KANSAS CITY, Mo. – There was no raised floor inside a fieldhouse.
No rhubarb at center court between two fiery coaches.
Nothing really to restore the competitiveness that once existed in a rivalry spanning 225 games and was last staged in 2012.
Do not blame Kansas State. It treated Missouri as a bitter enemy in the first round of the CBE Classic.
The Tigers? Well, they just weren’t good enough to comply. The draw favored the Wildcats. By rolling 66-42, the outcome was swift, complete, decisive.
“I kinda knew going back, Mizzou was part of the Big Eight and Big 12 before they left,’’ said junior guard Wesley Iwundu, “and it was a rivalry game before they left the conference.