TUCSON, Ariz. (AP) — Kadeem Allen poked the ball free, chased it down and headed toward the opposite end of the court. Glancing over his left shoulder, he saw Gabe York trailing with a clear path to the basket.

Instead of taking on the lone defender by himself, Allen flipped the ball toward the front of the rim, where York seemed to fly in from the rafters to throw down an alley-oop that brought the McKale Center crowd to its feet with a roar.

“I’ve been waiting for that for a long time,” York said after No. 13 Arizona rolled over Missouri 88-52 Sunday night.

York and his teammates have been waiting for a game like this, too.

Though they had lost just once, the Wildcats had yet to really put together a complete game, playing well for a half or in spurts to pull out victories.

Even with center Kaleb Tarczewski (foot) sidelined for the fifth straight game, Arizona (9-1) was at full force against Missouri, blowing out the Tigers before they knew what had hit them.

Arizona raced out to an 11-point lead in the opening minutes and pushed it to 19 by halftime. The Wildcats didn’t let up, either, stretching the lead in the second half to extend the nation’s longest home winning streak to 44 games.

It was Arizona’s largest non-conference win over a Power 5 conference school since beating Kansas State 125-87 in 1997.

“We strung two halves together, which in the past two games we really haven’t been able to do that,” Arizona coach Sean Miller said. “It’s not necessarily who we were playing, but who we were.”

Arizona shot 56 percent and had 20 assists on 31 field goals. Six players scored in double figures, led by Mark Tollefsen’s 17 points. York had 16 points, Allonzo Trier 15 and Ryan Anderson gave Missouri fits inside, scoring 14 points and grabbing nine rebounds.

The Wildcats overwhelmed the smaller Tigers inside all night, outscoring them by 16 in the paint and outrebounding them by 17.

Missouri (5-4) also had trouble with Arizona’s length on defense, shooting 30 percent and going 2 of 14 from 3-point range.

Freshmen Kevin Puryear and Terrence Phillips, Missouri’s two leading scorers, combined for 11 points on 4-of-19 shooting.

“The whole night is disappointing,” Tigers coach Kim Anderson said. “They played really well. I give them a lot of credit. I thought our confidence was shaken a little bit and at times they were playing above the rim and we were just standing there watching them.”

The Tigers spent some unwanted time in Lubbock, Texas, after their plane experienced mechanical issues. Kim Anderson was worried his team wouldn’t get its morning walkthrough, so he held practice in an airport hangar with a makeshift ball and a court marked off on the floor.

It didn’t get much better when Missouri arrived at the McKale Center.

Arizona jumped on the Tigers from the start of a fill-up-the-highlight-reel first half.

Soaring in for dunks and knocking down 3-pointers, the Wildcats raced out to a 15-4 lead in the opening 4 1/2 minutes. Arizona poured it on again with an 11-0 run later in the half, bringing the already-revved-up crowd to its feet when Allen turned a steal into the alley-oop to York in transition.

The Tigers never stood a chance after that.

“Arizona is a really good basketball team,” Kim Anderson said. “We missed some shots and when you do that against a team like Arizona, they are going to make you pay for it.”

ALLEN RETURNS

Allen was a question mark after spraining his right ankle against Fresno State on Wednesday, an injury that left him unable to put any weight on his right leg.

He not only started against Missouri, he moved as though he hadn’t been injured at all. Allen missed all four of his shots, but teamed with Parker Jackson-Cartwright to orchestrate Arizona’s offense to near perfection.

“The man’s a fighter,” Tollefsen said. “He’s a real competitive guy and a gamer, loves to play just as much as anyone or more than anyone, so I knew he would come back as soon as he could.”

TIP-INS

Missouri: Phillips had seven points on 2-of-9 shooting. … Puryear shot 2 of 10 for four points. … Missouri shot 9 of 29 in the first half and went 1 for 9 from 3-point range.

Arizona: Junior guard Elliott Pitts missed his second straight game due to what Miller said is a personal issue. … The Wildcats have won 30 straight nonconference home games.

UP NEXT

Missouri hosts North Carolina State on Saturday.

Arizona hosts Northern Arizona on Wednesday.

— Associated Press —

BOULDER, Colo. – Mizzou Women’s Basketball (10-0) became the first team in program history to start a season 10-0 with a hard-fought 79-75 victory over Colorado (4-5) on Saturday afternoon at the Coors Events Center. Sierra Michaelis and Cierra Porter (Columbia, Mo.) both scored a season-high 21 points as the Tigers shot 46 percent (26-for-57) from the field, 53 percent (8-for-15) from 3-point range and 76 percent (19-for-25) from the foul line for the game.

“This was a big win for us on the road, and I’m really proud of our team,” head coach Robin Pingeton said. “Colorado has a really nice team and they played a great game.

“We’ve got bigger goals and a bigger picture in mind. We’ve got to continue to get better and continue to work hard, although we are very pleased with where we are at.”

The Tigers opened the game shooting the ball well and held a 5-point lead at 23-18 at the end of the first quarter. Colorado then caught fire and outscored Mizzou 29-17 in the second quarter to take a 47-40 lead at half. The Buffs were 7-for-9 (78 percent) from beyond the 3-point arc in the first half.

Mizzou answered in the third quarter, outscoring CU 22-16 to trail 63-62 heading into the final 10 minutes. Kayla McDowell (Cincinnati, Ohio) gave Mizzou the lead 15 seconds into the final period before the Buffs battled back. With 7:38 remaining, Michaelis drained a jumper to tie the score at 67-67 and then Lindsey Cunningham (Columbia, Mo.) drained a 3-pointer with 5:00 left to put the Tigers ahead 70-67, a lead that would not be relinquished for the remainder of the game.

CU pulled within one at 72-71 with 3:30 left on a layup by Zoe Beard-Fails but Porter answered with a jumper a minute later. McDowell and Lindsey Cunningham both added two free throws to seal the victory. Mizzou outscored CU 17-12 during the final quarter.

Jordan Frericks (Quincy, Ill.) finished with nine points and seven rebounds while Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo.) added seven points, eight boards and three assists. The Tigers forced 15 turnovers and held a 21-11 scoring advantage in points off turnovers.

Jamee Swan led CU with 17 points, eight rebounds and two blocks. Kennedy Leonard added 14 points and five assists.

The Tigers will take a break from game action this week as the student-athletes complete the academic semester with final exams. Mizzou returns to action with home games on back-to-back days vs. Lamar at 2 p.m. CT on Sunday, Dec. 20 and vs. Texas State on Monday, Dec. 21 at 7 p.m. CT.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of Missouri System Board of Curators today approved the initial contract terms for newly-minted Head Football Coach Barry Odom.  The Board approved a memorandum of understanding, which outlines a majority of the contractual points, with additional details yet to be determined related to potential incentive compensation.  The memorandum stands in place of the fully-executed contract, until that is finalized.

Terms of the agreement call for Odom to be paid $2,350,000 guaranteed annually, which includes a base salary of $450,000, plus a guaranteed non-salary compensation amount of $1,900,000.  The last figure covers guarantees of $475,000 each in four different categories related to operating the football program: radio appearances, television appearances, apparel rights, and public relations and stewardship appearances.  Odom will also receive an annuity payment in the amount of $100,000 per year ($500,000 total) contingent upon his being in good standing on the final date of his contract period.

“I’m very grateful to Mack Rhoades, Chancellor Hank Foley, President Mike Middleton, the Board of Curators and the entire university administration for this opportunity,” Odom said. “Through this process they have shown an unwavering commitment to provide us with the resources we need to attract and retain an elite staff and support our student-athletes in order to compete at the highest level.”

Odom’s final contract will also include a highly-competitive incentive structure worth up to $1.5 million in additional compensation per year.  The mutually agreed upon performance incentives will be related to academic performance, social responsibility, athletic performance and coaching recognition.  Those are still to be determined, and will be released with the fully-executed contract when available.

The contract went into effect on Dec. 3, 2015 and runs through Feb. 28, 2021, with a mutual option for a two-year extension.

Odom would receive a $250,000 non-salary compensation increase should his Tigers win a conference championship, as well as a similar $250,000 increase should Mizzou participate in a “New Year’s Six” bowl game (i.e., Cotton, Fiesta, Orange, Peach, Rose, Sugar).  Those increases would be added to the non-salary figure a maximum of one time each for the remainder of the contract term.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou Football senior LB Kentrell Brothers (Guthrie, Okla.) earned a trio of All-America honors over the course of Wednesday and Thursday (Dec. 9-10). Brothers was named First Team All-America by both Sports Illustrated and CBSSports.com and landed second team honors from the Walter Camp Foundation.

Brothers is the first Mizzou LB ever to be honored as a first-team All-American by any publication and just the second Mizzou LB ever to earn any All-America distinction, joining Sean Weatherspoon who was a third team honoree by the Associated Press in 2008.

Walter Camp is the first of the five major organizations recognized by the NCAA for consensus All-American distinction to announce their All-America honorees. The other four (Associated Press, Football Writers Association of American and the American Football Coaches Association) will be announced in the coming days.

Brothers put together one of the most prolific seasons in MU history in 2015, and was named a first-team All-SEC performer for his efforts.  The tackling machine ended the season with 152 total tackles, which leads the nation (next-most is 140), while his 12.7 tackles per game mark is also tops in the country.  He is also second in the nation in 2015 with three blocked kicks on the year.  The 152 tackles ranks as the 4th-most in Mizzou season history, and gave him 358 for his career, which puts him 8th all-time on the MU career chart. He became the first Tiger in the Gary Pinkel era with seven consecutive games of 10+ tackles to close the season. He broke the 15 tackle mark four times in 2015 and added 12.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions and was second in the nation with three blocked kicks.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – A trio of Mizzou Football standouts were named All-SEC Freshman Team selections as the league announced on Thursday (Dec. 9). DT Terry Beckner, Jr. (East St. Louis, Ill.), DE Walter Brady (Florence, Ala.) and P Corey Fatony (Franklin, Tenn.) were the three Mizzou players selected to the All-SEC Freshman Team. Mizzou’s three All-Freshman honorees rank as the third-most of any team in the SEC, trailing only Alabama and Texas A&M, who each had four.

Mizzou has now had five players land on the All-SEC Freshman Team since joining the league for the 2012 season and this is the first time since 2013 Mizzou has had an All-SEC Freshman honoree.

Beckner was one of the nation’s most dominant freshmen as a DT before being sidelined by injury on the first play vs. BYU on Nov. 14. In what turned out to be just nine games worth of work, Beckner tallied 27 total tackles (13 solo) while tallying eight tackles-for-loss and three sacks. His eight TFLs were the most among Mizzou interior linemen and he was playing his best football before getting hurt vs. BYU. In the previous four games prior to BYU, Beckner tallied five of his eight TFLs, 18 (10 solo) of his 27 tackles and all three of his sacks. He was one of eight true freshmen to see the field for Mizzou in 2015.

As good as Beckner was along the defensive line, Brady may have been the most productive freshman defensive lineman in the nation in 2015. He tied for the team lead in sacks (seven) and was second on the team with 12.5 tackles for loss with an interception, two pass break-ups, seven quarterback hurries and a fumble recovery. His seven sacks led all freshmen nationally and he ranked eighth in the SEC in that category. His 12.5 TFLs ranked 14th in the SEC and no freshman in the SEC had more sacks or TFLs than Brady. He was a Hendricks Award Watch List honoree midway through 2015.

Fatony, who earned the team’s Special Forces Player of the Year, was tremendous as the team’s starting punter. Fatony set the Mizzou single season record with 81 punts, passing a record that had stood at Mizzou since 1995. He was named to the Ray Guy Award Watch List and was the Ray Guy National Player of the Week following Mizzou’s game against Florida (Oct. 10) in which he punted nine time while averaging 47.8 yards per punt with a career-long of 61 yards, pinning the Gators inside the 20 four times with three kicks over 50 yards. He finished the season ranked first among freshmen nationally in net punting, averaging 42.9 yards per punt.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Former Mizzou Football head coach Gary Pinkel has been selected for enshrinement into the Missouri Sports Hall Of ­Fame, as announced by Jerald Andrews, the President and Executive Director of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, on Wednesday (Dec. 9). Pinkel will be inducted into the Hall of Fame on January 31 in Springfield, Mo. Also of note to Mizzou fans, former Track & Field standout Natasha (Kaiser) Brown and the 1966 Mizzou Football team that won the Sugar Bowl will also be enshrined in the 2016 class.

The Enshrinement is 5 p.m. Sunday, January 31, at the University Plaza Hotel and Convention Center in Springfield. An 11 a.m. reception presented by Meeks The Builder’s Choice is scheduled at the Hall of Fame, 3861 E. Stan Musial Drive. Afternoon activities begin at 4 p.m. with a reception at University Plaza, and the program will follow immediately afterward. Individual tickets are $150, and a table of 10 is $1,500. For tickets, call the Hall of Fame at 417-889-3100.

Pinkel, 63, transformed Mizzou into a national program after taking over on Nov. 30, 2000, and will conclude his career as the winningest coach in school history.  He’s amassed a 118-73 record at Mizzou in 15 seasons, and his 191 career wins stand as the 19th-most all-time in NCAA FBS history.  Under his guidance, Mizzou won five conference divisional titles (2007, 2008, 2010, 2013, 2014), reached 10 bowl games (winning six) and had five teams post a final top-20 national ranking (including two top-five finishes).  His Tigers posted winning seasons in 10-of-15 years, following a stretch where Mizzou had only two winning seasons in the 17 seasons (1984-2000) prior to his arrival.  He was named the National Coach of the Year in 2007 by FieldTurf, and won conference coach of the year honors in 2007 (Big 12) and 2014 (SEC).

Two times, Pinkel likely had his Tigers one win away from playing for a national championship, as wins in the 2007 and 2013 conference championship games could have propelled MU into title game appearances.  In 2007, Mizzou surged to the school’s first-ever number one national ranking since 1960 after a watershed win over rival Kansas at Arrowhead Stadium on Nov. 24, 2007, when the Tigers were ranked fourth and the Jayhawks second coming into the game.  That team would eventually end the season with a school-record 12 wins that included a Cotton Bowl title and final national ranking of fourth.

Pinkel worked perhaps his finest coaching job in 2013, one year after Mizzou joined the vaunted Southeastern Conference and suffered an injury-plagued 5-7 season in 2012.  Picked to finish sixth in the SEC Eastern Division by pre-season pundits, the Tigers jumped out to a 7-0 record and finished 11-1 and East Division champs.  They would go on to a 12-win season, with another Cotton Bowl title, and final national ranking of fifth.

Pinkel’s emphasis on molding young men into successful student-athletes was evidenced by the great achievements they had in the classroom.  Mizzou has improved its NCAA Graduation Success Rate for nine straight years, and has graduated 97 percent of its seniors the past five seasons.

Getting athletes to the next level has been another mark of success for Pinkel and his program.  In his time at Mizzou, 32 Tigers were selected in the NFL Draft, including seven in the first round.  Mizzou had 12 players taken in the first round of the NFL Draft in the previous 64 years combined (1937-2001) prior to Pinkel taking over.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Missouri’s tallest player is 6-foot-10 senior Ryan Rosburg. With an average height of 6-4, some would call the Tigers’ roster undersized. Yet, for the third consecutive game, Missouri out rebounded (37-34) and outscored an opponent in the paint (32-20).

That’s how the Tigers beat Omaha, 85-78 Wednesday night.

Kevin Puryear scored 18 points and hauled in eight rebounds as Missouri held off the Mavericks to improve to 5-3.

At 14.1 points per game, Puryear, a freshman, is The Tigers’ leading scorer. He was particularly efficient Wednesday night, shooting 5 for 8 from the field and 7 for 8 from the free-throw line in 25 minutes.

Puryear, who scored 13 of his points in the second half, was more deliberate after halftime.

“I was definitely more aggressive at that point in the game,” Puryear said. “I felt like I needed to do something, whether it was score or rebound the ball. Just help contribute to the win and put them away.”

Terrence Phillips caught the hot hand early, making his first three 3-point attempts for a total of nine first-half points. Phillips finished with 14 points before fouling out with 2:36 to play.

The Tigers led 37-30 at halftime after shooting 50 percent from the field, while holding the Mavericks to 33.3 percent shooting.

Despite its sharp shooting, Missouri struggled to hold onto the ball in the first half, committing 13 turnovers, it’s most in a half all season. Omaha took advantage of the sloppy ball handling, scoring 13 points off turnovers in the half.

“We talked about not turning it over,” Missouri coach Kim Anderson said. “That’s definitely something we’ve got to get better at. Some of the turnovers were careless; some of them were just trying to do too much, so we basically just talked about all of that.”

The second half told a different story, as the Tigers committed only five turnovers, which the Mavericks turned into five points. Meanwhile, Omaha committed 10 second-half turnovers, which led to 16 Missouri points.

Omaha coach Darren Hansen said the teams’ road trip may have affected its energy level. The Mavericks won a fast-paced game, 100-97 Sunday at Montana State.

“I don’t think we played smart all the time,” he said. “Missouri had something to do with that. I don’t think our starters had as much pop in their legs. I don’t think we played well all the time tonight. I think our trip had something to do with that.”

Jake White led Omaha with 18 points, including 14 in the second half. White grabbed a team-best 10 rebounds for his second double-double in the last three games.

Devin Patterson added 17 points to go with seven assists and Tra-Deon Hollins had 13 points, including nine in the second half. Omaha’s leading scorer and rebounder, Tre’Shawn Thurman, was held in check most of the night, finishing with nine points on 2 of 7 shooting. Thurman drew a technical foul with 5:30 left by reacting to a charging call and fouled out of the game.

Missouri forward Jakeenan Gant scored 11 points and grabbed five rebounds and K.J. Walton added 10 points on a perfect 3 for 3 from the field.

TIP-INS

Missouri: The Tigers held five of their first seven opponents to less than 40 percent shooting … Gant blocked a shot in six of the Tigers’ first seven games and leads the team with seven … This was only the second meeting between the schools. Missouri won the first meeting 105-83 on Nov. 29, 1983 in Columbia.

Omaha: Hollins entered the game leading the nation in steals with 34, an average of 4.3 per game …The Mavericks entered the game ranked eighth nationally in steals with 81 over the course of eight games … Omaha leads the Summit League in eight statistical categories including points per game (88.5) and rebounds per game (41.4).

UP NEXT

Missouri visits No. 13 Arizona Sunday.

Omaha visits Grand Canyon Sunday.

— Associated Press —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – A pair of standouts from Mizzou Football’s excellent defense have been recognized among the best in the Southeastern Conference today, as senior LB Kentrell Brothers (Guthrie, Okla.) and sophomore DE Charles Harris (Kansas City, Mo.) have been named to the SEC coaches’ all-conference team, as announced today by the league office.

Brothers put together one of the most prolific seasons in MU history in 2015, and was named a first-team All-SEC performer for his efforts.  The tackling machine ended the season with 152 total tackles, which leads the nation (next-most is 140), while his 12.7 tackles per game mark is also tops in the country.  He also leads the nation in 2015 with three blocked kicks on the year.  The 152 tackles ranks as the 4th-most in Mizzou season history, and gave him 358 for his career, which puts him 8th all-time on the MU career chart. He became the first Tiger in the Gary Pinkel era with seven consecutive games of 10+ tackles to close the season. He broke the 15 tackle mark four times in 2015 and added 12.0 tackles for loss, two interceptions and was second in the nation with three blocked kicks.

Brothers becomes the first Mizzou linebacker to win all-SEC acclaim by league coaches since joining the conference in 2012.  He was a second-team All-SEC pick by the Associated Press in 2014 when he led Mizzou with 122 total tackles.  He is the first Tiger linebacker to receive first-team all-conference honors since Andrew Gachkar in 2010 (Associated Press).  The last time a Tiger linebacker was first-team all-conference by league coaches was in 2009 by Sean Weatherspoon.

Harris continued the proud lineage of outstanding play by #DLineZou, as he won second-team All-SEC honors by the coaches for a season that included 18.5 tackles for loss (ranking him 8th nationally and first in the SEC) and 7.0 sacks.  Harris, a first-year starter, led the Tigers with 10 quarterback pressures and two forced fumbles, while finishing with 56 total tackles and a pass breakup.

This marks the 10th- consecutive year that a Mizzou defensive lineman has won either first or second team all-conference acclamation by coaches, dating back to 2006.  That impressive list includes: 2006 – DE Brian Smith (second-team); 2007 – DT Lorenzo Williams (first-team), Stryker Sulak (second-team); 2008 – DT Ziggy Hood (first-team), DE Stryker Sulak (second-team); 2009 – DT Jaron Baston (second-team); 2010 – DE Aldon Smith (first-team), DE Jacquies Smith (second-team); 2011 – DE Jacquies Smith (second-team); 2012 – DT Sheldon Richardson (second-team); 2013 – DE Michael Sam (first-team); 2014 – DE Shane Ray (first-team), DE Markus Golden (first-team).

Mizzou’s defense was among the nation’s best in 2015, as it finished the season ranked in the top-10 in scoring defense (sixth – 16.2 ppg) and ninth in total defense (302.0 ypg).

The SEC will release its individual award winners tomorrow (Dec. 9) and the All-Freshman SEC Team will be announced at 2 p.m. on Thursday (Dec. 10).

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri freshman guard Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo.) was named Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week for the third time in four weeks, it was announced Tuesday. Cunningham averaged 19.0 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.0 steals and 1.0 block per game in victories over Loyola Marymount on Dec. 7 and Southeast Missouri on Dec. 2. For the week, she shot 71 percent (15-for-21) from the floor, 67 percent (4-for-6) from 3-point range and was a perfect 4-for-4 from the foul line.

In Monday’s 80-48 win over LMU, Cunningham scored a game-high 23 points, grabbed five rebounds, tied a career-high with three steals and dished out two assists in 22 minutes. She was 9-of-11 (82 percent) from the floor and a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the 3-point arc to record the highest single-game shooting percentage of her young career. She did not play in the fourth quarter as the game was out of reach. The 23 points tied the second-highest point total of her freshman season.

During the 74-32 win over SEMO on Wednesday, Cunningham scored 15 points, pulled down six rebounds and notched three assists in 22 minutes played. She added a block and steal against the Redhawks.

Through nine career games, Cunningham leads the team with 16.0 points, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals per game in addition to averaging 5.6 rebounds each contest. In a 94-81 victory vs. Wake Forest on Nov. 22, she set a new school record with 42 points, topping the previous mark of 41 by Renee Kelly that stood for nearly 30 years.

— Mizzou Athletics —

COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mizzou (9-0) defeated Loyola Marymount (3-6) 80-48 on Monday evening at Mizzou Arena as the Tigers tied the program record for the best start in school history at 9-0. The only other Mizzou team to begin 9-0 was the 1982-83 squad which finished the season 25-6 and ranked 14th nationally.

“I’m happy for our girls, I thought we really competed hard for 40 minutes,” head coach Robin Pingeton said. “I thought we did a tremendous job out of the gates, just unselfish play, especially from that first group that was on the court.  For them to take the court in the beginning of that second half and maintain and build on that intensity an energy, I thought was outstanding.

“I really appreciate all the fans, we had a great turnout again for our team and I can’t acknowledge them enough. They’ve just been an unbelievable sixth man for us this season.”

Mizzou scored the first 21 points of the game with the first 10 coming from sisters Sophie Cunningham (Columbia, Mo) and Lindsey Cunningham (Columbia, Mo). Sophie scored the first seven points before her older sister knocked down a triple to make it 10-0. LMU didn’t get on the board until the 3:07 mark of the first quarter.

Sophie Cunningham led all scorers with 23 points, going 9-11 from the field and a perfect 3-3 beyond the arc. She also had five rebounds, tied a career-high with three assists and notched two assists.

Throughout the game, 11 Tigers entered the scoring column while 13 players again saw significant minutes. It was the fourth time this season that the team has had 11 players record points.

Mizzou dominated in the hustle stats, registering eight blocks and 13 steals. Those defensive stands led to a lopsided lead in points in the paint (40-12) and fast-break points (18-4). It marked the fifth time the Tigers have recorded 12 or more steals in a game this season after doing so only twice all of last year.

LMU closed the gap to as few as 10 points early in the second quarter, but a 9-0 Mizzou run, sparked by baskets from four different players, reopened Mizzou’s large lead at 32-13. The Tigers led 43-20 lead at the half, holding LMU without a point over the final 4:45 of the second quarter, closing on a 7-0 run.

Mizzou had seven different players score in the first half, led by 17 from Sophie Cunningham.

The second half was more of the same from Mizzou, with the defense holding LMU to 30.3 percent shooting (10-33). The Tigers shot 42.4 in the second half and 50.8 percent for the game. That excellent shooting performance was the second best so far this season; their high came against Wichita State Nov. 18 (51.6 percent). It was the third time this season that Mizzou has shot over 50 percent.

Mizzou heads to Boulder, Colorado, Saturday to face Colorado at 2:30 p.m.

— Mizzou Athletics —