Unranked Missouri upset the No. 1 team in the country, beating Kansas 76-67 after staving off a Jayhawks comeback in the second half. Senior guard Tamar Bates went off for 29 points to secure the massive victory and boost the Tigers to 8-1.
Kansas guard Dajuan Harris Jr. missed a late 3-pointer in a last-ditch attempt to close the gap. Missouri guard Tony Perkins pulled down the rebound and held the ball to secure the win.
Fans began storming the court before Missouri head coach Dennis Gates held them off to allow the Kansas players and coaches to exit the floor. After receiving the all-clear, fans streamed onto the court to celebrate the school’s first win over a No. 1 team since 1997.
Missouri went into halftime with a double-digit lead, up 39-25. But the Jayhawks began to chip away at that lead in the second half, getting to within two points of the Tigers in the final three minutes of the game.
Kansas’ star senior center Hunter Dickinson, who led the Jayhawks with 19 points and 14 rebounds, went to the bench in the final minute with four fouls. With him off the floor — and with a series of ill-placed shots from the Jayhawks — Missouri was able to pull away and grow the lead to nine points to close out the game.
Kansas had a whopping 22 turnovers, with Missouri racking up 14 steals. The Jayhawks also had foul issues, giving the Tigers 31 free-throw attempts; Missouri made 26 of them.
The loss marks Kansas’ second straight to an unranked team, after losing 76-63 to Creighton on Wednesday. The Jayhawks’ No. 1 ranking was from last week, and didn’t reflect the loss; now, with the next AP poll coming out Monday, Kansas will take a hit.
