As if they hadn't had enough challenges in the paint in their losses in weeks prior, the Missouri women's basketball team welcomes a traditional power to town on Sunday. The Tennessee Volunteers will be a particular problem for the Tigers in the frontcourt. Tennessee (15-6, 7-0 SEC) is the third-best rebounding team in the SEC, trailing just No. 1 South Carolina and No. 3 LSU. Sitting atop the conference standings with the aforementioned Gamecocks and Tigers, the Vols are within shouting distance of the AP top 25 rankings and could sneak in given that they continue their dominant conference play.
Missouri (15-6, 3-3) on the other hand, is looking to turn a corner before the end of the month. Four of the Tigers’ six losses came in the past month, and they’ve sorely lacked the defensive fortitude to win the possession battle.
Thus far, the Tigers are one of the best shooting teams in the SEC: they’ve shot 72.6% from the free throw line (3rd), 34.8% from beyond the arc (4th) and 44.3% from the field (6th). These stats have not translated to overall success on offense, as the Tigers put up 55.2 shots per game (12th) and 14.6 free throws per game (12th), offsetting the impact of their effective shooting splits.
Missouri also sits second to last in rebounding, only beating out Vanderbilt with 35.2 rebounds a game. Adding to the interior struggles is the fact that the Tigers are dead last in offensive rebounds per game, with just 9.7 compared to Tennessee's fourth-best 15.2 per game. Second-chance shots and points are going to be the biggest areas of concern for the Tigers against the Vols.
Tiger senior and leading scorer Lauren Hansen will look to close the gap to 1,000 career points against the Vols, coming into the game with 940 in her four years with Missouri and Auburn. Meanwhile, the Tigers’ second-leading scorer Hayley Frank hopes to continue her climb up the Missouri all-time scoring list, currently sitting in 15th with 1,347 points.
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