ST. LOUIS — This time a year ago, the Braggin’ Rights game helped the Tigers figure out who they were. But in the 2023 edition of the rivalry series, Mizzou looked more lost than ever this season.

Illinois senior forward Coleman Hawkins said he was miserable during Christmas last year after Missouri defeated his team, 97-73. He wanted to make sure he didn’t feel that way heading into the holiday break this time around. Fifth-year senior guard Terrence Shannon Jr. said the No. 13 Illini came into Friday’s game against the Tigers inside the Enterprise Center with some “extra juice” because of how last year played out.

Hawkins, Shannon and graduate senior forward Quincy Guerrier combined for 73 points in Friday's contest. Mizzou’s entire roster merely matched it, suffering a 97-73 loss, the team’s third in a row.

“That team is a non-traditional basketball team,” MU head coach Dennis Gates said. “And they've done a great job of playing and filling in the gaps as they've navigated ways to put their size on the court. Terrence Shannon is a potential First Team All-American in addition to Naismith Player of the Year candidate. And when you have those type of stats to back it up, you know you have a good team. And I'm not taking anything away from them at all. But we're not going to ever win a game shooting five free throws in the first half and then shooting 1-17 from 3.”

Illinois (9-2) doesn’t utilize a pure point guard in its rotation, instead allowing ball-handling and playmaking duties to be spread out among the players on the floor. Gates tried taking advantage of it by pressing on defense. But Illini head coach Brad Underwood said he was "begging" for the press, citing that his team has an offensive efficiency rating (OER) of 1.7 when opponents press — Underwood said any OER over 1.0 is good.

The orange and blue got into a rhythm quickly, connecting on 7-19 from outside and going 12-18 at the free throw line during the first half. Missouri, meanwhile, could barely get anything to fall. The team made just three shots outside of the paint during the period and took just five free throws, making three. By halftime, Hawkins thought the game had already been decided as Illinois towered over the Tigers, 49-24.

“The game plan was to come out and, you know, try to get the ball out of Terrence Shannon's hands,” graduate senior guard Sean East II said. “And he made the right plays. So you know, hats off to him. He made the extra plays and they knocked down shots. But I mean, we gotta limit our transition points. They got a lot of transition points. So we gotta get back on defense. That's where we can improve at.”

Mizzou’s shots began to fall more frequently in the second half. East was more aggressive in creating looks for himself, scoring 15 points in the period after only getting three in the first, finishing with a team-high 18.

But there still wasn’t any stopping the Illini’s offense. The team saw its shooting percentages dip a bit, but was able to get more involved on the offensive glass, ending the evening with 17 second-chance points. After hanging 49 points on Mizzou in the first half, Illinois poured on another 48 in the second to come away with the 97-73 victory.

Gates said the Tigers would’ve had to play a near-perfect game to beat a team like Illinois. He was encouraged by the small victories Mizzou had, edging the Illini out in points off turnovers and bench points and tying them with 40 points in the paint. He’s hopeful that, as the black and gold go into the holiday break, they’ll be able to reflect on their season so far and grow from the mistakes that have held them back in the last few games.

“I think we're trending in the right direction,” Gates said. “It's probably things that is not seen with the naked eye, from the outside looking in. But from an internal perspective, I see the pieces, I see the growth, I see guys trending in the right direction … They haven't gotten deflated after any loss at all this season. And I'm not going to ridicule or talk down to them or do anything but what I've always done and that's encourage our guys to play with confidence and regroup during this break.”

Freshman forward Trent Pierce played a big part in a couple of rallies for Missouri so far this season, helping the team complete a 20-point comeback in a win over Minnesota and cutting a 19-point deficit down to six in the team’s loss to Seton Hall last weekend. Pierce finished the game against the Pirates with eight points, a rebound, a block and a steal. Gates decided it was time for the rookie to step into a bigger role, inserting him into the starting lineup on Friday.

“Trent earned that spot. Congratulations to him,” Gates said. “I thought he had a solid performance. Definitely looking forward to the growth that he'll have for the remainder of the season.”

Pierce ended up being one of the MU’s few bright spots on the night. The Tulsa, Okla. native missed his first two 3-pointers, but still finished 5-9 from the field, 1-4 from the 3-point line and 1-2 on free throws for a season-high 12 points. The 6-foot-9 forward made his presence felt at the other end, too, pulling down four rebounds and picking up two steals and a block.

“I think I played really well going out there in my first game starting,” Pierce said. “I think going into the game, I was just looking to play physical, play hard. And I mean, I thought I went out there and did that once I got me some rebounds, four rebounds. And then I think the offense just came for me.”

The Tigers (7-5) close out the calendar year by returning to Mizzou Arena for the first time since November, hosting Central Arkansas (3-10) on Saturday, Dec. 30, at 2 p.m., the game airing on SEC Network.

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