Missouri explodes in second half to come back against South Carolina State

Sean East II scored 21 points as Missouri rallied to defeat South Carolina State 82-59 Wednesday in Columbia, Mo.

Nick Honor scored 14 points, Noah Carter had 13 and Anthony Robinson II added 10 for the Tigers (3-2, 0-0 Southeastern Conference).

Davion Everett scored 21 points and had seven rebounds for the Bulldogs (2-3, 0-0 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference), who have lost three straight games.

South Carolina State built a 16-point lead in the first half before Missouri mounted its comeback. The Tigers picked up their defensive play, outscoring the Bulldogs 47-22 in the second half.

Missouri built a 33-26 rebounding edge and blocked 12 shots.

The Bulldogs broke out to an 8-2 lead, with Everett getting to the basket twice.

They used a 9-2 run to push their lead to 19-8. Drayton Jones started the sequence with a follow shot, and Caleb McCarty capped it with a slam dunk.

South Carolina extended its margin to 29-13 with 7:45 left in the first half, with Mitchel Taylor and Omar Croskey scoring fast-break baskets.

After calling a timeout and making substitutions, the Tigers finally came to life with an 18-2 surge to pull even at 31-31. Center Connor Vanover triggered the comeback with a steal at the defensive end and a 3-point jumper in transition at the other end.

Honor powered the run with a trio of 3-point jumpers from the corner, and Vanover and Aidan Shaw energized the home crowd with dunks.

Everett stabilized the Bulldogs with a pair of fast-break baskets before East's driving basket cut South Carolina State's lead to 37-35 at the half.

Missouri opened the second half with a 26-2 burst to move ahead 61-39. Robinson sparked the run by scoring on two drives to the basket and feeding Tamar Bates for a layup.

The Bulldogs stabilized with six unanswered points, with Everett scoring two baskets inside, but they could not climb back into the game.