SOUTHERN DROPS 87-58 DECISION TO MISSOURI TIGERS IN FINAL GAME OF 2006

	Southern University's Deforrest Riley-Smith, left, and Missouri's Keon Lawrence, right, chase a long rebound Saturday, Dec. 30, 2006, during the first half of a basketball game in Columbia, Mo. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

Dec. 30, 2006

Final Stats

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) - Matt Lawrence scored 24 points and Missouri's defense earned a season-high 20 steals in an 87-58 victory over Southern on Saturday night.

Lawrence was 6-for-8 from 3-point range, helping the Tigers (10-2) recover from a sloppy first half after a layoff of nearly two weeks.

Keon Lawrence tied a career high with 17 points and Stefhon Hannah added 13 for Missouri.

Deforrest Riley-Smith led Southern (1-11) with 17 points and was the only player in double figures for the Jaguars.

Both teams struggled early, with Missouri playing its first game since a Dec. 19 loss to Illinois in St. Louis.

The first half featured a combined 29 turnovers - 19 by Southern - including numerous ill-timed lob passes, blown dunks and passes thrown to unsuspecting teammates. Missouri led by as many as 12 points before taking a 33-25 halftime lead.

The Tigers led by as many as 34 points in the second half.

Southern, which advanced to the NCAA Tournament last year as the Southwestern Athletic Conference's regular season and tournament champion, had previously lost this season by 60 points to Georgia, 53 points to No. 4 Wisconsin and 56 points against defending national champion and No. 3 Florida.