COLUMBIA, MO. • For a while it seemed like Jeremiah Tilmon had solved the case of the never-ending whistles, the bleating ghosts that haunted him from court to court.
Up until 10 days ago, Missouri’s sophomore center played at least 26 minutes in seven of eight games, the only exception being the Feb. 9 contest he missed after emergency dental work. The Tigers won the last two games he lasted 30 minutes, beating Vanderbilt and Arkansas, his two highest-scoring games in Southeastern Conference play.
Three minutes into the second half of an already physical game, Jordan Geist’s 3-pointer pushed Mizzou ahead by 12 points, an advantage minimized as soon as Geist’s shot trickled through the net.