ROME - The freshman duo of Frankie Hughes and Willie Jackson scored 18 points each, leading the Missouri men's basketball team to an 80-68 victory against LCC International University on Sunday at the Palazzetto Arena Altero Felici.
"Obviously, it's very exciting to see our younger players step up immediately," Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. "The competition level we've had in practice this summer has been extremely high, which is something I think the whole team has taken to heart. You have to compete every day in order to get better. Our tour in Italy is off to a great start, and I know our guys have seen and learned a lot so far."
Missouri outscored the Lithuanian team 23-15 in the second quarter to take a 45-35 halftime lead. The Tigers shot 54.3 percent from the field in the first half.
LCC International trimmed its deficit to single digits in the second half, before the Tigers won the scoring battle 20-15 in the fourth quarter en route to a 12-point victory.
Both Hughes and Jackson came off the bench to score nearly half of Missouri's points. Jackson shot 8-of-11 from the field, while Hughes finished 7-of-13 shooting, making four 3-pointers.
K.J. Walton also reached double figures with 10 points. Cullen VanLeer scored seven points and Terrence Phillips had team-highs of eight rebounds, four assists and four steals.
The win kicked off the Tigers' four-game exhibition schedule of their Italy Tour. Missouri's next game is Tuesday against BC Silute - also from Lithuania - in Montecatini Terme, with tip-off scheduled for 11:30 a.m. CST.