Coach Pingeton earns Missouri win No. 250 in style
Players on the Missouri bench stand up and cheer after their teammate made a 3-point shot during the Tigers’ exhibition game against Truman State on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024, at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo.
Missouri wins a close game against Arkansas with a final score of 75-73, thanks to a game-winner from senior forward Laniah Randle.
Sophomore guard Averi Kroenke started the game out strong with a 3-pointer in the first possession. Though Missouri was on the board first, the Razorbacks didn’t let the game slip away, keeping it close early on.
After a brief media timeout, Arkansas put four quick points on the board, building a lead of 17-13. The roles reversed as the Tigers fell behind for the first time in the contest.
In the last minute of the first period, graduate student point guard De’Myla Brown knocked down a three-pointer, followed by a layup from sophomore forward Hannah Linthacum. This brought the Tigers within one point, closing out the quarter 21-20.
Randle made a jumper early in the second quarter, but Missouri’s offense stalled soon after. Senior Razorback guard Izzy Higginbottom scored six straight points, giving her squad a 28-22 lead, their largest lead of the game to that point.
Junior guard Ashton Judd hit her first three-pointer of the night, and junior guard Tilda Sjökvist made a shot at the buzzer. This brought the Tigers four points behind Arkansas, rounding out the first half at 35-31.
Randle started the third quarter with back-to-back jumpers, tying the game up at 35-35. Her run was countered quickly. The Razorbacks soon pulled ahead, extending their lead 41-35.
It only took one three-pointer from Sjökvist to spark a run for the Tigers. Brown and Sjökvist each continued the run with a three-pointer, temporarily taking back the lead 44-41. Sjökvist’s barrage of buckets led her to a season-high 13 points, surpassing her previous high of five.
Arkansas wouldn’t let the Tigers pull too far away, as the teams dueled over the lead for the rest of the quarter. The quarter finally wrapped up at 49-48, with Arkansas still in the lead.
The Razorbacks came out strong, but Randle and Linthacum fired back, tying the score 52-52 with back-to-back layups. Randle took the reins from there, keeping the Tigers hot on Arkansas’ tail.
Quick to silence the Razorbacks, Randle poured in nine points. The fight for the lead persisted throughout the quarter, leading to a nail-biter as the game came to a close.
Down 73-72, Judd took a trip to the free-throw line, but could only drop in one. This point tied the score 73-73 with only seven seconds left. The game came down to the last play for Missouri. Randle stole a misfired Arkansas pass and nailed the transition layup just before the buzzer sounded, winning the game for the Tigers 75-73.
Randle was the team’s top scorer and rebounder, scoring 20 points and hauling in nine boards. Slaughter also scored 13 points of her own with a strong effort on the glass leading to eight rebounds.
This game marked head coach Robin Pingeton’s 250th Missouri win, following the announcement of her departure after her 15th season with the team.
The Tigers hosted their last game of the regular season against Vanderbilt at 2 p.m. on March 2, at Mizzou Arena.
Edited by Killian Wright | kwright@themaneater.com
Copy edited by Natalie Kientzy | nkientzy@themaneater.com
Edited by Annie Goodykoontz | agoodykoontz@themaneater.com