COLUMBIA, Mo. – Neil Watson scored 18 points and Aaron Brown added 16 to help Southern Mississippi beat Missouri 71-63 in the second round of the National Invitation Tournament on Sunday.
Southern Mississippi (29-6) has won eight of its past nine games and will play at No. 1 seed Minnesota on Tuesday for the right to go to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Jeremiah Eason's layup broke a 14-14 tie with 9:34 remaining in the first half and the Golden Eagles led the rest of the way. Missouri cut its deficit to three points on a 3-pointer by Earnest Ross with 14:41 left, but the Tigers could get no closer.
Ross scored 22 points while Jabari Brown and Jordan Clarkson both added 13 for Missouri (23-12), which fell to 2-8 all-time in NIT games.
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