CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – University of Missouri Women’s Basketball was narrowly defeated in overtime by Virginia, 87-81, in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge Thursday night at John Paul Jones Arena.
Graduate forward Hayley Frank led the Tigers with 21 points and seven rebounds. Frank has scored 20+ in four of the last five contests.
Freshman guard Grace Slaughter aided the effort with 17 points behind a 3-of-5 performance from beyond the arc.
Freshman guard Abbey Schreacke chipped in 15 points on an efficient 5-of-6 shots from the field and totaled six rebounds in her stat line.
Sophomore guard Ashton Judd added 14 points to go along with six boards.
The Tigers pounced on the Cavaliers following the opening tip. Led by the energized play of junior forward Angelique Ngalakulondi, Mizzou initiated an 18-2 run midway through the first quarter that spanned the first two frames. Ngalakulondi scored eight and grabbed five rebounds in the initial period.
Missouri stretched its advantage to 15 as Judd converted a layup in traffic to begin the second quarter. Virginia began to chip away at the early advantage before the break, but Frank and Schreacke combined to score eight straight Tiger points to aid the Black and Gold. The duo’s effort saw the Tigers preserve a 36-28 lead at the half.
The Cavaliers ramped up their defensive intensity coming out of the break and notched a quick 11-2 run that saw them earn a one-point advantage nearly three minutes into the quarter. Despite the charge, Missouri held steady as Frank scored seven of her total down the stretch keeping the Tigers deficit at six entering the final frame.
Both teams battled for control of the contest deep into the fourth. The Cavaliers held a six-point advantage with less than two minutes remaining, but a corner triple in transition by Slaughter immediately cut the Tigers deficit in half. Virginia pushed the lead back up to four with 44 seconds on the clock, but senior Mama Dembele circled the paint and found Slaughter in the corner again for a clutch triple.
Trailing by three on the final possession of regulation, Frank was fouled on a 3-point attempt. The veteran buried all three attempts at the line to send the game to overtime.
In the extra period, Virginia seized control of the contest outscoring Missouri 12-6.
The Tigers outrebounded the Cavaliers 28-15 in the first half.
UP NEXT
Missouri will return home to face in-state opponent SEMO at 2 p.m. Saturday in Mizzou Arena. The weekend contest will air on SECN+.
