Tigers close, but outmatched

By Ross Taylor
Feb. 8, 2008

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Wednesday’s game between the Missouri women’s basketball team and the No. 10 Oklahoma Sooners featured two teams going in different directions.

Oklahoma entered with the conference’s biggest superstar and a 21-game winning streak against Big 12 North teams. Missouri, on the other hand, entered sporting a six-game losing streak.

Still, the Tigers (8-12, 1-8 Big 12) treated an energetic Mizzou Arena crowd of 1,228 to an inspired effort against Oklahoma as MU went wire-to-wire with the Sooners and eventually lost 64-57.

“We feel very fortunate to be leaving here with a win,” Oklahoma coach Sherri Cole said. “They did the things they needed to do.”

With the Tigers down by one with less than a minute left, Toy Richbow missed the front end of a one-and-one. Oklahoma responded by hitting two free throws and scoring off a poor Missouri inbound to seal the victory.

Junior center and reigning Associated Press National Player of the Year Courtney Paris led Oklahoma against the Tigers.

Paris scored 17 points and grabbed 25 rebounds to record her 85th career and 81st consecutive double-double. Her sister, Ashley, added 19 points and 12 rebounds.“When I heard that Shaquille O’Neal was traded today, I was hoping it was for the Paris twins,” MU coach Cindy Stein said. “They are ridiculous.”

Missouri remained close despite being severely outmatched in the paint. Whereas the Tigers have had trouble defending and finishing inside, the Sooners entered the game having outscored opponents in the paint by an average margin of 42-21.

Early in the game, Oklahoma tried to funnel every offensive possession to either Courtney or Ashley Paris in the post. MU forced turnovers on Oklahoma’s first two possessions by reading the Sooners’ strategy and was able to keep the game close thanks to the defensive awareness and commitment to “force the lob,” as Stein put it.

The Sooners scored 14 of their first 15 points in the paint, and before she took her first breather eight minutes into the first half, Courtney Paris had already grabbed nine rebounds. By game’s end, Oklahoma had outscored the Tigers 48-20 in the paint.

For the 11th time this season, junior Alyssa Hollins led Missouri offensively. She scored 19 points.

MU held on even though sophomore forward Jessra Johnson missed significant time. Johnson missed approximately seven minutes of the second half with an apparent ankle injury. Hollins, generally regarded as the team’s emotional leader, commented about the leadership Johnson showed by playing hurt.

“Jessra was hurting — you could see it in her face,” Hollins said. “But she was still out there battling, and it shows that we are a unit and everyone believes in her.”

Freshman guard Jasmyn Otote got her second start of the season after an impressive 8-point starting debut against Nebraska last Sunday. Otote finished with two points.

The game rounded out Missouri’s schedule against teams from the Big 12 South. The Tigers finished 1-5 against south division schools, with the lone win a 68-59 home victory over Texas Tech.

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Tigers close, but outmatched

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