COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Missouri women's basketball team relied on its bench in a 60-55 triumph over UT Martin Thursday at Mizzou Arena. The balanced scoring attack featured over 40% of the points coming from the Tigers' reserves

Among the bench standouts, junior guard Sara-Rose Smith (Victoria, Australia) notched her third double-double of the campaign with 12 points and 12 boards, while freshman guard Ashton Judd (West Plains, Mo.) continued her strong first collegiate season with 11 points and six rebounds.

Two other Tigers scored in double figures, as senior forward Hayley Frank (Strafford, Mo.) led Mizzou with 15 points and senior guard Lauren Hansen (Long Island, N.Y.) dropped 11 points for her fourth-consecutive contest with double-digit points.

The Tigers received over half of their first-half production from Judd and Smith, who combined for 13 points in the opening 20 minutes to narrow Mizzou's halftime deficit to just a point.

Mizzou's defense played a consistent game and did not allow the Skyhawks' stat leaders to get going. The Tigers held UT Martin's Kenley McCarn, who averaged 25 points per game entering Thursday, to 15 points on 5-19 shooting from the field. She was the only Skyhawk to crack double figures.

With three players recording at least five rebounds, Mizzou also limited UT Martin's second-chance opportunities. The Skyhawks only netted four offensive rebounds, and the Tigers won the rebounding battle 36-29.

The Tigers also caused over a quarter of UT Martin's possessions to end in a turnover, as Mizzou's defense forced 17 turnovers and recorded eight steals on the night, including a pivotal steal from Smith to prevent a final shot.

After falling behind by as much as five points in the first half, the Tigers created their first bit of separation midway through the third quarter with a 7-0 run. Mizzou re-took the lead with a layup from Haley Troup on the fast break, followed by a Hayley Frank 3-pointer and a Lauren Hansen make from in close. The run put the Tigers up by six and put Mizzou in the lead until the final buzzer.

• Frank led the Tigers with 15 points, including 11 in the second half and grabbed six boards.
• Smith logged 32 minutes of action and added two steals to go along with her double-digit point and rebound tally.
• Judd led Mizzou with eight first-half points and shot 5-7 from the field on the game.

Missouri travels to Nassau, Bahamas for the Baha Mar Pink Flamingo Hoops Championship, a two-game slate against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. The matchup against the Demon Deacons is set to tip off at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 21. Both contests will be streamed live on FloHoops.

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