Mama Dembele (left), Haley Troup (center), and Aijha Blackwell (right) will be back to lead the Mizzou women’s basketball team in a huge game against Kentucky, Thursday night at Mizzou Arena in Columbia. (Photo: Nathan Assata)
Mizzou Women’s Basketball – Gameday Info
Game No. 28 – Kentucky (13-11, 6-8) at Missouri (17-10, 6-8)
Date/Time – Thursday, February 24 – 7 pm
Location – Mizzou Arena – Columbia, MO
Broadcast – SEC Network+
Live Stats – Stat Broadcast
by Cedric Williams
Senior Editor
The University of Missouri women’s basketball team will host its final home game of the 2021-22 regular season, Thursday evening, when the Kentucky Wildcats come to visit Mizzou Arena.
This will be a huge contest for both teams, who are currently in a four-way tie for seventh place in the Southeastern Conference standings with just two games left before the conference tournament next week in Nashville.
A victory on Thursday would likely give the winning club a stronghold on seventh place since this is the only time Missouri and Kentucky will play one another this season, and the other two teams (Arkansas and Mississippi State) are both playing ranked opponents on Thursday.
Mizzou is coming off a much-needed win this past Sunday, when the Tigers defeated Mississippi State, 76-66. The Tigers had lost four in a row, and five of their previous six, and were in danger of slipping out of NCAA Tournament consideration.
The victory over the Lady Bulldogs has most experts believing Mizzou is likely going to reach the tournament, but the Tigers can’t afford anymore tough losses as March approaches.
Unfortunately for the Tigers though, there might not be a hotter team in the SEC right now than Kentucky, which has won four games in a row, including a dominant road win last Sunday over Arkansas.
Those four victories have some believing the Wildcats could sneak their way into the NCAA Tournament and possibly take a team like Mizzou’s spot. Kentucky’s best shot at making that happen would be if it could nab a win over Mizzou with March just right around the corner.
Players to Watch: Thursday’s contest will likely be a showdown between two of the SEC’s best players in Mizzou’s Aijha Blackwell and Kentucky’s Rhyne Howard.
Blackwell is Mizzou’s leading scorer and the SEC’s leading rebounder at 13.5 points and 13.3 rebounds per game. The junior from St. Louis is also second in the SEC in double-doubles this year, with 19. She had 14 points and 18 rebounds in the Tigers’ win over Mississippi State.
Howard, a player many consider a likely top 5 pick in this spring’s WNBA Draft, leads the SEC in scoring with an average of 20.0 ppg. A smooth 6-foot-2 sharpshooter from Cleveland, Tenn., Howard gets most of her points off three-pointers and free throws, where she ranks in the top 10 within the league in both categories.
A pair of other key figures in Thursday’s matchup will be both team’s primary post players. Mizzou relies on senior LaDazhia Williams, who’s battled injuries throughout the season, but still averages 9.1 points and 3.8 rebounds per game for the Tigers.
Kentucky’s Dre’una Edwards is having an all-conference caliber season, with gameday averages of 15.1 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. The junior from Compton, Calif., is especially good on the fast break, where she oftens catches defenses lapsing as she beats her defender down court to pick up easy layups and offensive rebounds.
Mizzou will have to find a way to contain Edwards if it is to keep up with Kentucky’s high-scoring offense.
Up Next: The Tigers will close out the regular season with a road game on Sunday against No. 15 Florida, before moving on the SEC Tournament next week.
Kentucky will close out its regular season with a home game against Auburn on Sunday. Both of those games will be televised on the SEC Network.
Probable Starters
Kentucky Yr. Pos. Ht. PPG RPG APG
3 Jazmine Massengill Sr. G 6-0 7.0 3.7 4.1
10 Rhyne Howard Sr. G 6-2 20.0 7.8 3.3
11 Jada Walker Fr. G 5-7 10.3 2.5 2.0
12 Treasure Hunt So. G 6-1 7.1 4.8 1.9
44 Dre’una Edwards Jr. C 6-2 15.8 7.8 1.9
Missouri Yr. Pos. Ht. PPG RPG APG
1 Lauren Hansen Jr. G 5-8 11.4 2.3 1.4
4 Mama Dembele So. G 5-6 5.1 2.3 3.7
13 Haley Troup Sr. G 5-10 8.3 1.9 3.0
33 Aijha Blackwell Jr. G 6-0 15.3 13.3 1.8
43 Hayley Frank Jr. F 6-1 15.1 4.6 1.4
| Mizzou Tigers Women’s Basketball Remaining Schedule |
| Thu., February 24 — vs. Kentucky — 7 pm |
| Sun., February 27 — at Florida — 11 am |
| March 2-6 — 2022 SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn. |
| All Mizzou home basketball games will be played at Mizzou Arena. |