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3 disturbing takeaways from Mizzou's blowout loss to No. 20 Illinois

Rivalry games can have blowouts and statistical anomalies. But this one exposed structural issues that the Tigers have been flirting with all season — and ones that will define how far this group can realistically go once conference play begins.

Missouri head coach Dennis Gates, right, speaks with an official during a NCAA men's basketball game against Notre Dame at Purcell Pavilion on Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in South Bend. | MICHAEL CLUBB/SOUTH BEND TRIBUNE / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Missouri’s 91–48 loss to Illinois was jarring not simply because of the score, but because of what it revealed.