National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Missouri 70, Auburn 68
When: 2:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 11, 2014
Where: Auburn Arena, Auburn, Alabama
Officials: # Lee Cassell, # Mike Nance, # C. J. Washington
Attendance: 7181

No. 21 Missouri 70, Auburn 68: Jordan Clarkson scored 20 points and former Auburn guard Earnest Ross added 16 points and seven rebounds as the visiting Tigers held on for an ugly Southeastern Conference win.

Jabari Brown scored 15 points for Missouri (13-2, 1-1 SEC), which shot just 32.7 percent from the field but went 31-of-41 from the foul line. Freshman reserve Torren Jones grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds as Missouri dominated the glass 44-28.

KT Harrell scored 27 points -- two shy of his career high -- to lead Auburn (8-5, 0-2), which has lost two straight following a four-game winning streak. Tahj Shamsid-Deen added 13 points and six assists and Chris Denson scored 11.

Missouri went up 53-51 when Ryan Rosburg kicked out to Ross for a 3-pointer with just over nine minutes left and matched its largest lead at 56-51 by hitting three of four free throws when Auburn's Matthew Atewe was hit with a technical moments after picking up his fifth foul. Ross scored Missouri's last six points -- all from the foul line -- and Wesley Clark knocked away an inbounds pass to foil Auburn's final possession with a chance to tie or win.

Auburn had its largest lead at 30-25 with just over 2 1/2 minutes left in the first half before Missouri closed the half with an 8-0 run. Brown was one of several players on both sides relegated to the bench in the first half because of foul trouble, but Missouri coach Frank Haith used a timeout to get Brown in for the Tigers' final possession of the half and he drained a long 3-pointer for a 33-30 advantage.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Auburn F Chris Griffin (5.7 points, 4 rebounds) did not play and has been suspended indefinitely for a violating school policy, coach Tony Barbee told reporters. … Jones had seven rebounds in the first half after entering the game with only six all season. … Freshman walk-on Alex Thompson scored eight points for Auburn after scoring only one point in 36 minutes over five games all season.

Top Game Performances
 
Missouri   Auburn
Jordan Clarkson 20 Scoring KT Harrell 27
Wes Clark 3 Assists Tahj Shamsid-Deen 6
Torren Jones 11 Rebounds Asauhn Dixon-Tatum 7
Jordan Clarkson 8 Free Throws Made KT Harrell 6
Jabari Brown 1 Steals Tahj Shamsid-Deen 2
Johnathan Williams III 3 Blocks Dion Wade 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Missouri 70 32.7 5-15 31-41 9 40 5 4 15
Auburn 68 43.4 8-23 14-26 9 25 8 7 10