COLUMBIA, Mo. - Circle January 24, 2026. That was the night Mizzou Arena became a pressure cooker, and the Tigers refused to boil over. This felt less like a regular-season SEC tilt and more like a heavyweight title fight. Missouri outlasted Oklahoma in an 83-77 overtime thriller - a gritty, physical brawl that showcased the exact resilience head coach Dennis Gates had been begging for all winter.
The win pushed Missouri to 14-6 (4-4 SEC) and snapped a two-game skid at the perfect time. More importantly, it gave the Tigers a signature conference victory to lean on during the brutal backend of the SEC slate. For Oklahoma, who slipped to 13-7 (3-5 SEC), this was a gut punch - a missed opportunity to steal a road win in the loudest building in the Show-Me State. But looking back through the rearview mirror of late August, this game also highlighted the exact cracks that would define the Sooners’ late-season slide into NCAA Tournament bubble purgatory. The paths of these two programs diverged in overtime. The photo of a focused Mark Mitchell looking to pass, with a frantic Mohamed Wague closing out - captured by Jay Biggerstaff of Imagn Images - freezes a moment where both teams still had everything ahead of them.
Mark Mitchell’s Senior Statement Game
If one player personified the desperation of that January evening, it was senior forward Mark Mitchell. The 6'9" veteran logged a tireless 38 minutes, dropping a game-high 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting, including a thunderous put-back dunk in overtime that sent the crowd into a frenzy. He also cleaned the glass with 8 rebounds, playing like a man who knew his college career was winding down with every possession. Mitchell was the emotional anchor - screaming after big buckets, barking defensive assignments, and hitting the floater with 2:11 left in OT that gave Missouri a lead they never surrendered.
It was a performance built for highlight reels, but in hindsight, it also previewed why the professional ranks came calling months later. This wasn’t just a scorer going to work; this was a senior refusing to let his team fade into mediocrity. When the Tigers needed a bucket, Mitchell got it. When they needed a stop, Mitchell called out the switches. His stat line was gaudy, but the intangibles made this a signature moment in his Mizzou career.
📊 22 points and 8 rebounds in 38 minutes - Mark Mitchell led all scorers in the January 24, 2026 overtime win, cementing his status as Missouri's go-to guy in crunch time.
| Player | Team | Points | Rebounds | Minutes | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mark Mitchell | Missouri | 22 | 8 | 38 | Game-high scorer, OT hero |
| Mohamed Wague | Oklahoma | 6 | 5 | 18 | Fouled out in OT |
The Foul Trouble That Doomed the Sooners
On the flip side, Oklahoma’s Mohamed Wague gave the Sooners everything he had, but it wasn’t enough to survive the overtime slugfest. The forward came off the bench for 18 minutes and posted a modest 6 points and 5 rebounds - numbers that don’t jump off the stat sheet but showed a physical presence inside that kept Missouri honest. However, Wague’s night ended in the worst possible way: he fouled out late in the overtime period, leaving Oklahoma with zero interior depth during the most critical possessions.
His fifth foul - a reach-in on a Missouri drive with 1:08 remaining - sent the Tigers to the line and effectively sealed the game. For Wague, it was a microcosm of a frustrating season: a guy who could alter games with his energy but couldn’t stay on the floor when it mattered most. The Sooners needed a stopper in the extra frame, and their best interior defender was watching from the bench with his hands on his head. That’s how close games slip away in hostile environments.
Where Are They Now? July & August 2026 Updates
Fast forward to late August 2026, and the paths of these two forwards have drastically diverged. Mitchell exhausted his eligibility and went undrafted in the 2026 NBA Draft, but he didn’t stay unemployed for long. In late July, he signed an Exhibit 10 deal with the Memphis Hustle - the Grizzlies’ G-League affiliate. It’s a low-risk, high-reward contract that gives Mitchell a guaranteed training camp invite and a legitimate shot to earn a two-way call-up with Memphis. Given his versatility and that January performance, don’t be shocked if he’s averaging 18-plus points in the G-League by December.
