ST. LOUIS (AP) - Laurence Bowers had 23 points and 10 rebounds to lead No. 12 Missouri over No. 10 Illinois 82-73 in the annual Braggin' Rights game on Saturday.
Alex Oriakhi added 13 points and 14 rebounds as Missouri (10-1) won its fourth straight in the 32-year-old series. Jabari Brown had 18 points and Phil Pressey handed out 11 assists.
Brandon Paul led Illinois (12-1) with 23 points. Tyler Griffey scored 14, Joseph Bertrand had 13 and Nnanna Egwu 12 for the Illini.
Missouri used a 9-0 run late in the game to take the lead for good at 70-64. Brown led the spurt with four points.
The Tigers held a 58-35 edge on the boards and outscored Illinois 44-24 in the paint.
Illinois, which leads the overall series 20-12, won nine meetings in a row from 2000-08.
No. 12 MISSOURI 82, No. 10 ILLINOIS 73
ILLINOIS (12-1)
Griffey 5-8 0-0 14, Egwu 5-11 2-3 12, Richardson 3-13 0-0 7, Paul 5-18 11-14 23, Abrams 2-9 0-0 4, McLaurin 0-3 0-0 0, Bertrand 5-11 2-2 13, Henry 0-1 0-0 0, Langford 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-74 15-19 73.
MISSOURI (10-1)
Bowers 10-20 2-3 23, Oriakhi 5-10 3-3 13, Pressey 3-19 6-6 12, Bell 0-0 1-2 1, Brown 5-10 5-6 18, Criswell 3-5 1-2 7, Webster-Chan 0-1 0-0 0, Ross 3-8 1-2 8. Totals 29-73 19-24 82.
Halftime_Missouri 41-35. 3-Point Goals_Illinois 8-32 (Griffey 4-7, Paul 2-8, Bertrand 1-4, Richardson 1-9, Henry 0-1, Abrams 0-3), Missouri 5-19 (Brown 3-7, Bowers 1-3, Ross 1-4, Webster-Chan 0-1, Pressey 0-4). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Illinois 35 (Egwu 9), Missouri 58 (Oriakhi 14). Assists_Illinois 10 (Paul 5), Missouri 16 (Pressey 11). Total Fouls_Illinois 21, Missouri 14. Technicals_McLaurin, Bowers. A_21,933.