Inside duo dominates in heartbreaking loss
Johnson and Jones lead the Tigers team in points, rebounds against Memphis.
Published Nov. 19, 2009
Missouri’s big girls came to play on Wednesday against Memphis.
Forwards senior Jessra Johnson and junior Shakara Jones each had breakout performances following slow starts in the season opener. Johnson led the Tigers in scoring with 22 points and nine rebounds, and Jones scored 16 with a game-high 10 rebounds.
After lighting up the scoring column for two games, senior forward Amanda Hanneman went cold, shooting one-of-nine from the three-point line. Johnson and Jones picked up the slack, combining for more than half of Missouri’s 74 points.
Coming into the season, both players had much expected of them. Johnson led the team in points, rebounds and blocks last season. Jones became a post-scoring threat during her sophomore season and continues to improve.
Against Memphis, the two worked together on multiple possessions. Whether it was Johnson finding Jones cutting in the paint or Jones tipping in a Johnson miss, the pair seemed to dominate the inside.
The shock of a one-point loss put a damper on the performances for each of them, as both mentioned the value of winning over personal success.
“To me, stats don’t matter,” Johnson said. “There’s only one stat that matters to me and that’s win or loss.”
Both women said there is always room for improvement.
“If I’ve done well and we lost, I don’t feel like I’ve done well,” Jones said. “Obviously I should’ve done more to help our team get the win.”
Although she was bitter over the loss, coach Cindy Stein was pleased with the pair’s inside play.
“We wanted to get the ball inside,” Stein said. “That was an emphasis. Jessra had some really good looks at the basket and some good matchups. She is always a great presence for us.”
Those outside the Missouri program have also noticed their abilities. After Sunday’s game against the Tigers, Northern Iowa coach Tanya Warren was impressed by the Tigers' inside players.
“’Shak’ is going to cause a lot of problems for a lot of people because of her versatility,” Warren said. “She has a variety of moves in the post. And then you got Jessra’s ability to step out and shoot the three, as well as her ability to score on the block.”
Stein said Johnson and Jones will be impact players going forward, and their performance against Memphis shed some light on their potential for this year’s team.
