The conference tournament trip was a short one.
Missouri women’s basketball was quickly bounced from the Southeastern Conference tournament, ending its season Wednesday afternoon with a 66-60 loss in the first round to Florida.
The Tigers (11-19 overall), whose 2-14 record in conference play saw them enter the tournament as the bottom seed, were beaten decisively by the 11th-seeded Gators and finished the season on a 12-game losing streak.
While the loss doesn’t much alter the perception of a disappointing season, it does cap off the campaign and begin an offseason that will be pivotal for Mizzou as an interim athletics department administration weighs the future of coach Robin Pingeton.
The game was, more than most, a matter of runs. After Missouri led through the first quarter, Florida turned four Mizzou turnovers on four consecutive possessions — a travel, a poor pass, a successful triple team and a stumble through traffic — into a 16-0 run, taking a commanding lead. Another 8-0 run for the Gators before halftime gave them a 42-26 advantage at the break.
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That lead swelled to 20 points early in the third quarter before MU responded. Four players scored from all over the floor — a layup, a couple of 3s, a couple of jumpers, a pair of free throws — for 14 unanswered points, which were enough to have the Tigers solidly in the game as the fourth quarter began.
A more balanced final frame benefitted UF, which built the lead back up to 11, only for Mizzou’s Mama Dembele and Ashton Judd to stage an 8-0 run over the span of two minutes to get the Tigers within one score to trail 60-57 with 4:07 left in the game.
The next six points, though, belonged to Florida, and Missouri did not score again until Hayley Frank hit a 3 with 20 seconds left to claw back within six.
Frank, playing 39 minutes in her final college game, attempted just one shot in the first half and finished with seven points and seven rebounds. Ashton Judd led the Tigers with 17 points and seven boards of her own. Dembele chipped in eight points, five rebounds, seven assists and four steals.
What’s next for Pingeton will become the dominant talking point for the program, which has now gone five consecutive seasons without an NCAA Tournament appearance. The benchmark for success, entering this year, was making it back to the postseason.
But Desiree Reed-Francois, the athletics director who set that standard, has left the university. Either MU’s interim AD or new hire would have to make the call on Pingeton’s future and her potential replacement, which could be sub-optimal.
Pingeton has one year left on her contract and would be owed a buyout of roughly $233,000 if fired soon.