Sophomore Emmanuelle Tahane was open on the perimeter most of the night. She repeatedly pump-faked at the three-point line hoping someone would bite but it never happened. UMKC was daring Tahane to shoot it from deep, but she didn't let one go until there was 2:12 left in the third quarter.
It was the first made three of her career and it put the Tigers up by 15 points.
Missouri went on to win 66-59 and that shot stood out as the final blow in what was a competitive game for two and a half quarters. The Tigers had every reason to be excited after cruising to their fourth straight victory. Yet, it was anything but happy after No. 23 Missouri locked up its seventh win this season.
“If we’re going strictly on a box score that’s another good win for us,” Coach Robin Pingeton said. “But if you want to break down the game, obviously, it wasn’t one of our better games… Honestly, I didn’t think we came with a killer mentality tonight and that’s the most disappointing thing.”
The Tigers win wasn’t without flaws. 17 turnovers and 53 percent shooting from the free throw line stood out even though Missouri led for most of the game.
Pingeton characterized the performance as “unacceptable” and that tonight was an example of the team playing without a sense of urgency. It's something that may come to haunt Missouri as the Tigers progress into Southeastern Conference play next month.
The game began with a silent Mizzou Arena. Just a couple minutes in, senior Sophie Cunningham was hunched over near midcourt and one of the referees signaled for an injury timeout. Cunningham walked gingerly to the Tigers sideline, skipped the bench and headed straight for the locker room. Fans seemed to be in a daze, everyone wondering what just happened.
Cunningham didn’t provide much of an explanation after the win.
“Actually, it was Amber’s fault,” Cunningham said with a smile, referencing to landing on her teammate’s foot. “But I’m good now.”
Cunningham was in the locker room for less than five minutes before trotting back out to the scorer's table and checking in. What started as a terrifying night for Missouri fans quickly turned into a quality first half for Cunningham, who scored 15 points on 5-7 shooting and four rebounds.
But UMKC was only down by two points at the break. Junior Ericka Mattingly led the way with 13 points, as the Roos shot 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from three in the first half. UMKC capitalized off Missouri’s eight turnovers, converting them into 11 points.
Things immediately changed at the beginning of the third quarter when the Tigers went on a 14-3 run and held the Roos to 20 percent shooting. After that Missouri was firmly in control.
The Tigers dominated UMKC down low. Missouri outrebounded UMKC 37-24 and outscored them 36-16 in the paint. Offensively, Cunningham and junior Amber Smith played a large role in that.
“When they’re going to play us one-on-one in the post and no one’s going to be helping I think it’s a really good advantage for me and Amber,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham finished with 24 points, six rebounds, and two assists after being held under 10 points in Missouri’s previous two wins. Smith had 19 points and 10 rebounds, her fifth double-double through nine games this season.
Missouri travels to St. Louis this weekend to take on SLU on Sunday, Dec. 9 at 5 p.m.
The quick turnaround gives the Tigers a way to overcome the disappointing victory Wednesday night. Pingeton wants to see the focus shift back to preparing for that game like Missouri did for Duke and West Virginia.
“All that stuff matters,” Pingeton said. “We’re not good enough to just lace them up and go play. I think we are at our best when we play with toughness, grittiness, and a sense of urgency and an attention to detail… When you get away from that kind of mentality you’re going to be a pretty average team.”
The Billikens are 4-5 and coming off a 56-point loss to UCONN on Tuesday, Dec. 4.
