Live Blog for Mizzou's Pivotal Game Against Mississippi State

COLUMBIA, Mo. — After a 4-4 start to SEC play, Missouri has put itself in survival mode for the remainder of the season. The intensity of the season has picked up before February, with the Tigers having to walk a tight rope the west of the way through.

The path isn't going to get easier for Missouri either. In the first nines games of conference play, including one Saturday against Mississippi State, Missouri had three games against ranked opponents. In the final nine, the Tigers will have four games against teams currently inside the Top 25, including two against No. 15 Arkansas within a two-week span.

"There's a lot of highs and a lot of lows that come with SEC play for every team," forward Mark Mitchell said in a press conference Friday. "... the middle of the pack is so tight. So just stay even keeled, not getting too high, not getting too low, but just taking every game as it is and just continuing to get better."

With little room for error, Missouri's matchup against Mississippi State will serve as a key midpoint test for the Tigers. They'll quickly have to return to the form they found in the first two games of conference play, earning wins over both Florida and Kentucky.

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

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)