
Mizzou controlled this one from the tip, winning 78-49 on Field Trip day
Mizzou women’s basketball is officially on a roll. The Tigers (5-2) won their fourth straight with a 78-49 victory over Little Rock. Mizzou has now won their last three games by 20-plus points including outscoring its opponents 265-163 over that stretch.
The first quarter belonged to Grace Slaughter. The standout sophomore scored 14 points plus a pair of triples thanks to a bevy of spin moves, pump fakes and step-throughs. Slaughter outscored Little Rock all by herself, as the Tigers led 25-7 after 10 minutes.
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M NATION)
After that fast start Slaughter’s offense cooled down, finishing the game with only 19 points. While she had the opportunity to force the issue and set a career high (currently set at 22), Slaughter simply worked within the flow of the offense.
“They adjusted a little bit later in the game, heard them say ‘Don’t let her go left!’,” Slaughter said. “It’s just how the game goes and you keep playing and just hit the open man.”
After Little cut the lead to 12 after a 6-2 run to start the second. A Trojans technical foul quickly turned the Tide again, as Mizzou ended the half on a 17-7 run. The Tigers defense held the Little Rock offense in check, as the Trojans shot 25% from the field and only 10% from three at the halfway mark. With 49 points, this was the first time this season where Mizzou held its opponents below 50; Despite getting close on several other occasions.
In addition to Slaughter’s 16, Angie Ngalakulondi made her mark as a scorer with 9 first half points. Angie served as a presence on the inside, finishing 3-4 on shooting with all her shots coming right next to the basket. She did much more than score, pulling in five rebounds to either spark the offense down the floor or keep possessions alive.
The lead jumped higher and higher in the second half, peaking at (blank) points. This time it was Nyah Wilson’s turn to lead the offense. She set a new high in points as a Tiger with 19 after shooting 7-10 from the field and 3-4 from deep. The New Mexico transfer looks more and more comfortable with each game; After scoring only 8 points across her first 4 games, Wilson has turned it up 37 in the last 3. That’s a PPG increase of 10.3!
“I really, really have the trust and faith in my teammates, and I feel like they feel the same about me,” Wilson said. “Just be able to play your game and knowing that if it doesn’t come to me I can have other people that I can depend on.”
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M NATION)
When the final buzzer sounded Mizzou won 78-49, scoring over 70 points for the third straight game. This came after scoring UNDER 70 through the first four contests. A large part of this offensive explosion came from 34 points in the paint, limiting Little Rock to 16 in the same category. Overall, the Tigers controlled the areas down low, outrebounding their opponents 45-29 and 14-11 on the offensive glass.
It was Columbia Public Schools day, and hundreds of screaming children took a break from the classroom to enjoy the show at Mizzou Arena. The atmosphere was defeating, with the usual student section replaced with the high-pitched squeals of energizer bunnies enjoying their day off.
“They can get really, really loud,” Head Coach Robin Pingeton said. “Really appreciate them being here and I know our players do as well.”
This marks the conclusion of a two-game homestand as Mizzou heads to the Emerald Coast Classic in Destin, Florida to kick off Thanksgiving week on Monday/Tuesday. First off is a matchup against Syracuse (2-3) at 5 p.m. on FloHoops.
The Tigers head there with all the momentum in the world.
“Stacking days is really important,” Pingeton said. “It’s just one day at a time, how we show up for practice and film session and then the game and just trying to continue to build off that…They’re like-minded in what they want to get done. They understand what the mission is, and how do we continue to lean in to ‘we over me’ and just get better one day at a time.
(MICHAEL BANIEWICZ/ROCK M NATION)
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