Kevin Puryear scored 20 points in his college debut, leading Missouri to an 83-74 win against Wofford in the Tigers’ season opener.
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Puryear, a freshman from Blue Springs, Missouri, was 8-for-14 from the field and made 3 of 4 free throws. “The rest of (the freshmen) are never pouting or anything; they just come ready to play”. He’s played well since the day he walked on campus, ” Missouri coach Kim Anderson said.
Thanks to a style that can be classified as unorthodox in regards to Anderson’s team standards, freshmen guards Terrence Phillips and KJ Walton recorded three steals and scored six points, respectively, in the first five minutes of the game against Missouri Western last week. In fact, Anderson said this week he wished the Tigers opened with an easier opponent, especially with so many newcomers in his rotation.
Despite a poor shooting night for Wofford, scoring was evenly distributed.
Wofford’s Fletcher Magee led all scorers with 22 points and added five rebounds.
Missouri shot better in the first half (55 percent to 39 percent), rebounded better (20 to 14) and had a better assist-to-turnover ratio (7-to-4 compared to 4-to-5). The Tigers also outrebounded Wofford 37 to 29.
“We just couldn’t get that stop”, Young said. “Wofford is very efficient and I think we want to play a little bit faster than we did a year ago – we’ve worked on that”.
“He’s the bunny, man”, Anderson said of the transfer from John A. Logan College, referring to the Energizer battery mascot.
Justin Gordon led a second-half charge for Wofford, scoring 13 of his 19 points in the second half. The Missouri lead dipped into single-point territory 10 times but Wofford couldn’t get any closer than five.
The Tigers shot 56 percent from the field after breaking the 50 percent-mark in just four games last season. Kevin Puryear got Missouri on the board with a jumper at 16:48 for Missouri’s first points of the season.
Forward Ryan Rosburg is the only senior on a roster with five new scholarship players after junior guard Martavian Payne opted to step away from basketball and focus on academics, the school announced Friday.
Wright, who was suspended from Missouri’s exhibition game against Missouri Western last Friday, finished with 18 points and a game-high seven rebounds.
Wofford: The Terriers played their first game as a Division-I member against Missouri on November 25, 1995, losing 86-60 at Mizzou Arena. This was only the second meeting between the schools.
Missouri hosts University of Maryland Eastern Shore on Sunday.
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Shooting for. 500 overall would be a good benchmark for the Tigers, who face a schedule that includes Xavier, North Carolina State and Arizona during nonconference play.
