The Missouri Tigers will open Southeastern Conference Tournament women’s basketball play today when they face the Florida Gators.
Game time is 12:30 p.m. (SEC Network) in Greenville, S.C.
Missouri (11-18) is the 14th seed in the tournament after finishing 2-14 in conference play this season. Florida (14-14, 5-11 SEC) is the No. 11 seed.
Florida posted an 86-70 win against Missouri in the regular-season meeting in Gainesville, Fla., one of 11 straight losses for the Tigers to wrap up the regular season. The Gators used a 36-point first quarter to grab control early in the game.
Abbey Schreacke finished with 16 points to lead Missouri in the game. Mama Dembele added 15, while Grace Slaughter had 14 and Hayley Frank totaled 12.
Missouri leads the all-time series 11-4 against Florida, but the Gators have won the past two meetings against the Tigers.
The Missouri-Florida winner advances to the second round to take on sixth-seeded Vanderbilt at 8 p.m. Thursday.
III
On Tuesday, Grace Slaughter of Missouri was named to the All-SEC Freshman Team.
Slaughter started 28-of-29 games this season, averaging 11.4 points per game. She scored in double figures in 20 games, including in 13-of-16 SEC contests.
Dembele was selected to the All-SEC Defensive Team. Dembele is second in the conference and seventh in the country with 3.3 steals per game. She is the first player in program history to make the team.