We turn the Starting Five preview to the women’s side today. In this feature, we’ll give you the anticipated starting lineups for each team, break down keys to a Missouri win and offer up a prediction.
Here’s the breakdown of tonight’s game against Vanderbilt:
OFF THE BENCH: Rachel Bell, who started the last time Missouri played Vanderbilt, could very well be a starter still. She came off the bench, but played 34 minutes and scored a team-high 22 points in the ‘Dores loss to Florida on Sunday. Erin Whalen will also be a threat off the bench. The sophomore guard is averaging 7.3 points per game.
OFF THE BENCH: Robin Pingeton will look to Jordan Roundtree and Jordan Chavis for their three-pointer attack to counter Vanderbilt’s offense. Roundtree is shooting 43 percent and Chavis is shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc. Kayla Michael will also probably get more minutes, too. She is shooting 43 percent from the field and has a surprise three-ball that could catch the ‘Dores off guard.
KEYS TO THE GAME
1. Shut Vanderbilt’s offense down. Vanderbilt has a powerful offense that you wouldn’t expect a 2-12 SEC team to have. The Commodores shoot the ball very well — 45 percent from the field and 39 percent from the perimeter — that can catch some teams off guard if they’re not ready for it. Luckily, Missouri knows what’s coming, but the Tigers need to play tough defense to make sure Vanderbilt doesn’t go on too many runs.
2. Attack offensively. One of the reasons Vanderbilt hasn’t won many games is because it just doesn’t have a lot of defense. The 'Dores allow opponents to get out to a quick start, and then they have to play catch-up the whole game. Missouri has to come out strong and make those early baskets to run up the score. In the two SEC games Vanderbilt has won, it led after the first half. In every other conference game except one (77-75 loss to Alabama), the Commodores have trailed the first half and never caught back up.
3. Get to the free throw line. Missouri is one of the most efficient free throw teams in the country. Fourteen points off of free throws is a huge reason the Tigers beat Tennessee on Sunday in the final seconds. Getting those easy points will build up Missouri’s score and Vanderbilt will have work extra hard to have the offensive attack it does in the first place. Plus, if the Tigers can get the Commodores in foul trouble, Vanderbilt doesn’t have much of a bench to play off of, either.
TIP TIME INFORMATION
TIPOFF: 7 p.m. Central
TELEVISION: SEC Network+
RADIO: Tiger Radio Network
THE BOTTOM LINE
Missouri (22-5, 10-4 SEC) is on its way to a double-bye in the SEC Tournament next week… if the Tigers can avoid a bad loss to Vanderbilt (6-22, 2-12). While this is unlikely, anything can happen. Vanderbilt has suffered some close losses, and if it gets on a roll, the offensive attack can be deadly. The Tigers have to shut that down and get a win on senior night — which will be honoring Jordan Frericks, Kayla Michael and Bri Porter. However, Missouri has to keep its emotions in check and get the win tonight to do bigger and better things come the postseason.
PREDICTION: Missouri 74, Vanderbilt 60
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Jordan Frericks is five boards away from 1,000 career rebounds. She will get that tonight and become just the third Tiger in program history to have 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.
