is an addiction for most true fans that is very hard to

ORLANDO, Fla. -- K.J. Walton scored 20 points and Frankie Hughes added 14 points as Missouri rallied to beat Tulane 67-62 at the Tire Pros Invitational.Kevin Puryear scored 11 points for the Tigers (2-2), who claimed seventh-place in the tournament.Im glad for our team that we finally experienced some success at this tournament, Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. I think maybe we had a little doubt in our minds today and the only way I know to cure that is to play with effort and intensity. We challenged them to do that and they responded.Tulane (1-4) got 18 points from Cameron Reynolds and 10 apiece from Malik Morgan and Kaiin Harris, but lost for the third straight time.This was a tale of two halves for us, Tulane coach Mike Dunleavy said. I thought we did a really nice job with their dribble penetration in the first half. Then they just took it to us in the second half, got to the free throw line a bunch and scored 40 points in the paint on us. Its hard to survive that number.Puryear and Walton, who had two points each in the first half, woke up a stagnant Missouri offense at the start of the second half. They combined for 27 points after halftime.Puryear scored nine of his teams first 11 points of the second half with some strong post-up moves to cut the 10-point halftime deficit to just 36-33 with 15:50 left. A few minutes later, Walton came off the bench and scored 11 points in a 15-3 run to give Missouri a 51-46 lead.BIG PICTUREMissouri desperately needed this win. The Tigers looked uninspired in the first half, but showed a lot of fight and energy in the final 20 minutes. Tulane was just as desperate, but expectations for the Green Wave arent nearly as high as they are for the Tigers. Tulane led most of the game and had an opportunity to steal a win at the end.AT THE LINEMissouri didnt shoot a free throw in the first half, but went 13 of 16 in the second half.Us not shooting a free throw in the first half is not a criticism of the officials, we just werent taking the ball strong to the basket, Anderson said. We didnt abandon the perimeter game in the second half, but we wanted to get the ball to the basket as much as possible and it showed.WRONG DIRECTIONMissouri allowed opponents to shoot progressively better in each of its first three games before halting the run against Tulane. The Tigers limited Tulane to 33.3 percent for the game, after allowing Davidson to shoot 44.4 percent in its last game.UNFAMILIAR TERRITORYTulanes 32-22 halftime lead was the first time the Green Wave has led at the half in three games in the tournament. The advantage didnt last.UP NEXTTulane travels to Georgia Tech Saturday.Missouri will host Northwestern State Saturday. 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There was a lingering feeling in the pit of my stomach during Saturdays Canelo Alvarez-Liam Smith bout that was hard to ignore and was probably best summed up in this tweet.Boxing fans should demand more from their favorite sport. This new norm is heartbreaking.- Brian Campbell (@BCampbellESPN) September 18, 2016Cynical fans on social media were quick to remind that this new norm wasnt that far removed from what we have experienced as a whole over the past decade. While in most cases thats true, with boxings many shortcomings having long become accepted by its worn down and underserved fan base.But if were being honest when looking at 2016 as a whole, its difficult to overlook that this is just about as bad as it gets. Already successful at running off casual fans thanks to its broken system, boxing is now threatening to do the same to its backbone of hard-core fans -- the same ones who defend (and most importantly fund) the sports slow decay.Here was Alvarez, the Mexican superstar and de facto face of the sport, headlining a pay-per-view no one asked for against a little known and overmatched opponent. The only thing at stake outside of Alvarez and promoter Oscar De La Hoya lining their own pockets was the trinket of a 154-pound title Smith had captured despite not having a signature victory of any kind.The fight also took place in a division in which Alvarez -- the sports lineal middleweight champion, no less -- has no interest in competing in. Even the undercard played down to its dismally low level of expectations.Afterward, both Alvarez and De La Hoya spun narratives of half-truths while attempting to put off for another year the superfight that should have already taken place -- Alvarezs showdown with unified middleweight titlist Gennady Golovkin -- to a time when Triple G will conveniently be closer to age 36 and fans will be worn out from the journey getting there.While Alvarez and De La Hoya arent exclusively to blame for boxings deeper dive into irrelevance in 2016, their unrepentant heel turn is discouraging when you consider their history for giving fans what they want and deserve.But during a calendar year in which nearly all parties involved have put their own immediate financial needs in front of the long-term health of the sport, its becoming increasingly difficult for fans to separate the heroes from the villains.This isnt the every other year phenomenon that has recently plagued the sport, with both 2012 (drug suspensions, promotional cold war) and 2014 (well ... everything)?proving awful, only for the sport to rebound spectacularly in 2013 (great fights, healthy competition between HBO and Showtime) and 2015 (launch of PBC, Floyd Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao buzz).This is much worse, with years of disturbing trends finally escalating to the level of an epidemic. This is an entire sport taking the path of least resistance in hopes of creating a spark for that one great fight on the horizon, only to then milk it for all its worth with bait-and-switch tactics in the buildup.Sound familiar? Its Mayweather-Pacquiao all over again, which is something De La Hoya is clearly looking to replicate with Golovkin-Alvarez. But the flippant way in which hes testing the patience of his own customers during a time when boxing no longer has the collateral to do so is short-sighted, especially after so many casual fans -- the ones needed to sell large numbers of PPVs -- vowed to never be fooled again after the $100 dud last May.Instead, 2016s biggest fights have been a series of glorified mismatches and gratuitous rematches, making boxing feel more like a touring rock concert than an actual competition, with top superstars being paid handsomely to play their hits in fights designed to make them look good. Watching Alvarez croon his adoring crowd of 50,000-plus fans at the cavernous AT&T Stadium in Arlinggton, Texas, very much felt the same way, which was probably by design.dddddddddddd.Alvarez has become just another imitator of the dangerous precedent set by Mayweather, who repeatedly leveraged his sublime talent and marketability into a series of low-risk marquee fights for large rewards. Its a business model designed by Mayweathers adviser and PBC creator Al Haymon, who lets not forget came to boxing fresh off his success as a giant in which avenue? Yes, the concert promotion business.Its the same copycat model being attempted by PBC fighters like Adonis Stevenson, Danny Garcia and Adrien Broner, with each one gaining an inflated sense of financial worth after being overpaid for showcase fights, providing them with literally millions of reasons to outright avoid the dangerous ones.Its one thing for only one of boxings top stars to consistently match himself disproportionate to his talent level, as fans had endured with Mayweather in recent years. But when it quickly becomes nearly every big name in the sport, making fights that matter becomes impossible.Gone is the fantasy that if casual fans, who only came around twice per year to complain how boring and expensive a Mayweather pay-per-view fight was, would just watch the sport on the other 50 weekends each year, they would be hooked. Not in 2016.Not with HBO, long the gold standard for boxing on premium pay cable, handcuffed with budget issues, forcing one non-deserving fight after another to the PPV level. And not with PBC largely refusing to match its best against each other in cards not funded by Showtime/CBS, while constantly flooding the market on other networks with fights not worthy of being televised.Even the one fight that truly matters above all this year -- the Nov. 19 showdown for pound-for-pound supremacy between unified light heavyweight titlist Sergey Kovalev and Andre Ward -- has been saddled with an unnecessary year-long buildup in which both fighters looked underwhelming in tune-up bouts, robbing from the potential crossover buzz.The sport has done well to fight off the constant boxing is dead hysteria in recent years by providing its hardened regulars with just enough reminders as to why they fell in love in the first place, despite constant obstacles like big-name promoters proving unwilling to work with each other.The reason is because boxings almost arrogant resiliency takes root within a singular reality that remains true: When its operating at its best, no other sport can provide an equal high or summon as deep an emotional reaction as boxing. In fact, its not even close.In that regard, boxing is an addiction for most true fans that is very hard to quit. Promoters know this; in fact, they feast on this. But its an abusive relationship at best, especially in 2016. And when theres little payoff to be found for the fans whose hard-earned pay keep the sport moving, soon enough theres little reason to tune in.Its heartbreaking to know that your favorite sport must complete its decades-long fall before it can ever truly be fixed.Its very likely that 2016 wont be that year, despite the many problems that boxing remains embroiled in. But it would be nice if those in power woke up to the reality of the sports sinking-ship existence and spent less time preparing their own lifeboat.It would be just as nice for fans to finally use their voice in the only true manner that affects change -- with their wallet -- and stop accepting the status quo.Alvarez-Smith wasnt the only thing thats wrong with boxing in 2016, but its surely a microcosm of the path of least resistance trend that is further distancing this once great sport from the potential that still exists, buried deep within the ruins of its own remains. ' ' '