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Tigers open season with win over Redhawks

Nov 12, 2011 - 6:50 AM Columbia, MO (Sports Network) - Ricardo Ratliffe and Marcus Denmon both scored 20 points and grabbed eight boards, as the 25th-ranked Missouri Tigers defeated the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks, 83-68, in a season-opening tilt.

Kim English added 19 points and Phil Pressey had 10 points for the Tigers (1-0), who were victorious in their first game under new head coach Frank Haith.

Tyler Stone paced the Redhawks (0-1) with 18 points, while Marcus Brister chipped in 15 points and six assists and Nino Johnson finished with 11 points.

Ratliffe, an honorable mention All-Big 12 selection last year, scored 14 of his points during a first half which saw him go 6-of-8 from the floor.

Denmon added nine points over that span, but the Redhawks hung tough, as Stone poured in 10 points and Brister added eight, en route to a slim 38-36 halftime deficit.

"Give credit to SEMO, they came out with a lot of energy and they played hard and made shots early," said Denmon.

The Tigers, though, pulled away in the second half, utilizing 4-of-9 shooting from beyond the arc and 13-of-15 shooting from the charity stripe to secure the win.

"The thing that I really liked about our team was our ability to get to the free throw line," said Haith. "If we continue to attack, get the one and one, that's a plus for us. It slows the game down."

SEMO, meanwhile, hit just 1-of-6 three pointers over the final 20 minutes and went just 7-of-10 from the foul line.

Denmon paced Missouri, which extended its school-record non-conference home win streak to 59 games, with 11 second-half points.

Game Notes

The Tigers have won all six meetings with the Redhawks...Haith was hired as Missouri's 17th head coach on April 5, 2011. He entered the season with a 129-101 career record as a head coach, all coming at Miami (Fla.)...The Tigers' last non-conference home loss came against Sam Houston State in the 2005-06 season opener.