FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — With just a few seconds left in the game, Noah Carter decided to go up for a meaningless layup.

Mizzou’s game against Arkansas on Saturday inside Bud Walton Arena had already been decided, the Razorbacks holding an 88-73 lead over the Tigers. Carter’s shot seemed to be in retaliation, as Arkansas freshman guard Layden Blocker had attempted to show up the visitors and get his team to 90 points by going up for a breakaway dunk rather than dribbling the clock out.

Blocker mistimed his jump and tried to transition into a layup instead but missed. MU freshman guard Anthony Robinson II secured the rebound and pitched it ahead to graduate senior guard Sean East II, who sent it forward to Carter near the rim.

Just like Blocker, the graduate forward missed his layup from point-blank range. The hosts came up with the defensive rebound just before the final buzzer sounded, sealing the 15-point victory.

The play was the punctuation mark on a long, rough day for Missouri’s offense. The Tigers shot just 39.2% from the field, including 5-19 from beyond the arc.

“We saw the ball go in, especially in the paint, in the 2-point field goal area,” head coach Dennis Gates said. “I thought we got away from, you know, making those shots once we got it. We did get the field goal attempts, the shots on goal, but we wasn't able to execute in that paint how we did in the (first) half. And that part hurt us from scoring on different possessions.”

The opening minutes of Saturday’s matchup were similar to those of Mizzou’s game against Tennessee on Tuesday, with neither team able to score on each other early on. Both teams missed their first four field goal attempts and committed one turnover through the first four minutes of the game. The visitors got on the board only when Arkansas fifth-year senior forward Makhi Mitchell committed a flagrant foul, allowing Carter to knock down a pair of free throws.

Both sides’ offenses did eventually open up. The black and gold briefly held a 20-15 edge over the Razorbacks (14-13, 5-9 SEC) midway through the first period. Missouri got a bit of a lift from graduate senior guard Nick Honor, who splashed a trio of 3-pointers to help the team earn the lead.

The Tigers’ went cold to end the half, though. Arkansas turned the tables to take a seven-point lead, sparked by 16 points from graduate senior guard Khalif Battle, then went into halftime up 36-34.

“He made some tough shots from behind the arc, some stepbacks and obviously some deep 3s,” Gates said. “He's a good player and you know that was their chance of winning that game, off a hot hand.”

The black and gold’s defense continued to wane as Battle exploded for another 26 points, finishing the game with 42. The Tigers dealt with some foul trouble, as every player who entered the contest was called for at least one.

Mizzou also kept struggling to find offensive contributors in the second half. Carter, East, Honor and junior guard Tamar Bates accounted for all of the team’s points in the first half. The team didn’t pick up its first bench points until graduate senior center Connor Vanover flushed a putback dunk at the 11:04 mark that tied the game at 50-50. Arkansas’ bench ended the afternoon outscoring the Tigers’, 22-7. Carter and Bates combined to shoot 5-20 from the field. Honor lost his rhythm too, going just 1-4 from deep in the second.

After Vanover’s dunk, the hosts went on a 15-4 run to give themselves a double-digit lead. Missouri never cut it back within eight.

“From our team, we got depth from our four and five spot, right?” Gates said. “We don't have depth in our guard spots. So when it comes down to the game, we have to look at it from that lens. We're missing those 6-(foot)-5 wings that are out. And that would give us a different look, offensively and defensively, in everything that we do.”

The loss marks Mizzou’s 14th in a row, resulting in a new program record. Gates said he’s keeping his eyes on the remainder of the season.

“I focus on one day at a time, one game at a time,” Gates said. “I've never (counted games) in a winning streak. And definitely don't count anything outside of that. I thought our guys mentally prepared in the right way. Our spirits are high, our coaching staff is doing a great job. At the end of the day, what you see is a team playing hard and giving their very best no matter what our circumstances are and there's no excuses.”

While most of Missouri’s roster struggled on the offensive end, the Tigers did see East carry them for long stretches of the afternoon. East was a big reason Mizzou was still in the game at halftime — on the final play of the period, the team captain went coast-to-coast for a buzzer-beating layup that trimmed the deficit down to two. He led all scorers at halftime with 17 points.

“My teammates accepted me back once I came back from injury and just have been turning to me on offense and trusting me with the ball,” East said. “We're just trying to go out and execute the game plan. You know, (I had) hard, physical drives and (Arkansas') fouling, so I'm getting to the line and capitalizing off that. My teammates are shooting the ball well, so (the defense has to) choose one either, you know, stay with them or help. And we just find the open play.”

East continued routinely attacking the rim, adding another 16 points in the second half to end the afternoon with a career-high 33. The 6-foot-2 guard chipped in another three rebounds and two assists during the game. East said getting to the free throw line, where he shot 15-16, was a big part of what made him successful.

“They're aggressive, they foul, they hold, you know, just like everybody,” East said. “But you know, you just gotta draw the contact, play with (physicality), play with poise and make the refs make the decision if they're gonna call it or let it go.”

Mizzou (8-19, 0-14 SEC) will continue to play on the road, going up against Florida (19-8, 9-5) on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m., the game airing on SEC Network.

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