Playing a team for the sixth time in three teams certainly has its perks as Shannon Dowell found out. Dowell led the way with 30 points as Mizzou took down Southern Illinois 81-50.
“I think it’s just how
much faith that my coaches and teammates put in me, it really gives me the confidence to keep doing keep doing it,” Dowell said. “I really feel like it’s been working for me, so just keep going hard at practice.”
Dowell was the superstar that rocked the Southern Illinois defense, finishing the game with 8-11 shooting from the field, 4-5 on triples and a perfect 10-10 from the free throw line. A big part of that free throw success can be traced back to when assistant coach Liza Freundt blared Kidz Bop during Dowell’s reps, giving her an extra incentive to make the shots to shut the music off.
Dowell is no stranger to Southern Illinois, playing them five times when she was at Illinois State. She scored 20-plus points in three of those matchups. However, this is a new career-high for the Illinois native against the Salukis and her highest scoring regular season performance. Her highest scoring performance ever was 37 against Troy; who is Mizzou’s opponent on Thursday.
One big advantage for the Tigers in this matchup was their ability to get to the rim. Mizzou won the points in the paint battle with 44 compared to 20 for Southern Illinois. A big part of that (apart from Dowell) came from Jordana Reisma, who served as a secondary piece with 12 points on an efficient 5-7 shooting.
In addition to Dowell and Reisma, Grace Slaughter and Jayla Smith finished in double-digits to push the Tigers over 80 points for only the second time this season.
Coming off an extremely intense game on Saturday, tonight’s performance felt much like a lull. While the scoreboard told the story of the blowout, the energy both in the building and on the court felt relatively low.
“I think it’s human nature,” head coach Kellie Harper said. “I felt like I was really pulling some teeth there in the first first half to try to try to get their energy up and their intensity up…we have to evaluate us more in in our schemes and in concepts.”
Here’s how the game played out:
Southern Illinois kept it close through the first quarter, as Mizzou led 22-18. The Tigers couldn’t contain the Saluki offense, as they made 7-18 shots and two three-pointers in the opening frame. However Mizzou held the lead thanks in large part to Reisma, who scored eight points in the first quarter on a perfect 4-4 shooting as the opposition failed to match her size and physicality.
Mizzou opened up a double-digit lead at halftime 38-28. The Tigers shut down the Southern Illinois offense, holding them to 10 points on 4-14 shooting. In the first half Mizzou forced nine turnovers, turning them directly into 11 points. Dowell finished the quarter with nine points, scoring them in a run all by herself. She finished the half with 16 points on a hyper efficient 5-7 shooting and 2-3 on triples.
The Tigers continued to stretch the lead, as they led 57-42 after three quarters. Dowell continued to be the best offensive option for the Tigers, adding another eight points to reach 24 for the game. Slaughter added another five as an auxiliary piece, including the Tigers first triple from someone not named Dowell. Mizzou’s offense was much more efficient, shooting 54% in the quarter to the Salukis’ 28%.
The floodgates burst open in the fourth, as the Tigers outscored Southern Illinois 24-8 in the frame, walking away with the 81-50 win. Chloe Sotell scored all of her eight points in the frame, matching her season-high. Sotell has struggled to shoot the ball so far this year, but even as a sniper she brings so much more to the team that sometimes flies under the radar.
“[Our shooters] definitely on the court to make shots, and everyone knows it,” Harper said. “Chloe’s very intelligent. She knows what’s going on out there…she has a pretty good idea of what needs to happen…she’s played pretty careful with the basketball thus far. So that’s a good sign.”
Mizzou is now 4-1, tying their best start to a season since 2023-24. But they face a major roadblock ahead, in a quick turnaround against Troy, last season’s WNIT runner-ups, on Thursday morning. With the special matinee start time for Education Day for the Columbia Public Schools, the Tigers have just under 40 hours between games.
“I’ve not had one of these in a minute, and I probably never have [had] one this quick,” Harper said. “We’ll probably go right into our prep for Troy, and that is the respect I have for for that program and what they do…they’re good basketball program, and they are tough, and they are gritty, and they are not going to back down to anybody. We know that. So we’ve got to be ready with a very elite level of execution on both ends of the court, and we’ve got to have a toughness about us that’s consistent and steady.”
The Tigers host 3-1 Troy at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday in Mizzou Arena. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+ and is available to watch through the ESPN app.
