Tigers blow away Cyclones

By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune's staff

Published on columbiatribune.com Saturday, January 17, 2009

Parker Eshelman photo

Missouri's Leo Lyons pushes the ball down court during the second half of the Tiger's victory again Iowa State.

•	See the slide show: Missouri 77, Iowa State 46

The Missouri basketball team continued its rebound from last week’s discouraging loss at Nebraska by dominating Iowa State this afternoon at Mizzou Arena.

Freshman Marcus Denmon, who missed a potential game-tying 3-pointer in the closing seconds in Lincoln, Neb., scored a game-high 16 points to lead four Tigers in double figures as MU routed the Cyclones 77-46 in front of an announced crowd of 12,403.

Parker Eshelman photo

Missouri's Marcus Denmon (12) and DeMarre Carroll pressure Sean Haluska during the first half of the Tigers' 77-46 win over Iowa State at Mizzou Arena.

Denmon led the way as Missouri (15-3, 2-1 Big 12) buried Iowa State (12-6, 1-2) under a barrage of 3-point shots in the second half. He made three long-range shots and the Tigers were 10 for 14 from beyond the arc in the final 20 minutes, pushing what had been a nine-point edge to as many as 31.

Walk-on Jarrett Sutton finished it off with a 3-pointer with 25.1 seconds remaining to give Missouri the final margin. It was the team’s season-high 13th 3-pointer in the game.

The Cyclones couldn’t have been prepared for the Tigers scorching second half, not after Missouri launched 11 3s in the first 20 minutes and made only 3.

It was only the Tigers’ inability to convert that kept this game from getting out of hand sooner. Missouri held Iowa State to 34.8 percent shooting and forced 10 turnovers as it built a 29-20 halftime lead in a game MU never trailed.

Pass-first junior guard Zaire Taylor spent more time than usual shooting the ball in the first half, and he scored seven in the first 4½ minutes to help the Tigers get off to a quick start. They led 13-6 with 15:44 to play.

Taylor finished with 15 points, five rebounds and dished out three assists. Senior forward Leo Lyons returned after what turned out to be a one-game suspension, coming off the bench with 13:19 left in the first half. The time away seemed to help him on the defensive end. He picked up a steal, blocked a shot and also had five points and four rebounds in the first half.

Lyons wound up with 12 points and eight rebounds.

Keith Ramsey, who started for the second straight game, had 10 points and knocked in a pair of 3-pointer.

Both Lyons and Ramsey played a role in helping the Tigers hold Craig Brackins to 10 points on 4-for-11 shooting. Brackins, the Big 12’s second-leading scorer, had scored at least 20 points in three straight games.

Reach Steve Walentik at (573) 815-1788 or swalentik@tribmail.com.