Mizzou Men’s Basketball began the 2015-16 season with a 92-53 exhibition win over Missouri Western on Friday night at Mizzou Arena.
Freshman guard K.J. Walton (Brownsburg, Ind.) led the Tigers in scoring with 17 points, shooting a perfect 6-for-6 from the field and 4-for-4 from beyond the arc. Sophomore guard Tramaine Isabell (Seattle, Wash.) added 16 points in the victory.
Walton was one of three newcomers to dominate throughout the evening. Freshman guard Terrence Phillips (Los Angeles, Calif.) was all over the court with six points, five rebounds, six assists and four steals. Junior forward Russell Woods (Chicago, Ill.), playing in his first game with the Tigers, was efficient in the post with 13 points, five rebounds and two blocks.
Mizzou stormed out to a 13-2 lead early in the first half. Junior guard Wes Clark (Detroit, Mich.) punctuated the early run by stealing an errant pass and drawing a foul before completing a three-point play. The Tigers went on to lead by as many as 15 points and carried a 33-19 advantage into halftime.
It was more of the same in the second half, with Mizzou leading by as many as 41 points late in the game. The freshman duo of Phillips and guard Cullen VanLeer (Pacific, Mo.) led a 27-6 run to begin the half and effectively put the game away.
Mizzou’s defense was stingy throughout the contest, holding Missouri Western to one basket through the first nine minutes of play. For the game, Missouri Western shot 30 percent from the field.
Head coach Kim Anderson’s squad begins the regular season at Mizzou Arena against Wofford on Friday, Nov. 13. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. on SEC Network+.