell (25) and guard Sebastian Mack (12) and center Shawn Phillips Jr. (15) and guard Jayden Stone (17) stand on court against the Georgia Bulldogs during a technical foul decision during the first half of the game at Mizzou Arena. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

The Missouri Tigers dropped a brutal 74-72 loss to the No. 21 Georgia Bulldogs on Tuesday night, falling to 13-6 overall and 3-3 in conference play. This marked the second straight loss for the Tigers and another SEC battle that ended in ugly fashion.

Check out some instant thoughts from Missouri On SI basketball reporter Michael Stamps following the conclusion of Missouri's loss to the Bulldogs.

Missouri head coach Dennis Gates was nothing short of frustrated following the loss. The game was an up-and-down one, with various lead changes, runs and shifts in tempo throughout. A new level of physicality was brought in the second half, which was an aspect that favored Georgia.

The Bulldogs ended up shooting 21 free throws, making nearly 86% of them. Missouri only attempted 12, missing only one. That was a number that simply puzzled Gates while speaking to the media, along with the inability to rebound late in the game.

"I'm proud of what we did in the second half," Gates said following the loss. "Not proud of the rebounds, not proud of the constant fouling that I guess we're doing. It's hard to win a home game when you have 12 free throw attempts and your opponent has 21.

Despite those frustrations, Missouri had a chance to win the game in the final five seconds. After allowing an and-one layup to Marcus Millender, the Tigers trailed by two. That final play resulted in a missed deep three from Jacob Crews, failing to give the Tigers a win. He'd hit a three on their previous offensive possession to give them a lead.

"We went through the same scenario that we had when we went up. Obviously, that was the situation that took place," Gates said. "Our players knew what to do. We got a shot off. It was a tough shot, but it was something that we had ran before."

Leading the way in the scoring department for the Tigers was senior forward Mark Mitchell, finishing with 18 points on 7-for-15 shooting. He also added five rebounds and five assists to his stat line. Millender led the Bulldogs in scoring, also finishing with 18 points. He did that on 5-for-8 shooting, while recording four rebounds, as well.

The Tigers will have a chance to defend home court once again at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 24, against the Oklahoma Sooners.