University of Missouri
Tennessee
No. 13 @MizzouWBB Downs No. 11 Tennessee, 77-73, in Front of Record Crowd
2/18/2018 10:32:00 AM | Women's Basketball
Cunningham scored a game-high 32 points to lead the Tigers
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Women's Basketball (22-5, 10-4) pulled out a hard-fought victory over No. 11 Tennessee (21-6, 9-5). Decked out in pink for the annual Play4Kay game, the Tigers battled it out in front of a program-record 11,092 fans. The teams fought for the lead in the first few minutes of the game, but a 13-0 run midway through the first quarter gave the Tigers a 15-point lead. The Lady Vols, however, clawed back, outscoring Mizzou 17-8 in the final five minutes of the half. The Tigers went into half-time with a six-point lead.
Mizzou's offensive attack was led by junior guard Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo.) and senior Jordan Frericks (Quincy, Ill.), who scored 32 and 16 points, respectively. The pair combined for 12 rebounds and six assists, providing the surge the Tigers needed down the stretch. The game went down to the final seconds, with an opportunity for the Lady Vols to tie with 1.4 seconds left in regulation. A clutch rebound hauled in by Amber Smith gave Mizzou the ball with 0.7 seconds on the clock, securing the victory as Cunningham iced the game with a pair of free throws.
Turning Point
With one minute remaining in the game, Frericks knocked down a pair of free throws to give the Tigers both momentum and a 5-point lead going into the final minute of play. Mizzou countered Tennessee buckets with free throws. With Mizzou up 75-72 with nine seconds left, Tennessee was fouled shooting a 3-pointer, but only converted one attempt at the line and Smith's rebound sealed the victory for the Tigers.
Top Tigers
- Cunningham led the offensive attack with 32 points, only her second time scoring 30+ points this season. Her season high performance of 35 points came on December 10 against SIUE.
- Cunningham's dominance on both ends of the floor marked the 3rd time this season she has scored 25+ points, grabbed 5+ rebounds and dished 5+ assists.
- With seven rebounds, Frericks is within five of attaining 1,000 career rebounds. If that's accomplished, she will only be the 3rd Tiger ever to have 1,000 career points and 1,000 career rebounds.
- Frericks continued her offensive hot streak, marking her fifth straight game scoring 15+ points. She also matched her season-high in steals with three.
- Porter added 13 points and five rebounds.
Notes
- Today's crowd set a new program record for Mizzou Women's Basketball, with 11,092 fans in attendance.
- With today's win, Mizzou now has two wins over Top-11 opponents in the same season for the first time since 1993-94 when the Tigers beat No. 6 Kansas and No. 3 Colorado.
- Mizzou shot 55.6 percent from the field, outshooting Tennessee's 43.5 percent. Mizzou has now had a higher field goal percentage than its opponent in 25 of its 27 games this season.
- The Tigers are 7-1 in their last 8 home games against Top-25 opponents and have won 42 of their last 48 home games.
- The dominant first half performance marks the ninth time this season the Tigers have scored more than 40 points in the first half. The team is 9-0 in these occurrences.
- The Tigers are now up to third place in the SEC standings with today's win.
- With her 13-point performance, Porter has now scored 10+ points 12 times this season.
Up Next
The Tigers stay at home this Thursday to face Vanderbilt. Mizzou beat the Commodores in their first meeting this season on Jan. 11, with a score of 81-70. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday on SEC Network Plus.
