LEXINGTON, Ken. — It wasn’t quite as historic as last year’s loss to Alcorn State, but the Missouri Tigers, for the second year in a row, got bounced in their first game of the NCAA Tournament, losing 84-72 to Colorado State.
The Tigers never led in the contest, trailing by as many as 17 points in the second half. Colorado State had a nine-point lead at the half behind a 57 percent shooting effort. Ram senior guard Dorian Green had 17 points in the first half for Colorado State, hitting three of his five attempts from beyond the 3-point arc. Missouri forward Alex Oriahki kept the Tigers within striking distance with 10 points in the first 20 minutes. Missouri actually cut the lead to 6 points in the early stages of the second half, but the aggressive Rams, coached by Larry Eustachy, never faltered down the stretch, and kept Missouri at a safe distance.
Green led Colorado State with 26 points, a game high. Junior point guard Phil Pressey led Missouri with 20 points and seven assists. Missouri finished its season with a 23-11 record overall, finishing 11-7 in its first season as a member of the SEC.
Colorado State advances in the tournament to meet the Midwest number-one seed Louisville Cardinals on Saturday. The Rams are now 26-8.
