LAWRENCE, Kan. – Marcus Morris had 22 points and reserve Mario Little added 17, sparking a second-half charge that led No. 2 Kansas past No. 19 Missouri 103-86 on Monday night in a high-energy clash between the Big 12's highest-scoring teams.
Markieff Morris added 16 points for the Jayhawks (23-1, 8-1), who beat their archrivals at home for the 12th straight time. Missouri (18-6, 4-5) dropped to 0-5 in conference road games and 14-41 all time in Allen Fieldhouse.
Kansas came in leading the nation with a 52 percent field goal percentage and shot 61 percent against Missouri's pressure defense. The Tigers made 7 of their first 9 shots and wound up shooting 52 percent.
Laurence Bowers, who fouled out with a little less than 5½ minutes to go, had 19 points for Missouri and Phil Pressey had 17.
By the time Little threw down a dunk for a 93-85 lead with a little more than 5½ minutes left, the loud, sellout crowd was yelling for the Jayhawks to hit 100.
With 2:34 left and much of the buzzing crowd on its feet, the Jayhawks whipped the ball around and got Tyrel Reed an open look for a 3-pointer from the wing that made it 100-84, triggering a deafening roar from 16,300 fans.
Missouri, hardly able to miss, took an early 6-point lead but Little and the twins chipped away and finally went into halftime with a 46-42 lead.
A basket by Bowers cut Missouri's lead to 46-44 to start the second half, but then the Morris brothers personally led the Jayhawks on a 10-2 spree, starting with Marcus' forceful putback. Marcus, fouled by Bowers, then converted a three-point play which was followed by Markieff's putback. After Markieff rebounded a Missouri miss, Marcus converted with a turnaround jumper for a 56-46 lead.
The Morris twins combined for 15 rebounds for Kansas, which held a commanding '38-21 edge on the boards.
The play was rough, as usual between these schools whose rivalry dates to violent border clashes in pre-Civil War days. About halfway through the second half, an intentional foul was called on Markieff for an openhanded push off the face of Justin Safford.
Safford made both free throws to cut the lead to 65-58.
But Thomas Robinson's two free throws sparked a 10-2 run by the Jayhawks, climaxed by 3-pointers from Little and Travis Releford for a 75-60 lead.
Tyshawn Taylor had 13 points for Kansas and Releford had 10. Robinson had nine points and seven rebounds.
Ricardo Ratliffe had 12 points for Missouri and Matt Pressey had 11.
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