Missouri drops regular-season finale to No. 20 Arkansas in overtime

Eli Hoff, St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Mar 7, 2026

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COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri almost did it again, the recurring bit where it falls into a double-digit hole against a ranked opponent but comes back to win a gritty, physical game.

There was an opportunity at the end of regulation. A couple more in overtime.

But almost couldn't cut it on Saturday.

No. 20 Arkansas beat MU, 88-84, dealing the Tigers a defeat in the regular-season finale.

Missouri needed a win to bolster confidence in its postseason standings but came up empty in that regard, finishing the regular season 20-11 and 10-8 in Southeastern Conference play. The Razorbacks moved to 23-8 overall and 13-5 against SEC opponents.

Playing in Mizzou Arena for the last time, power forward Mark Mitchell led MU with a career-high 32 points. In the second half, he scored his 1,000th point for the Tigers before setting his career scoring mark in overtime.

With star point guard Darius Acuff Jr. out for the first time this season, Maleek Thomas led Arkansas with 28 points. Former Missouri forward Trevon Brazile — often booed when he touched the ball — finished with 19 points and nine rebounds.

For the first 15 or so minutes of the game, it looked like Arkansas was the team that needed a win to feel good about its postseason standing. The Hogs were handsy on the defensive end, fast-flowing on offense and their hosts were much more stationary.

Trailing by 15 points with 5:32 left in the first half, Mizzou found the fight it needed. The Tigers got a few 3-pointers to start dropping but mostly upped their aggression to meet the style of the game, closing the half on a 16-4 run to trail by only three points at the break.

Arkansas was again the quicker team out of the second-half starting blocks, but MU recovered to take its first lead of the game early in the half and stay in lockstep with the Razorbacks.

Missouri's final timeout of regulation generated a drawn-up a play with 7.2 seconds to go, a layup look for point guard T.O. Barrett that bounced no good off the glass. Neither team could corral the rebound before the clock expired, sending the game into overtime tied at 74-all.

A Brazile 3-pointer put Arkansas up by two points with less than 40 seconds to go, a situation made more perilous when Mizzou turned the ball over on the ensuing possession. A missed free throw by the Razorbacks meant MU got another look, still trailing by two, but the Tigers did it again and coughed up the ball.

And still there was another chance: Intentionally fouled, Arkansas missed two free throws. Except Missouri couldn't secure the rebound, which meant another round of intentional fouls and an unbeatable four-point advantage for the visiting victors.

SEC Tournament seeding scenarios

As the first SEC game to wrap up on Saturday, the Tigers will now spend the rest of the day monitoring the other matchups that will determine where they finish in the league's standings and, consequently, where MU will slot into the conference tournament bracket.

Losing to the Razorbacks means Missouri will finish somewhere between fifth and 10th, depending on how five other teams — Vanderbilt, Texas A&M, Kentucky, Georgia and Texas — perform.

If all five lose, MU will stay put in fifth. If all five win, the Tigers will drop all the way to 10th. Most likely is that a few of those key teams win and some others lose, which will place Mizzou somewhere in the middle of the possible outcomes.