Mountaineers Beat Missouri 74-51 In Big 12/SEC Challenge

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (AP) — Jermaine Haley had 15 points and nine rebounds, Miles McBride scored 15 points and No. 14 West Virginia broke open a close game with a huge run early in the second half to beat cold-shooting Missouri 74-51 in the Big 12/SEC Challenge on Saturday.

West Virginia's Bob Huggins earned his 876th win to tie Adolph Rupp for seventh place on the NCAA Division I coaching list.

Oscar Tshiebwe added 14 pounds and eight rebounds, Gabe Osabuohien grabbed 12 rebounds and Derek Culver had 11 rebounds for the Mountaineers (16-3).

Torrence Watson scored 19 points to lead Missouri (9-10).

With Missouri's Jeremiah Tillman missing his sixth straight game because of a stress fracture in his left foot, the Tigers had no answer for the Mountaineers' inside game and were outrebounded 50-30.

West Virginia used its rebounding dominance and several Missouri turnovers to pull away.

Haley scored six points during a 20-0 run that started just after halftime. McBride's 3-pointer capped the big rally for a 47-25 lead with 12:28 remaining.

Missouri missed 18 of its first 20 shots of the game to fall behind 20-6, but the Tigers' speed started causing problems for the bigger Mountaineers. Missouri got numerous baskets in its transition offense to close the half on a 17-4 run and trailed 24-23 at halftime.

BIG PICTURE

Missouri: Leading scorer Dru Smith had five turnovers and was held to two points, 10 under his scoring average. He missed both of his field-goal attempts.

West Virginia: The Mountaineers entered the game third in the nation in field-goal defense at 36.2% and held Missouri to 28% (15 of 53) shooting.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Mountaineers should move up in the AP Top 25 poll after two convincing wins, including a 97-59 victory over Texas on Monday.

UP NEXT

Missouri: Hosts Georgia on Tuesday.

West Virginia: Plays at No. 18 Texas Tech on Wednesday.

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