Mizzou drops fifth straight game in renewed rivalry with Oklahoma
NORMAN, Okla. (KMIZ)
Mizzou Women's Basketball has fallen to 0-5 in SEC play, following its fourth double-digit loss in five games to a conference opponent.
No. 13 Oklahoma never trailed in the renewal of its former Big-12 Conference rivalry with the Tigers, handing Mizzou a 80-63 loss at the Lloyd Noble Center on Thursday night.
Head Coach Robin Pingeton's group stayed within striking distance of Oklahoma throughout the first half. MU faced just a two-point deficit at OU with about four minutes left in the first quarter after Nyah Wilson hit one of the team's seven three-pointers. However, the Sooners responded by stringing together a 7-0 scoring run to cushion its lead and take a 19-10 advantage.
Grace Slaughter cut that deficit down to just four points with one of her two three-pointers at the 6:46-mark in the second quarter. However, Oklahoma's Payton Verhulst set the stage for the Sooners to pull away with the lead, posting a steal and score with just seconds left before halftime to give her team a seven-point advantage at the break.
From there, Mizzou's 39-32 deficit swelled to as many as 21 points in the second half, ignited by Oklahoma's 13-0 scoring run to start the third quarter. Verhulst supplied nearly half of OU's offense, tormenting the Tigers to the tune of a career-high 38 points and six three-pointers to seal MU's fifth straight loss.
Slaughter and Laniah Randle ended the game tied with a team-best 15 points, each shooting 50% from the floor. The Southern Illinois Carbondale transfer also tallied a team-high nine boards, finishing just one rebound shy of a double-double, and three steals.
As a team, Mizzou connected on just 37.9% of its attempts and shot 33.3% from three-point range while committing 18 turnovers. Oklahoma hit more than 50% of its field goals and ended the contest 11-for-24 from beyond the arc.
Up next - The Tigers end their two-game road trip with a visit to Auburn, the only other SEC team without a conference victory. Tipoff is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 19 at 2 pm.
