The Bitter Rivalry

(Chris Lee/STLPost-Dispatch)

If you've never experienced the rivalry between the Universities of Missouri and Kansas, you may find it comparable to that of New York and Boston or the not far off rivalry between St. Louis and Chicago. Neither side likes each other, and that's about as big an understatement as you can make. There is actual hatred between these two schools.

While the rivalries between New York and Boston or St. Louis and Chicago might have been convenient for sport, the rivalry between Missouri and Kansas is that and more. The rivalry finds its roots in actual war and battle. War is often an overused metaphor for sports, but really it's the only thing that seems to fit the situation that falls between these two entities.

It's safe to say that both sides hate each other.

For some that battle still rages, though it's more internal now. Now you have to battle with yourself not to either deck that guy with that weird bird on his shirt or honk at the car that's got a fluffy stripped tail hanging from the back of it. However, that sense of bitterness is nestled down deep for those at both schools.

This deep seated hatred on both sides shows in almost every way that both schools converge, and none more prominent than in sports. Basketball is certainly a part of that, and it certainly showed this weekend in what could very well be the last game played between these rivals in Columbia, Missouri.


The Fuse Is Lit

Tensions are always high with a rivalry game, and everyone has some pent up energy ready to explode. The fact that this time around both teams are highly ranked and are in a fight for the conference title only continues to push things to the breaking point.

Even before the game, Mizzou students were on edge. Almost as soon the doors opened, order fell to the back of the mind. One person makes a fast break from the end of the line and the whole body of likely over 1,000 students rush to war. Sprinting to meet their enemy head on at the gates. Of course, some order had to be restored, and it did in the form of some doorframes that forced the giant mass into a funnel of sanity.

Fortunately, that sanity remained, at least until game time.

As the lights dimmed, the roar began. It was a roar that overcame all. It was a tidal wave that would not be stopped. Anything that tried to overtake it was quickly drowned out. Like water it had its ebbs and flows. It would rise as the Mizzou mascot, Truman, was lowered from the rafters, a nod to a tradition at the Hearnes Center only a few hundred feet away. It would rise once again as the sparks and fire would shoot out of the scoreboard during the introductions, and roar ever more at tipoff.


The Game

As the smoke from the pre-game ceremonies continued to hover around the court, the fire in the hearts of the fans and players continued to rage. Both sides exchanged blows throughout much of the first half. Kansas quickly found its fouls beginning to pile up, but Missouri found turnovers and travels as their worst enemy.

With smoke all around and a battle below, war is here.
(L. G. Patterson/AP)

Missouri's seven for nine free throw shooting in the first half was essentially the difference in what was a 39-34 Missouri lead at the end of the half.

As the players returned to their locker-rooms, that sense of pent up energy returned to the crowd. It was as if the halftime break couldn't be short enough. Some used the moments to catch their breath, but everyone was still anticipatory of what was to come. This was where everything was leading to, the final score. The final stretch.

Finally, the countdown ended and the players were on the court once more. The second half began much like the first, punches exchanged back and forth. Except now the faces of both teams were well bruised and swollen. Both teams were beginning to feel out where the weaknesses lied and were beginning to exploit them.

Kanas was beginning to use its size and big men down low to its full advantage. Missouri was being outmuscled and it seemed things were unravelling. This seems at its peek when Kansas was up 71-63 with just 3:24 to go.

Marcus Denmon (left) certainly made his presence known.
(Bill Greenblatt/UPI)

However, the flame had not gone out within the Tigers and they went on the attack. The one leading this pack? Marcus Denmon. The senior guard was already Missouri's player of the game, already 20 points on the night, but he made himself the player of the game in the final 3 minutes of play. He scored 9 of Missouri's final 11 points and made shots that seemed to define destiny. It was a destiny that pointed toward Missouri.

Denmon couldn't miss and Kansas needed a map to find the basket. Fortunately, for the Tigers, there are no maps in Bill Self's suit or at the gift shop. The game was Kansas' to lose at that point, but when they didn't show up Mizzou took over.

Denmon made baskets when they needed it, and some seemed almost unbelievable to behold. Of course, Kansas had plenty of chances, but at this point the crowd would have no part of a Kansas win. Every possession by Kansas was met by the loud roar that was now accompanied by the war drums of the metal bench in front of you. The ground seemed to shake and the walls reverberate to the whim of the crowd.

The awful din of the crowd seemed to even last past the final buzzer. As tension was replaced by exhilaration, the ringing in the ears of the fans of Missouri mixed well with a very pleasant word: triumph.

Kim English and the Mizzou faithful will never forget this night.
(L. G. Patterson/AP)