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| Marcus Denmon scored 9 straight points to give Missouri the lead for good. Consider this a parting shot. |
Having said that, I have attended two great games in my life. Wheaton-Warrenville South Tigers 31 Glenbard West Hilltoppers 24: Champaign, Illinois November 28th, 2009. Missouri Tigers 74 Kansas Jayhawks 71: Columbia, Missouri February 4th, 2012. The latter one easily outdid the former.
As a Mizzou student, the lead up to this game started last semester when my roommate and I camped out with one of his friends overnight to secure tickets to the game. It was a cold and wet night. Steve Moore came into our tent. I picked up my ticket in time to get to my first class at 9 A.M.. Afterwards, I took a nap and woke up at 6 P.M to find out that the last ticket had been claimed roughly ten hours after I had claimed mine. It did not matter because it was Kansas and therefore, it was the most important game of the year.
What was not expected, was that Mizzou would finish their non-conference schedule undefeated. The Missouri Tigers had become all of the rage by the time Hate Week started. They were 19-2 with their only losses coming on the road against a hot Kansas State team and a fluke against lowly Oklahoma State. They had knocked off Baylor in Waco, who currently holds a 21-2 record and was undefeated just days before they had to play Missouri until losing to Kansas.
Now before I go any further, if you told me four years ago that Missouri would beat Texas in football and basketball AND beat Texas and Kansas in basketball in the same week, I would have called you crazy.
Not so much this year.
In a game that the Tigers almost threw away, they knocked off a down Longhorn team in Austin and had five days to prepare for Kansas.
Two days later was national signing day. A day in which Dorial Green-Beckham, arguably the best football prospect, signed with Gary Pinkel and the Missouri Tigers. The M-I-Z...D-G-B sign is still hanging from the facade of the Sigma Nu fraternity house on College Avenue in Columbia. Later that night, the first tent was set up in anticipation of College Gameday.
The next day, I had a Political Science class with friend and Mizzou superfan, Steve Goldberg. After class finished at approximately 1:45 P.M. that afternoon, he left to help a group of students set up a tent and wait in line for College Gameday, 55 hours before tip off. For his efforts, he was interviewed by several media outlets. Most notably, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
College Gameday came to Columbia on Saturday morning before the game. ESPN had fallen for the Missouri Tigers basketball team. The analysts picked four Tigers in a College Basketball fantasy draft. Digger gave the crowd the obligatory "best fans" line. Kim English put Michael Dixon Jr. as well as the Delta Gamma and Tri Delta (Delta Delta Delta) sororities on the spot during the show.
As for the game itself, this was the last Mizzou/Kansas game in Columbia before the Tigers leave the Big 12 for the SEC. It may be the last time these two would ever play in Columbia. This was an opportunity for the Tigers to make another big statement on the national stage. Mizzou has been on the rise in football and basketball for the better part of the last decade. In 2010, Mizzou celebrated their 99th homecoming by knocking off #1 ranked Oklahoma in football. In 2011, Mizzou celebrated their 100th Homecoming (a tradition that had been invented at Mizzou) by beating Iowa State 52-17. The next month, amidst rumors that they were going to leave the Big 12 for the SEC, did just that. Less than a week ago, Dorial Green-Beckham signed a letter of intent to play for the Tigers. Now they had their chance at a parting shot at their most bitter rivals from the west. A rivalry that dates back to the Civil War. One of the most hate-filled rivalries in Columbia. The start of Rivalry Week. College Gameday. Kansas brought their storied program and national champions and Missouri brought a team hungry for success on a national stage and a fan base hungry for national recognition. Both teams brought Top 10 rankings.
All of the talk between fans. No Mom Tom. Brendan Hudson. The time for all of the fanfare was over. At 8 P.M. Saturday night on February 4th, 2012, it was time to play basketball.
The game had an Ali-Frazier vibe to it. Missouri took a 5 point edge into the locker room. The game continued to go back and forth. Kansas made a run, Missouri responded with a run of their own. With 6 minutes left in the contest it was 64-63 Jayhawks
Cue Kansas.
Conner Teahen stole the ball Matt Pressey and made a three pointer on the other side of the court. Kansas 67 Missouri 63. Michael Dixon and Matt Pressey both missed three pointers on the next possession and Thomas Robinson made a jumper at the other end of the court. Kansas 69 Missouri 63. Marcus Denmon then turned the ball over and Tyshawn Taylor dunked it with authority. Kansas 71 Missouri 63. Marcus Denmon would miss a three-point shot on the next possession. The game was over. Kansas had found a way to rain on Missouri's parade. Rock Chalk Jayhawk.
Or at least that's what it seemed like.
Thomas Robinson would miss, get his own rebound and turn the ball over on the next Jayhawk possession. Denmon made a layup and "T-Rob" would send Denmon to the line soon after. He would make 1 of 2 shots. Missouri's poor free throw shooting in the second half would have been a major gripe of fans had the outcome been different. Kansas held a five point lead.
Robinson would turn the ball over on KU's next possession. Marcus Denmon, then jacked up a three-point shot and without regards to the laws of physics, the ball went into the net. Kansas 71 Missouri 69. Was this really happening? Missouri had come back from the dead to make it a game. The crowd was split between screaming at deafening volumes and having a collective heart attack. Phil Pressey then stole the ball from Tyshawn Taylor and Denmon would hit a three from the corner to take the lead. The crowd erupted. Missouri 72 Kansas 71 with 56 seconds left in the game. Marcus Denmon had just gone on a 9-0 run.
Kansas would get their chance to win. This is where Tyshawn Taylor earns his status as the goat. On the Jayhawks' next two possessions, Taylor would miss two free throws and turn the ball over. Michael Dixon made two free throws with 10 seconds left in the game and Elijah Johnson missed a desperation three at the end of the game to seal a 74-71 victory for the Missouri Tigers.
To their credit, Missouris' fans acted like a Top 10 crowd by not storming the court. They were too busy watching Kansas standout, Thomas Robinson cry.
I could go on talking about the scene after the game. The honking horns, the after-party and the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity blasting "Black Betty" from their porch on Maryland Avenue after the game. I can talk about the guy who brought the Quantrill flag to the game and College Gameday. I can talk about how Frank Haith boarded his team up in a hotel after the game so they would not party too hard and overlook Oklahoma, who they play on Monday. I can talk about the guy who got his "Digger Please" sign taken away. I can talk about how the crowd did the Missouri Waltz over and over again throughout the day. I could talk about how I laughed to myself when the crowd said "STEEEEEEVEEEEEE" whenever Steve Moore was introduced or made a big play because of an inside joke I have with a friend. I can talk about how I get goosebumps and tears in my eyes watching Denmon hit the shot to bring the Tigers within two points on their final run. I can talk about how I will still be describing every aspect of this day, night, week, weekend and game for the rest of my life. I can talk about how proud I am to be a Missouri Tiger. I could recruit thousands of Tigers to recall every detail of the game and the events leading up to the game.
But none of these words will completely put into perspective how monumental the last seven days was for Missouri Tiger.
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| That's me at the far left. |
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