Missouri stunned the No. 5/4 Florida Gators, rallying from 13 points down with just over 10 minutes left in regulation to take a 63-60 decision.
The Tigers (19-7, 8-5 SEC) outscored Florida (21-4, 11-2 SEC) 27-11 down the stretch after the Gators grabbed a 49-36 lead with 10:51 to go.
Laurence Bowers who missed the first meeting between the two teams hit a jumper with 1:15 remaining to give Missouri a 61-60 lead. Florida had several chances to regain the lead but could not convert.
Kenny Boynton forced a three-point shot from the top of the key with :09 left and the Tigers grabbed the rebounds and converted a pair of free throws to make it 63-0 with :03.1 remaining. Mike Rosarios three-point at the buzzer sailed long and the Tigers completed the comeback.
Bowers led Missouri with a double-double, scoring 17 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. After not taking a shot in the first half, Phil Pressey finished with 7 points and a team-high 10 assists, including a three-point play that gave Missouri its first lead of the game in the final three minutes of regulation.
Rosario led the Gators with 14 points, while Boynton had 11 and SEC Freshman of the Week Michael Frazier added 10.
After a hot start from three-point range, hitting 5-of-10 to open the game, the Gators fell in love with the three and ultimately struggled, connecting on only 5-of-23 after that point. The Gators wound up hitting 30.3 percent on threes (10-33) and just 40.7 percent overall on the night.
Missouri won despite turning the ball over 19 times, leading to 16 Florida points. In a game that felt eerily similar to the Gators loss at Arizona in December, Florida led almost the entire game before Missouri took the lead in the games final three minutes.
Florida took a 29-26 lead into the locker room and led by as many as 11 in the first half. The Gators return home Saturday night to face Arkansas, the only other team to beat them in SEC play thus far.
