Missouri women’s basketball beat the Florida Gators 74-67 on Thursday, giving the Tigers their eighth Southeastern Conference victory this season, the most they have had since joining the SEC.
Stats-wise, Florida seemed like a tough opponent.
Florida has on its team the SEC’s leading scorer, senior Ronni Williams, who helped the Gators shoot 45.2 percent Thursday night. Florida also leads the conference in rebounds, with an average of 42 per game. Not surprisingly, the Gators outrebounded the Tigers in the game, bringing in twice as many offensive rebounds.
The single stat that the Tigers excelled in, which ultimately secured them the win, was in the 3-point column. Mizzou made 13 of them, and held Florida to just five treys.
The 3-pointers came pouring in the second and fourth quarters, the periods of the game where Mizzou surged and made up for its poor performances in the first and third quarters. The 3-pointer also led the Tigers to a 13-0 run at the end of the first half, and secured the lead toward the end of the game.
Outside shooting turned out to help Mizzou. But the first and third quarters mainly hurt the Tigers, thanks to the Gators’ ability to score in the paint and capture offensive rebounds, which the Tigers’ defense at times couldn’t handle.
In a battle between three-pointers and inside scoring, the former prevailed.
Sophomore Sophie Cunningham had 28 points, and senior Sierra Michaelis contributed 15 points.
**Next up:** Missouri goes back to home court Sunday against No. 6 South Carolina.
_Edited by Eli Lederman | elederman@themaneater.com_