We’re a few days away from the annual Braggin’ Rights game between Illinois and Missouri. What have been some of their most exciting games in recent memory?

On December 22nd, Illinois and Missouri will meet up in St. Louis for the annual Braggin’ Rights game, an annual rivalry game played since 1980. St. Louis is nearly halfway between both schools and it’s a uniquely neutral-site atmosphere. Regardless of how each team is playing, the game is typically a very competitive forty minutes of basketball.

The teams have had some exciting games over the years, including a triple-overtime thriller won by Missouri in 1993. Another exciting match-up featured #1 Illinois winning a close game in 2004 a few months before they made the national title game.

Illinois leads the overall series 32 to 16, dominating the 2000’s under Bill Self and Bruce Weber while Missouri has floundered in recent years, especially under Kim Anderson. Illinois has won the last five games, none of them by more than nine points. While Missouri has the better team this season and will likely be a favorite to break that losing streak, anything could happen in St. Louis.

For now, we’re going to take a closer look at the five most exciting matchups of the last decade.