Mizzou women’s basketball doomed by slow start in loss to Florida

Mizzou women’s basketball had an unsuccessful road trip to Gainesville, losing to Florida 89-71. A disastrous first quarter made the difference for the Tigers, trailing by 18 points after the first 10 minutes.

It started from tipoff, as the Gators opened the game on an 11-0 run in the first three minutes to force a Harper timeout. Mizzou struggled to guard the Florida offense, as they finished 10-16 from the field in the first quarter. By comparison the Tigers could not getting anything working on offense as they shot 2-12 and turned the ball over five times.

The Tigers struggled to slow down the Gators offense the entire game, as the home team shot 53% from the field and 40% on threes. This has been a consistent theme in SEC play, as this is the third loss where Mizzou has allowed 85-plus points.

Sophomore superstar Liv McGill was the catalyst for the offensive attack with 28 points, shooting 10-19 alongside nine rebounds and seven assists. Another major advantage came in bench contributions, with Florida earning a 26-5 edge in the category.

But that lack of bench production forced Grace Slaughter and Shannon Dowell to kick it into high gear, each scoring 20-plus points despite the loss.

Slaughter led the team with 29 points, shooting 11-17 on field goals and 4-7 on threes while adding five rebounds to keep the Tigers competitive in the final three quarters. Dowell finished with 23 points, doing most of her damage from the free throw line as she finished 12-14. The rest of the team struggled to find an offensive rhythm, combining for only 19 points while shooting 6-24 and 3-16 from three.

Florida has been a nightmare matchup for the Tigers, winning the previous five matchups dating back to 2023. This is despite the fact that the Gators have not been considered one of the conference’s top teams, failing to make the NCAA Tournament during that stretch. For whatever reason, Florida always brings out its best against Mizzou.

Here is what happened during the three even quarters of action:

Both offenses found success in the second quarter, each scoring 21 as Florida led 47-29 at the half. Mizzou shot 8-14 including 2-4 on threes to get their offense rolling. This was propelled by Slaughter with 12 in the quarter, bringing her up to 14 points in the first half. Slaughter and Dowell combined for 25 of the team’s 29 points in the first half. But the Tigers failed to find stops as the Gators shot 8-17 from the field and 3-7 from three. Much of this success was found at the rim with Florida leading the first half points in the paint 22-12.

The third quarter was once again even, both teams scored 19 as the Gators still led 66-48. Both teams made seven field goals but Mizzou had the advantage in made-threes, finishing the quarter 4-10 from beyond-the-arc. Florida matched that output from the free throw line, finishing 4-4 in the quarter while the Tigers finished 1-3 in the frame. Slaughter continued her strong game with another nine points in the quarter to pilot the Mizzou offense.

In the fourth quarter both offenses sprinted up and down the court, each finishing with 23 points. While Mizzou only finished 5-14 shooting the ball in the fourth, they scored by finishing 11-14 from the free throw line. Dowell made 7-8 in the frame, leading the parade to the free throw line. Florida held off Mizzou for the final 10 minutes thanks in large part to four-made triples at key moments to stuff a Tiger comeback.

Mizzou falls to 1-5 in the SEC and 0-3 on the road. The Tigers will look for another win when they return to Mizzou Arena for the next two games. It starts with a showdown against No. 16 Ole Miss at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, who just lost to an unranked Georgia team. The game will be available to watch on SEC Network+ through the ESPN app.