COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri women’s basketball could not overtake No. 18 Tennessee, falling 76-71 on Sunday afternoon at Mizzou Arena.
Senior forward Laniah Randle recorded her fifth double-double this season with 11 points, 11 rebounds and added four assists to lead Missouri (12-12, 1-8 SEC).
Graduate guard De’Myla Brown scored 18 points and grabbed three boards in 20 minutes off the bench.
Sophomore guard Grace Slaughter totaled 16 points and a block in her stat line.
Junior guard Ashton Judd notched 13 points, six rebounds and three assists.
The Tigers jumped out to a 15-3 lead following the opening tip as triples by Slaughter and sophomore guard Abbey Schreacke accelerated the charge.
Missouri’s defense held Tennessee without a field goal for the first five minutes of the contest.
A late run by the Lady Vols in the back half of the frame saw the Tigers leading 22-20 after the first quarter.
Judd opened the second with a 3-pointer to extend the advantage while the Missouri defense held Tennessee to just five points over the first six minutes of the period.
The Lady Vols closed the gap and took their first lead in the contest with three minutes left before the break, but a layup by Slaughter in the final minute knotted the game at 33-33 entering the half.
Missouri regained an advantage quickly after the break with two layups by graduate forward Angelique Ngalakulondi and Slaughter.
The lead was exchanged multiple times in the heart of the quarter before the Lady Vols scored a couple of consecutive baskets late to take a 59-52 lead into the final frame.
Tennessee led by 10 with six minutes remaining, but Brown ignited the Tigers to mount a late comeback with five consecutive points.
Mizzou sliced the deficit to just three points with one minute remaining, but Tennessee held on for the narrow victory.
Missouri outshot Tennessee 45 percent to 35 percent and scored 36 points in the paint compared to just 24 points down low for the Lady Vols.
UP NEXT
Missouri remains home to face LSU at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday at Mizzou Arena. The contest will stream live on SECN+.
