COLUMBIA — By defeating visiting Oral Roberts 92-83 on Sunday, the Missouri men's basketball team set a school record with its 30th consecutive nonconference home win.
The streak started when Missouri beat Northwestern State 81-72 in the second game of the 2005-2006 season. It includes wins over two NCAA tournament teams in 2006-2007, Arkansas and Davidson. Last season, the Tigers beat Purdue, which finished second in the Big Ten.
Missouri coach Mike Anderson said he doesn't put much stock in the record, and neither do his players.
"We haven't really thought about it because what we try to do is try to win every game," senior forward Leo Lyons said.
The streak also includes plenty of wins over bad teams. The Tigers beat Southern University at home during each of the past two seasons. Since the start of the 2006-2007 season, the Jaguars are 21-44.
Of the 30 games, only one was decided by five points or less, an 82-81 win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 10, 2005.
The Tigers have been far less successful on the road and in Big 12 Conference play since the streak began.
During the first season of the streak, Missouri finished the season 12-16, including a 5-11 mark in the Big 12, and coach Quin Snyder resigned during the season.
During his two seasons at Missouri, Anderson has led the Tigers to a 13-19 record in conference play, including a 10th-place finish in the Big 12 last season.
Missouri has lost in the first round of the Big 12 tournament all three seasons during the streak.
But the Tigers aren't about to start losing nonconference home games to change their luck.
"My deal is for our guys just to continue to get better," Anderson said. "We played good tonight, good enough to win, but we can play better and that's our M.O."
Anderson said that playing in front of a packed Mizzou Arena can give his team a boost, especially on the defensive side of the ball. So far this season, the crowds for Missouri's three home games have been lackluster. Missouri ranks 11th in the Big 12 in attendance, averaging under 5,500.
"Our guys enjoy playing at home in front of our fans, and let's make sure our fans continue to come and get more of them out here," Anderson said.