After beating Washington State to open the week in Orlando, Mizzou women’s basketball returns to Florida for two games at the Fort Myers Tip-Off against Bradley and Northwestern. (editor’s note: and will
play in front of Karen’s esteemed parents)
After a tough home loss last week to Troy, the Tigers bounced back with the aforementioned 71-54 victory against Wazzu. Like I mentioned in the recap, much of the team’s success comes from its defense. In Mizzou’s five wins they have only allowed 63.8 points. In losses, that number jumps up to 91 points. If the Tigers hope to win in the SEC, they should look to keep opponents under 80 every night.
The Fort Myers Tip-Off features eight teams split across two divisions, with each team playing two games within their division. Mizzou is in the Shell Division alongside Abilene Christian and their opponents Bradley and Northwestern. The Island Division consists of Georgia, Dayton, Butler and kU. There will be a total of 16 games played across Friday and Saturday. With that background on the event out of the way, here’s what you need to know about the Tigers’ two opponents.
Feeling Brave
Opening the tournament Mizzou matches up against the Bradley Braves. The last time these two teams met was in Columbia in 2022, where the Tigers took home the definitive 83-38 win.
Bradley struggled last season, finishing the year 14-19 with no birth in any postseason. This year has started off better for the Braves, as they are 3-2 with a win against DePaul from the Big East.
The biggest difference in that win came in the production off the bench. Bradley scored 21 from nonstarters, while DePaul only scored seven. Mizzou’s short bench along with inconsistent production has been a major storyline early on this year, and could prove to be the difference in this game.
One player who has led Bradley’s bench production has been junior Claire McDougall. So far McDougall has averaged 9.2 points and 7 rebounds. She has been extremely efficient with shooting splits of 69/33/75. She scored a season-high 15 points in the Braves’ recent home win against Bellarmine. While she is not Bradley’s leading scorer, stopping McDougall will need to be a top priority for the Tigers.
J-School Showdown
Two schools with arguably the best journalism schools in the Midwest (maybe even the country) face off on the court in a battle for supremacy. It’s been over a decade since these two have faced off, with Northwestern walking away with the 74-70 win in Columbia in 2011.
The Wildcats are coming off a rough season, where they finished 9-18 and 2-16 in the Big Ten. This season is shaping up to be a lot better, as the team is 5-0 and also has a win over DePaul.
The biggest strength for the Wildcats is their rebounding, averaging 43 per game compared to their opponents’ 34.6. The battle on the glass will be a key one in this showdown, as Mizzou has outrebounded their opponents by 3.4 per game. However, the Tigers lost the rebounding battle in both of the games they’ve lost this season.
The Wildcats’ offense has largely rested on the senior Grace Sullivan. In the five games she has played, Sullivan is averaging 21 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. She has eclipsed 20 points on three separate occasions, including a season-high 26 in the DePaul win. She has recorded two double-doubles against IU Indy and Cleveland State. Mizzou will have to rely heavily on Jordana Reisma to help shut down Sullivan.
Player to Watch: Shannon Dowell
One player who has outshined even the wildest of preseason expectations has been Illinois State transfer Shannon Dowell. The junior has led the Tigers in scoring at 19.1 points per game on a wildly efficient 54/44/79. In addition she is also averaging 8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
This past week Dowell averaged 25 points per game across the three games. This included a season-high 30 points in the win against Southern Illinois. Her offensive drive has been a driving force for a Mizzou team that has been looking for consistent scoring all season from new players.
Dowell and the rest of the Tigers are prepped to close Thanksgiving Break at the Fort Myers Tip-Off. First up is the showdown with Bradley at 12:30 p.m. on Black Friday at Suncoast Arena. The game will be available to watch on Ion through your cable/internet provider.
