Women’s Basketball Falls to Florida

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – University of Missouri Women’s Basketball fell to Florida, 86-70, Thursday night at the Stephen C. O’Connell Center.

Freshman guard Abbey Schreacke led Missouri with 16 points on a 5-of-8 performance from beyond the arc. It is the first time this season Schreacke has led the Tigers outright in the scoring column.

Senior Mama Dembele recorded 15 points, five steals and four rebounds in the contest.

Freshman guard Grace Slaughter contributed 14 points and three rebounds. Slaughter has scored in double-figures in 12 of the Tigers’ 13 conference games this season.

Senior forward Hayley Frank totaled 12 points and a team-high six rebounds. With the total, Frank now stands 24 points shy of becoming the fourth Tiger to score 2,000 in her career.

Florida jumped out to an early lead following the opening tip. Despite a trio of 3-pointers from Frank, sophomore guard Ashton Judd and graduate forward Abby Feit the Gators were able to take a 23-point advantage at the conclusion of the first quarter. The Strafford, Missouri native led the Tigers with six points in the frame.

Frank scored the first four points of the second quarter to provide a quick spark to the Missouri offense. Defensively, the Tigers slowed the Gators’ offensive attack as the two sides traded baskets as the half neared. Missouri connected on four of its final five attempts before the break, but the Gators were still able to extend their advantage by two in the period.

Early in the third, Dembele scored eight points to spark a 17-4 Missouri run that was capped off by a pair of triples by freshman Abby Schreacke. Florida strung together a 10-2 response run to end the frame and preserve the lead.

The Tigers opened the fourth on a 16-6 run to once again shrink the deficit. Schreacke remained hot from outside and buried another pair of threes in the spurt as the Florida advantage was cut to as low as 10. Despite the late push, the Gators slowed the pace and hung on to the victory.

UP NEXT

Missouri returns home to face Ole Miss at 6 p.m. Monday in Mizzou Arena. The contest will be broadcast on SEC Network.