Shae Griffith/The Maneater

Missouri’s new women’s basketball coach Kellie Harper, had her home opener exhibition game against Maryville on Tuesday, Oct. 28 at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Mo. She continued her tenure with an 1-1 record after beating Central Arkansas 78-71 on Nov. 3.

The Missouri Tigers kicked off their 2025-26 season with a 78-71 win over Central Arkansas on Nov. 3 at the Mizzou Arena.

This game started the Tigers’ new era under new head coach Kellie Harper. With eight new players on the roster, this season’s lineup sets a clean slate for the program.

The game began with lead swapping between teams. Mizzou’s defense started strong, and excelled at running out the shot clock. However, with each point for the Tigers, the Bears sped up the play and swiftly responded.

Junior guard Shannon Dowell closed the first quarter with a last-second jumper to tie the score at 18-18. Making shots and slowing down the ball proved to be a struggle for Missouri in holding a lead.

Sophomore guard Chloe Sotell and freshman forward Reka Toman energized the Tigers in the second quarter with back-to-back points, giving the Tigers a strong 25-20 lead. While Mizzou faced growing pains defensively, quick passes and offensive resilience allowed it to close out the first half of the game with a 35-34 lead.

The Bears strengthened their defense in the third quarter as the teams once again fought to hold a lead. Fortunately for the Tigers, Central Arkansas found itself in foul trouble, concluding the game with 30 personal fouls.

Central Arkansas’ weaknesses helped Dowell gain a 46-41 lead for Missouri with a layup followed by a free throw. She was the top scorer and defender of the night with a total of 21 points and 12 rebounds.

In the Tigers’ 2024-25 season, the third-quarter curse was a well-known character trait for them. In this game, however, Harper seemingly fixed that problem, as they held a 57-52 lead to close out the third quarter.

The Bears kept fouling in the final quarter, aiding in the Tigers’ lead. But Missouri began to have foul troubles of its own, allowing Central Arkansas to catch up 71-71.

With layups from seniors Jordana Reisma and Jayla Smith, plus more free throws, the Tigers took back their lead and won 78-71.

The Tigers’ biggest weakness appeared to be three-pointers, with a three-point percentage of 27.8%. They made up for this shortcoming with free throws, with a team percentage of 73.3%

“I think we have good shooters,” Harper said in the post-game press conference. “We haven’t shot the ball well yet. There’s no doubt we need to shoot the ball well for us to be playing at our best.”

Missouri hits the road for its next game against Tulane on Thursday, Nov. 6, at 6:30 p.m. in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Edited by Jack Wiselogel l [email protected]
Copy edited by Emma Harper | [email protected]
Edited by Alex Gribb | [email protected]