Missouri Tigers
Overall Rank: #16
Conference Rank: #4 SEC
Missouri comes into the 2017-18 season looking to make its third consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament thanks to their administration allowing head coach Robin Pingeton to rebuild the Tigers program the right way. Pingeton has turned Mizzou Arena back into a snake pit for visiting teams as Missouri knocked off eventual national champion South Carolina, Kentucky, and Texas A&M last season in Columbia. Despite the loss of three starters, the Tigers bring back a deep and talented squad that will be a very tough out on a nightly basis.
2016-17 Record: 22-11, 11-5
2016-17 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Robin Pingeton
Coach Record: 123-100 at Missouri, 458-257 overall
Key Departed Players (starters in bold)
Sierra Michaelis, Guard, 12.7 points per game
Lindsey Cunningham, Guard, 7.7 points per game
Lianna Doty, Guard, 3.9 points per game
Key Returning Players (starters in bold)
Sophie Cunningham, Junior, Guard, 17.5 points per game
Cierra Porter, Junior, Forward, 13.2 points per game
Jordan Frericks, Redshirt Senior, Forward, DNP last season
Amber Smith, Sophomore, Guard, 5.9 points per game
Jordan Chavis, Redshirt Junior, Guard, 3.5 points per game
Bri Porter, Redshirt Junior, Guard, 2.1 points per game
Hannah Schuchts, Redshirt Sophomore, 1.9 points per game
Kayla McDowell, Redshirt Senior, Forward, 0.9 points per game
Jordan Roundtree, Sophomore, Guard, 0.7 points per game
Key New Players
Lauren Aldridge, Redshirt Junior, Guard
Elle Brown, Freshman, Guard
Nadia Green, Freshman, Guard,
Emmanuelle Tahane, Freshman, Forward
Kelsey Winfrey, Freshman, Guard
Projection:
Sophie Cunningham should be one of the most dynamic players in the SEC as Cunningham shot just over 48 percent from the floor and can stretch defenses by knocking down the open jump shot. Cierra Porter is another very effective shooter. She knocked down 46.9 percent of her shots last season. Rebounding is another strength for Porter as she could very easily make a run at collecting ten rebounds per game. Jordan Frericks returns after missing the 2016-17 season with a knee injury. Frericks is a double-double threat on a nightly basis after averaging 12.1 points and 7.7 rebounds per game during the 2015-16 season. The schedule is balanced as South Carolina and Mississippi State will visit Columbia this season during conference play. If the Tigers can improve offensively and average north of 70 points per game they will contend all year long for the Southeastern Conference championship.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 66.3 (137th in nation, 10th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 62.6 (130, 9)
Field-Goal Percentage: 43.3 (53, 4)
Field-Goal Defense: 37.8 (76, 3)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.1 (69, 2)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.1 (43, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 80.2 (2, 1)
Rebound Margin: 4.7 (57, 5)
Assists Per Game: 13.4 (161, 9)
Turnovers Per Game: 16.2 (216, 9)
Madness 2017 Women’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#136 Elle Brown
