Caleb Grill, Mark Mitchell Lead Mizzou Past Eastern Washington

A career-high of 33 points from Caleb Grill led the way in Missouri's defeat of Eastern Washington.

Nov. 8, 2024; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers forward Mark Mitchell drives for a basket during a game against the Eastern Washington Eagles. / Amber Winkler/MissouriOnSI

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Despite a closer outcome than it might’ve liked, Missouri men’s basketball found a way to get past Eastern Washington in a 84-77 thriller.

After the Eagles jumped out to a 12-4 lead at the start of the game, the Tigers dominated the majority of the first half, leading 45-33. Behind guard Andrew Cook’s 24 points and a surge of offense, however, it got Missouri’s lead down to three with 6:48 remaining in the second half. 

The Tigers were able to fend off the late-game comeback thanks in large part to guard Caleb Grill’s career-defining performance with Missouri. 

Grill found his spark early in the first half, but it continued all the way through the end of the game. The graduate senior dropped a career-high 33 points and nine rebounds on 10-of-13 shooting from the field and 8-of-10 from behind the arc — a far different result than his first two appearances this season.  

Coach Dennis Gates benched Grill after those performances, holding him accountable for not giving his team what it needed. The guard accepted it and took accountability, which only helped him grow his confidence during the game.

"I haven't played a game for 11 months, and I didn't really put that into accountability," Gates said. "Coach holding me accountable is one of the main reasons why I came here ... I couldn't thank him enough for following through."

With a 79-75 lead at the 1:17 mark, Grill pulled up for his final three-pointer of the night and drilled it, all but sealing the win for good. 

Forward Mark Mitchell also added 13 points of his own on 6-of-10 shooting, dominating inside the paint on the offensive end.

As a collective, the Tigers shot 10-of-18 from behind the arc. It was night and day compared to their win against Howard on Friday, where they finished just 3-of-22. 

Missouri did leave much to be desired in the free.throw department, finishing 22-of-31 at the charity stripe. Some missed attempts in key moments allowed Eastern Washington to creep its way back in the game in the second half. 

Still, the Tigers held up their own end enough through efficient scoring and preventing the Eagles from finding their stride from behind the arc.

"We made some tweaks, and I thought our guys were able to execute the game plan," Gates said. "We knew (Eastern Washington) would go on a run, but again, our guys responded in a way that I thought showed character. It showed growth from one game to the next to the next, and you can slowly see us going in the right direction."

Missouri will remain at home to take on Mississippi Valley State at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.

Second Half

1:17 — Missouri 82, Eastern Washington 75: Grill is unstoppable. Pulls up from deep and knocks down a big jumper to put the Tigers up seven. The best performance of his career at Missouri

6:48 — Missouri 70, Eastern Washington 67: The Eagles get within three points after a 16-10 run since the 11:28 mark. They have a total of 21 fouls, but the Tigers haven't executed enough on the free-throw line this half.

11:00: Jacob Crews scores the first triple of his Missouri career.

11:25 — Missouri 61, Eastern Washington 51: The Eagles are slowly working their way back in this game. Andrew Cook has indeed been cooking, currently holding a total of 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting.

14:50 — Big difference in 3-point effiency from both teams. Missouri is shooting 6-of-12, while Eastern Washington has a 5-of-17 clip.

First Half

HALF — Missouri 45, Eastern Wahington 33: The Eagles go on a 13-10 run to close out the half, but the Tigers still lead by double-digit points. Grill's 16 points and Mark Mitchell's 10 points lead the way.

5:43 — Missouri 35, Eastern Washington 20: Timeout on the floor for the Eagles after another surge from the Tigers. Missouri is finding ways to score both in transition and hitting players in passing lanes.

10:34 — Missouri 24, Eastern Washington 17: The Tigers are currently on a 19-5 run since the rought start. Grill has unleashed for 13 points already.

16:18: Gates subs Anthony Robinson II, Aidan Shaw and Caleb Grill into the game after Eastern Washington jumped out to a 12-4 lead.

17:23 — Eastern Washington 7, Missouri 2: Tigers turn the ball on their first two possessions, and both turn into scores for the Eagles.

Starting Lineup:

Eastern Washington	Missouri
Mason Williams	Tamar Bates
Andrew Cook	Annor Boateng
Nic McClain	Tony Perkins
Sebastian Hartmann	Mark Mitchell
Emmett Marquardt	Josh Gray

Pre Game

• Freshman guard Annor Boateng receives his second-straight start.
• Freshman center Trent Burns is participating in warm-ups. He missed Missouri's first two games of the sesaon due to an illness.

How to Watch: Missouri Tigers vs Eastern Washington Eagles

Who: Missouri Tigers (1-1, 0-0 SEC) vs. Eastern Washington (1-1, 0-0 Big Sky)

What: Second home game for the Missouri Tigers

Where: Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo. 

When: Monday, November 11, 6 p.m.

TV: ESPN+, SECN+

Radio: Tiger Radio Network

Series: 1-0

Last Meeting: Dec. 16, 1988: The Tigers defeated Eastern Washington 81-68. This win improved them to 8-2 on the season in a year where they finished with a 29-8 record, losing in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. 

Last Time Out, Missouri: The Tigers picked up its first win of the season over Howard, winning 77-62. Tamar Bates led all scorers with 17 points, followed close behind by Mark Mitchell with 16 and Anthony Robinson II with 13. 

Last Time Out, Eastern Washington: Led by transfer guard Andrew Cook with 25 points, the Eagles secured its first win of the season over Seattle U. The scoring push from its starting lineup pushed the Eagles over the finish line in a hard-fought battle.