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No. 14 Missouri cruises past Nicholls State

Nov 17, 2012 - 5:41 AM Columbia, MO (Sports Network) - Alex Oriakhi scored 17 points and added 10 rebounds as the 14th-ranked Missouri Tigers took a 74-54 win over Nicholls State on Friday.

Earnest Ross had 16 points and five boards, Keion Bell added 13 points and seven rebounds while Laurence Bowers gave 12 points for the Tigers (3-0), who have won all of their games this season by double-digits.

"Give Nicholls State a lot of credit, they were very disciplined on the offensive end," said Missouri head coach Frank Haith. "It was sort of a long, dragging game, and I thought they brought the fight to us on the offensive end to start the game. Then in the beginning of the second half, we brought the fight to them."

Fred Hunter posted 22 points and five rebounds for the Colonels (0-2), who got 14 points and five boards from T.J. Carpenter in the loss.

Missouri built itself an 11-point lead after a 5-0 run capped by an Oriakhi jumper made it a 25-14 game with under five minutes to play in the first half.

Nicholls State, though, later scored seven straight to cut into the deficit before Negus Webster-Chan hit a 3-pointer for the final points of the frame, helping the Tigers take a 32-25 lead into the break.

In the second half, an Oriakhi dunk gave Missouri a 40-29 lead and kick- started a 13-1 run capped by two free throws from Bell that gave the Tigers a 51-30 advantage just over five minutes in.

The Colonels were unable to get the deficit below 14 the rest of the way.

Game Notes

Missouri plays at Stanford on Thursday ... The only other time these two teams met was on Dec. 1, 1998, with Missouri taking a home victory ... Missouri dominated on the boards, finishing with a 41-25 advantage.