Live Blog for Mizzou's Pivotal Game Against Mississippi State

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Though Mississippi State added drama late, Missouri managed to escape with a victory over the Bulldogs, winning 84-79.

Trent Pierce nailed a 3 to give Missouri a comfortable, 55-41 lead with 16:28 still remaining. After paper cutting away at the Tigers lead, Josh Hubbard made a 3 and a free throw to make it a 3-point game with 2:22 remaining.

But Mississippi State had no choice but to foul after missing on its next two offensive possessions, allowing Missouri to earn four points off free throws to gain separation again.

Hubbard added more drama in the final minute by making another 3 to bring it within five with 37.3 remaining. Guards T.O. Barrett and Jayden Stone sealed the game though with four makes from the free-throw line.

The win puts Missouri back above .500 in conference play, sitting at 5-4. Missouri will still have a lot of work to do through the second half of conference play, but the win prevents the Tigers’ season from going on full life support just yet.

Entering the middle stretch of SEC games, head coach Dennis Gates set the goal for his team to go at least .500 in the middle third of conference play. Through the first three of those six games, Missouri has earned a thrilling last-second win over Oklahoma, taken a blowout loss to Alabama and now a controlling win over Mississippi State.

Jan 31, 2026; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers guard Jayden Stone (17) shoots as Mississippi State Bulldogs center Quincy Ballard (15) defends during the first half of the game at Mizzou Arena. | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

After a cold offensive day against Alabama, Missouri’s offense looked much better than it has for most of the last two weeks. After the first six minutes, Missouri held a 21-11 lead.

Through most of the game, the offense was fueled by Pierce, who had earned his first start of the season. In the first four minutes of the game, he had sunk two 3s and a fast-break layup. He ended the game shooting 5-for-8, including 3-for-6 on 3s. He also added three rebounds, a block and two steals.

Missouri’s offense remained steady early in the second half to create substantial separation, with the Tigers outscoring the Bulldogs 13-6 in the first 3:32 of the half.

One of the most impressive plays of the game for Missouri came midway through the second-half, with guard Annor Boateng slamming down a put-back dunk to extend the Tigers’ lead to 15 with 11:03 remaining.

On the next possession, Boateng was racing through an open lane to the basket, but slipped and fell right on his back. After lying on the court for several minutes, he was carried off on a stretcher. He was applauding and waving to fans as he was wheeled off the court.

Following Boateng’s exit though, Mississippi State outscored Missouri 19-8 for the next nine minutes, quickly cutting the 15-point lead to three. But Missouri ended the game by making 10 of its last 12 free throw attempts to hold on.

Missouri will have the week off before traveling to play at South Carolina at noon on Feb. 7.

Follow this blog for live updates and analysis from Mizzou Arena. Newest updates will be posted at the top.

Second Half

1:27 - Missouri 78, Mississippi State 71

After two empty offensive posesions, Missouri makes all four of its free throw attempts to gain some separation again.

1:54 - Missouri 74, Mississippi State 71

Josh Hubbard makes a 3 and a free throw that came with it and all of a sudden this is a 3-point game. Missouri's 11-point lead has been chopped away in the last six minutes.

3:45 - Missouri 72, Mississippi State 65

Missouri calls timeout as Mississippi State is slowly cutting away at this lead by being patient with the offense.

10:46 - Missouri 66, Mississippi State 51

Missouri guard Annor Boateng is now leaving the court on a stretcher. He slipped and fell as he was racing to the basket. On the posession before, he made an impressive put-back dunk. The EMS crew brought out the stretcher after he was lying on the court for several minutes.

Annor Boateng shows some love to Mizzou fans as he’s being carried out on a stretcher. pic.twitter.com/J0K3N8gCgj
— Joey Van Zummeren (@JoeyVZ_) January 31, 2026

17:05 - Missouri 52, Mississippi State 41

After focusing on the perimeter to begin the game, the Tigers have been efficient from inside to start the second half, with center Shawn Phillips Jr. making two straight dunks and Mark Mitchell making all four of his free throw attempts. Mississippi State calls a timeout to regroup.

First Half Stats

Stats from the first half of Missouri's game against Mississippi State. — StatMonitr

HALF: Missouri 42, Mississippi State 35

After going hot offensively in the middle of the half, Mississippi State finished it by making just 2 of its last 11 shot attempts of the half.

3:52 - Missouri 37, Mississippi State

T.O. Barrett returning to the court stabilized this Missouri offense quite a bit. He's currently playing at +11. Free throws continue to be an issue for the Tigers though, shooting 3-for-6 from the line in the last seven minutes.

9:25 - Missouri 25, Mississippi State 23

Missouri calls timeout after the Bulldogs have cut the Tigers' lead to the shortest its been in the last eight minutes. Mississippi State has gone on a 9-1 scoring run in the last two minutes.

11:34 - Missouri 24, Mississippi State

Right before the U12 timeout, center Shawn Phillips Jr. got into a bit of an altercation with a few Bulldogs players that the coaching staff had to break up. Phillips was coming over to defend Anthony Robinson II, who was in a heated talk with a player. Phillips is not afraid to talk and bring some grit to the court.

Missouri has remained hot from 3 with a diverse offensive 'effort, with Mark Mitchell, T.O. Barrett and Jacob Crews all making 3s for the Tigers' last three buckets.

17:07 - Missouri 8, Mississippi State 4

After being inserted into the starting lineup for the first time this season, Trent Pierce has made an instant impact, making two 3s to aid in the Tigers avoiding the slow offensive starts that it has been prone too. Tigers also doing an impressive job in transition and forcing turnovers.

Pre Game

Starting Lineups

Missouri	Mississippi State
T.O. Barrett	Ja'Borri McGhee
Jayden Stone	Shawn Jones Jr.
Trent Pierce	Josh Hubbard
Mark Mitchell	Achor Achor
Shawn Phillips Jr.	Quincy Ballord

• Trent Pierce replaces Jacob Crews in the starting lineup.

Availability Reports

Missouri
F Jevon Porter - OUT

Mississippi State
All players available.

SEC Standings: Jan. 31

Team	Record
Texas A&M	16-4, 6-1
Arkansas	16-5, 6-2
Florida	15-6, 6-2
Vanderbilt	18-3, 5-3
Auburn	14-7, 5-3
Kentucky	14-7, 5-3
Alabama	14-6, 4-3
Tennessee	14-6, 4-3
Georgia	16-5, 4-4
Missouri	14-7, 4-4
Ole Miss	11-9, 3-4
Texas	12-9, 3-5
Mississsippi State	11-10, 3-5
South Carolina	11-10, 2-6
LSU	13-8, 1-7
Oklahoma	11-10, 1-7

How to Watch

Who: Missouri (14-7, 4-4 SEC) vs. Mississippi State (11-10, 3-5 SEC)

When: Saturday, Jan. 31, 2:30 p.m.

Where: Mizzou Arena

TV: SEC Network

Radio: Tiger Radio Network (: Mike Kelly, Color: Chris Gervino)

SiriusXM: Missouri - 374, Mississippi State - 385

Series: Mississippi State leads 14-8.

Last Time Out, Missouri: The Tigers fell 90-64 on the road to No. 23 Alabama. Missouri shot just 35% on free throws and 19% on 3-point shots.

Last Time Out, Mississippi State: The Bulldogs ended a five-game losing streak, grabbing a 80-66 win over LSU. Mississippi State jumped to a 30-10 lead in the opening 10 minutes of the game.

Last Meeting: March 13, 2025 - Missouri ended Mississippi State's run in the SEC Tournament in Round 2 with a 85-73 win. Tamar Bates led the Tigers with 35 points.

Missouri Stat Leaders

Points: Mark Mitchell (17.4 on 54.8 FG%)
Rebounds: Mark Mitchell (5.5)
Assists: Anthony Robinson II (3.4 with 1.9 turnovers)

Mississippi State Stat Leaders

Points: Josh Hubbard (20.7 on 40.2 FG%)
Rebounds: Quincy Ballard 6..8)
Assists: Josh Hubbard (3.6 with 2.2 turnovers)