ST. LOUIS – The season ended Friday night for Dennis Gates and the Missouri Tigers, a familiar sting in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. A late surge wasn’t enough to overcome Miami, falling 80-66 at Enterprise Center. The loss marks the second consecutive March exit in the first round for Gates, despite building a program that has reached the tournament in three of his four seasons at the helm. The primary culprit, according to Gates, wasn’t a lack of effort, but a stark shift in shooting percentage from the Hurricanes in the second half.
Missouri finished the 2025-26 season with a 21-11 overall record, a mark that secured an at-large bid to the tournament. While the program has shown consistent growth under Gates, reaching the NCAA Tournament is no longer the sole measure of success for a program with aspirations of becoming a consistent national contender. The question now becomes whether the Tigers can avoid the late-season slump that has plagued them for two consecutive years and translate regular-season success into deeper tournament runs.
The game itself was a back-and-forth affair, with Miami taking an early lead before Missouri battled back. A three-pointer from Mark Mitchell with 7:50 remaining gave the Tigers a brief lead, igniting the largely pro-Missouri crowd. Still, that momentum was quickly extinguished by an 11-0 run from the Hurricanes, fueled by efficient shooting and a renewed defensive intensity. Miami will now advance to face Purdue in the second round.
Miami’s Second-Half Surge and Shooting Disparity
Gates zeroed in on Miami’s shooting performance as the decisive factor in the final minutes. “What I saw happen in the final seven minutes, they hit some really – you know, when you take 30 minutes of the game and you defend at a high level, they ended up making a lot more 3s,” Gates explained after the game. He pointed to a significant jump in the Hurricanes’ three-point percentage, from 30% in the first half to 60% in the second. ESPN’s box score confirms this disparity, showing Miami going 11-of-24 from beyond the arc overall.
“At the conclude of the day, it wasn’t the second-chance (points) in the second half. It was the shooting percentage,” Gates continued. “So it was the tale of two different halves. We responded. We took the lead in the middle end of the second, but the most important part, we (weren’t) able to capitalize and secure their shooting percentages down. They made a concerted effort to get to the paint and we (weren’t) able to build our wall accordingly.” Miami forward Malik Reneau and wing Sheldon Henderson were key contributors during the Hurricanes’ late-game run, scoring crucial baskets that sealed the victory.
Addressing the Late-Season Fade
The loss to Miami caps a frustrating end to the season for the Tigers, who lost four straight games to close out the regular season. This marks the second consecutive year Missouri has stumbled down the stretch, raising questions about the team’s ability to maintain consistency when facing adversity. Last season, the Tigers lost five of their final six games.
When asked about the possibility of peaking too early, Gates acknowledged the challenge. “One possession away. I think one possession changes a season,” he said. He cited close losses to Arkansas and Kentucky as examples of games that could have swung in Missouri’s favor. “We had an opportunity to win the game on two shots against Arkansas at home. We were able to position our team in a position against Kentucky to take a late lead, wasn’t able to hold onto it.”
However, Gates likewise emphasized a recurring theme in those late-season contests: a lack of sustained offensive control. “But when you look at — and I’ll do my job of dissecting this entire season, and the one thing that’ll stand out to me, and I’ll say this, is that we did not have the lead for more than five minutes of all those games. And when you are putting yourself in that position, whether you get down over a period of time or not, the management of it and it’s just one play of execution, whether it’s defensively or offensively.” He noted that the Tigers often found themselves playing from behind, making it challenging to dictate the pace and control the game.
Gates Takes Responsibility, Defends His Team
Despite the disappointment, Gates was resolute in his support for his players. In a powerful statement following the loss, he took full responsibility for the outcome. “Our locker room hurts right now. I hurt right now. It’s not easy. I’m sure there will be certain headlines. There will be certain tweets and certain voices out there saying that we failed. My guys hadn’t failed anything,” Gates said emphatically.
“I’ll stand on the train tracks for them every day, any day of the week anytime. My guys did not fail. If you want to say something about failing, say Dennis Gates failed. I’ll take it any day of the week, with no hesitation, with my head high and protect our locker room like I’ve always done from a mental standpoint, emotional standpoint.” He concluded by expressing his pride in the team and reaffirming their lasting connection to the University of Missouri. “And that’s why they are likely to be successful, likely to run through a wall for us, and they’ll always be welcome back to the city of CoMo and obviously welcome back as alumni of Missouri. So I’m proud of these guys, and as a coach, coaches come and go. Coaches come and go. But these players will always have a piece of Missouri in their hearts forever, and ultimately I’m proud of them.”
Looking ahead, the Missouri basketball program will now enter the offseason with a clear focus on addressing its late-season struggles and building a more consistent team. The program is expected to announce its schedule for the 2026-27 season in the coming months. Fans can stay updated on team news and developments through the official Missouri Tigers website.
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