Post-season success was the only thing that had escaped Sophie Cunningham in her previous three years at Missouri. This year, Cunningham left everything on the floor and made history in the SEC tournament.
Cunningham dropped 29 points in the win over No. 13 Kentucky and the Tigers advanced to the SEC semifinals for the first time in program history.
Cunningham was better than ever against No. 5 Mississippi State. She finished with a season-high 33 points and became Missouri’s all-time leading scorer. However, Missouri fell 71-56 to the Bulldogs in the SEC semifinal.
Cunningham was waiting for a ball screen with 3:54 left in the first quarter. The Bulldogs had jumped out to an early lead and the Tigers were beginning to fight their way back from a 10-4 deficit. She went right around Emmanuelle Tahane’s screen and left two defenders scrambling behind her before pulling up at the elbow. Cunningham was wide open and there was no doubt that the ball was going in. That shot put her ahead of Joni Davis with 2, 128 career points. She sat alone at the top of Missouri’s all-time scoring list.
That was Cunningham’s second basket en route to finishing 11-16 from the field and nailing five threes. She averaged nine points a game in the SEC tournament before this season. But, Cunningham improved that to 25 points a game in the 2019 SEC tournament.
Just one problem: she was the only Tiger in double-digits. The rest of Missouri’s starters combined for seven points. Outside of Cunningham, Missouri went 8-24 from the field.
Amber Smith, the Tigers second-leading scorer, didn’t score until the 9:12 mark in the fourth quarter and finished with four points. Smith was effective in Missouri’s first two games of the tournament, but foul trouble kept her from establishing a rhythm against Mississippi State.
The Bulldogs defensive pressure also played a huge role in the 15-point victory. Anriel Howard and senior Jazzmun Holmes were constantly in passing lanes and didn’t allow the Tigers to move the ball in the half court. Missouri had 17 turnovers that led to 17 points for Mississippi State.
Missouri overcame turnovers in the first matchup because of the team’s interior defense against senior Teaira McCowan. This time McCowan couldn't be stopped. She had 27 points and 16 rebounds as the Bulldogs finished with 40 points in the paint in Greenville, South Carolina.
Despite McCowan’s dominance, Cunningham brought Missouri within seven in the third quarter. She had three straight threes and thirteen points in the quarter. However, it wasn’t enough.
Missouri (23-9) will wait for Monday, March 18 for the NCAA selection show. This will be Missouri’s fourth straight year in the NCAA Tournament and potentially the Tigers second straight year as a fifth seed.
