Grill gets hot, helps Mizzou down in Eastern Washington

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Caleb Grill found his jumper in a big way, helping Missouri men’s basketball survive a non-conference contest against Eastern Washington on Monday.

Grill, who missed much of last season with a wrist injury, had struggled in the Tigers’ first two games of the season, but the sixth-year shooting guard’s punch set the stage for a hot shooting night in an 84-77 victory.

He finished with a career-high 33 points, shooting 8 for 10 from 3-point range while also grabbing nine rebounds.

“I just had the opportunity tonight to take pictures,” Grill said.

Those eight 3s tied a Mizzou Arena record last touched by Torrance Watson in the 2019-20 season. The program record for 3-pointers made in a game remains 12, set by Clarence Gilbert in a 2002 game against Colorado.

And Grill hit the mark while coming off the bench, a decision MU coach Dennis Gates made when he wasn’t happy with what the guard showed on the court.

“I bent him,” Gates said. “He was mad at me and he responded. It’s as simple as that.”

“If I was in his shoes, I would have done the same thing,” Grill added, pointing to his desire to become a coach after his playing days.

Forward Mark Mitchell was the only other Mizzou player to score in double figures with 13.

As a team, the Tigers got to the free throw line often but didn’t convert at a particularly effective rate, making 22 of 31 shots from the charity stripe.

At 2-1 overall, MU has a winning record for the first time since early January, when it was 8-7 midway through the 2023-24 season.

Eastern Washington was the fastest team out of the starting blocks. The Eagles made their first five shots to take a 12-4 lead, requiring Gates to call his first timeout less than four minutes into the game.

Their defense also kept the Tigers from getting going early, swarming MU’s pick-and-roll and pass plays on the opening possessions.

Freshman Annor Boateng, making his second straight start, scored the home team’s first point, getting a baseline drive off a closeout for a mid-range jumper.

Gates sent Grill into the game at the 16:19 mark of the first half when his team trailed by eight points. That addition turned the tide.

Grill grabbed an offensive rebound and drew a foul shortly after entering the game. His first 3-pointer of the season brought Mizzou within a point, then Grill poked the ball free on the perimeter, recovered it and knocked the Eagles down the floor for a dunk to take a 12-11 lead.

It was part of a 17-3 run in Missouri’s favor that turned a shaky start into a fairly comfortable, if temporary, margin.

Grill hit two more 3s during the sequence looking like the perimeter presence he has been advertised to be.

A pair of free throws to freshman guard Marcus Allen — earning minutes over a pair of veterans — put Mizzou ahead by 10 points with 7:40 left in the first half. He made a smart play soon after, faking a pass to deflect an oncoming defender and driving through the newly opened lane for a dunk.

Grill hit his fourth 3 of the game on a clean corner kick in the final minute of the first half. He had 16 of MU’s 45 points at halftime. By then, Eastern Washington’s shooting had cooled considerably, giving the visitors 33 points in the first half.

Grill’s fifth came a few minutes into the second half, a jumper over perimeter traffic.

A decent firing start to the second brought the Eagles back within single digits. However, they missed big, putting Mizzou in the bonus less than eight minutes into the half.

Grill then made a 3-point play the old-fashioned way, finishing through one of those fouls to put the Tigers back within 10 points with 11:27 left.

His hot shooting night spread around the board. Forward Jacob Crews, a transfer portal addition, hit a catch-and-shoot 3 from the left wing for his first bucket in an MU uniform, forcing an EWU timeout with the visitors trailing 64-51 11 minutes into the second. half.

The topic of discussion in the Eastern Washington lump was somewhat effective. A quick 7-0 run by the visitors, which also saw Grill miss three free throws earned by being fouled on a deep jumper, brought them within six points as the clock ticked down under nine minutes.

Grill’s sixth 3 — from the right corner toward a closeout — halted the Eagles’ rally, but only temporarily: A timely 3 put EWU down just 70-67 when Gates called timeout with 6:48 left.

In dire need of a bucket, Mizzou’s offensive flow only led to a rushed midrange jumper for Perkins, which he missed. Eastern Washington fouled out on the other end of the floor, but only made one of its two free throws.

Guard Tamar Bates hit a baby hook shot to start the climb out of one-possession game status. Grill’s seventh 3 – a deep one this team – gave MU a 75-70 lead with four minutes and change left.

EWU kept it close, but Grill’s eighth 3, which came with 75 seconds to play, gave the Tigers an eight-point lead.

Freshman center Trent Burns missed his third straight game as he recovers from an illness, although he warmed up with the team beforehand.

Missouri hosts Mississippi Valley State at 18.30 on Thursday to continue his home run. The Delta Devils are 1-1 but ranked dead last in KenPom’s 364-team ratings.