Mizzou Women's Basketball Season Comes to an End with Loss in SEC Tournament to Florida
Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive Missouri women's basketball to crushing disappointment. The 2023-'24 season has included plenty of losses like that for the Tigers. The finale was no different.
Missouri fell to Florida 66-60 Wednesday in the SEC Women's Tournament, putting an end to Missouri's season.
Hayley Frank provided one last taste of hope for Missouri with 22 seconds remaining in the game. In her last game of her prolific career with Missouri, the senior forward aced a three-point shot that brought the Missouri deficit to just six points. A comeback seemed possible. But that would be the last score of the game.
The tournament loss for Missouri was perfectly symbolic of the rest of their season. The two ingredients that defined many of Missouri's 18 other losses were one horrific quarter that creates to big of a hole and a comeback where the Tigers do too little too late.
Against Florida, the quarter filled with struggle was the second where Missouri was outscored 29-to-10. The Tigers committed six turnovers in the quarter.
A comeback seemed like a possibility in the third quarter when Missouri's offense quickened the pace and outscored Florida 17-to-8. 30 seconds into the fourth quarter, a three-point shot from freshman guard Abbey Schreacke shrunk the Gators' lead to just six points. But turnovers, as they have all season, ruined the Tigers efforts.
Ashton Judd led Missouri in scoring in the final game of her sophomore season with 17. Senior guard Mama Dembele, who was named to the All-SEC Defensive team yesterday, had an impressive day with five rebounds, seven assists and four steals. She will soon have to make the decision whether or not to utilize her final year of eligibility for Missouri next season.
Wednesday's loss was disappointing for Missouri but certainly not surprising. They end the season with an 11-20 overall record. After her 12th season and the fifth straight finishing below .500 in conference play, head coach Robin Pingeton's future is in question.
There is reason to be optimistic about the future of Missouri women's basketball with the amount of young talent currently on the roster. But with Frank, the second-leading scorer in program history, leaving, the program will have to adjust heading into next year.