Tom Loeffler
Tom Loeffler is a sports columnist for connectmidmissouri.com and KRCG.
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Paybacks, as you know, are painful --- among other things.
(You can complete your thoughts here.)
Unless you're on the right side of it.
Take that.
Exactly three weeks after Oklahoma State upset Missouri in Stillwater, the Tigers welcomed the Cowboys to Mizzou Arena.
This went from Stillwater to a tsunami.
The No. 3 Tigers used a 35-10 explosion in the first half Wednesday night on their way to an 83-68 win over the Cowboys before another sellout crowd of 15,061.
"We weren't really thinking about what happened at Stillwater, we just wanted to come out and execute," Missouri senior Steve Moore said.
Consider it done.
Oklahoma State (12-14, 5-8 Big 12) took an early 10-7 lead. After a score by Ricardo Ratliffe, two free throws by Ratliffe gave Missouri (24-2, 11-2) the lead for good at 11-10 with 14:28 left in the first half.
The run became 9-0. Then 20-2. Then 35-10.
The Cowboys weren't in the Eye of the Tiger, they were in the Mouth. "It was all about our defense," Missouri coach Frank Haith said. "We were really sharp, we had great intensity guarding the ball. I thought our guys took them out of their offense, they started playing some one-on-one, and that's what we wanted them to do." Michael Dixon was 6-of-6 from the floor and scored 13 points of his 15 points in the first half, which saw MU build a 44-22 lead. "Mike's shooting at a huge rim right now," Haith said. "He's playing at a high level and with a lot of confidence." Missouri led by as many as 35 points in the second half. "All of our guys can all dribble, pass and shoot," Haith said. "That's the beauty of having a team like this." This isn't a sunset over the Grand Canyon. Or a bride on her wedding day. But when the Tigers are on, it surely is a thing of beauty. "I'm having a great time," Moore said. "Coach Haith puts in a position to win basketball games and that's what it's all about." Marcus Denmon finished with 17 points, Ratliffe had 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Phil Pressey totaled 13 points, seven assists and seven rebounds --- seven rebounds at 5-10. "He was just outstanding," Haith said. Keiton Page scored 23 for the Cowboys, most of those coming in garbage time. Kim English chipped in 13 points for the Tigers, who play at Texas A&M at 1 p.m. Saturday. "It will be a huge, huge game for us," Haith said. "We've got to be ready." They usually are.
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