'The Cards are Dealt the Way They Are': Dennis Gates Gives Thoughts on Loss to Ole Miss
At halftime of the Missouri Tigers basketball game against Ole Miss, it seemed like Saturday night might have been a different ending than the Tigers' previous 11 outings.
The Tigers held a 33-30 lead, their first time holding a lead after a first half since their overtime loss to South Carolina on Jan. 13. Missouri was even able to sustain a 15-to-2 scoring run in the middle minutes of the half.
Early on in the second half, it looked like the Tigers would continue to build on their momentum. Two 3-pointers by Nick Honor gave Missouri a 10-point lead with 12:32 remaining.
Then things headed south for Missouri due to self-inflicted wounds and heavy fouling. Missouri coach Dennis Gates highlighted Ole Miss' 30 free-throw opportunities as a key reason why Missouri ended up falling short, losing 79-76.
"That kind of negated our momentum," Gates said. "It's hard and difficult, especially the first eight points for the first four calls to get to the free throw line. But we know coming out of halftime what what was going to happen because they shot zero free throws in the first half. We just couldn't negate and not foul in those situations."
Though Ole Miss was able to keep up with Missouri in the first 30 minutes by way of the three-point shot, they turned to a more physical approach in the final 10 minutes.
"It was a physical game, Gates said. "I thought Ole Miss decided to stop shooting jump shots, duck their head and play physical and we were doing the same thing. Ducking our heads and playing physical. ... So at the end of the day, we knew what we needed to do and that's attack the paint."
Saturday's loss feels like a missed opportunity that slipped right out of Missouri's hands. The Tigers' offense played some of its best minutes that they've shown through the losing streak, which is now up to 12. The three-point loss against Ole Miss was the second closest one in conference play for Missouri, only behind the two-point overtime loss to South Carolina.
"I just thought with the momentum we had, our guys did a tremendous job following our game plan," Gates said. "And sometimes, the cards are dealt the way they are."
Missouri will continue the season this Tuesday when it hosts No. 8 Tennessee in Columbia at 6 p.m.
