COLUMBIA, MO. — Missouri didn't need a running game in the first half Saturday because getting the ball to Danario Alexander was as easy as handing off to any of the team's running backs.

Blaine Gabbert found the senior receiver 11 times in the first two quarters, and the Tigers rode his 171 yards to a 27-16 halftime lead.

But when Alexander didn't get the ball in the second half, the offense dried up. He finished with career highs of 13 catches and 214 yards but it wasn't enough to avoid a 40-32 loss.

"I don't think they took me away,'' he said of Baylor's defense. "They tried certain things that were different. But we had breakdowns as an offense. If everything doesn't go right, it's not going to happen.''

Among Alexander's catches in the first half was an 84-yard touchdown that was the longest of his career.

However, he had only two receptions after halftime: a 7-yarder and a late 36-yarder on the team's final possession. That was a big drop after he touched the ball on nine of the Tigers' first 22 offensive plays of the game.

"We always try to get him the ball and try to move him around a little bit,'' coach Gary Pinkel said. "We tried to get him the ball more and didn't do a very good job of getting it to him.''

The Missouri passing attack was hurt by any semblance of a running game. Additionally, Gabbert had less time to throw in the second half and was sacked four times.

NO RUNNING GAME

Baylor's four sacks played a role in Missouri finishing with only 10 rushing yards. But the Mizzou running backs simply did not produce as Derrick Washington, De'Vion Moore and Kendial Lawrence combined for 43 yards on 15 carries.

Washington had his worst game of the season with 12 yards on nine carries. Entering the game, Baylor's opponents had averaged 179.5 yards rushing per game.

RESSEL STAYS HOT

Sophomore kicker Grant Ressel matched his career longest field goal not once, but twice against Baylor. He connected from 46 yards in the second quarter to give Missouri a 13-9 lead and from the same distance in the fourth quarter.

Ressell entered the game tied for first in the country with a field-goal accuracy of 93.3 percent. He was 3 for 3 and is now 17 for 18 (94.4 percent) for the season.