No. 23 Missouri women cruise past Charlotte 88-71, remain undefeated

After a sluggish opening quarter, No. 23 Missouri’s women came to life in the second period and cruised to a 88-71 victory Tuesday against Charlotte in the first game of a doubleheader with men’s basketball at Mizzou Arena.

“I’m really happy for our players,” Tigers coach Robin Pingeton said. “To finish the non-con 13-0 is awfully exciting for us.”

Freshman guard Sophie Cunningham, the Tigers’ leading scorer, sat for most of the second half with foul trouble, but it didn’t impact the outcome.

Four players hit double figures for Missouri, 13-0, led by junior Jordan Frericks, who scored 16 with 15 rebounds for her 20th career double-double.

“I try to go out every game with a little chip (on my shoulder),” she said. “I think our team collectively tries to do that.”

Junior Sierra Michaelis added 14 points, while freshman Cierra Porter chipped in 13 with nine rebounds and senior Juanita Robinson scored 12 for the Tigers.

The victory came in front of 6,154, which is the sixth-largest home crowd in MU women’s basketball history and the second-largest at Mizzou Arena.

“I really appreciate all the fans that showed up tonight,” Pingeton said. “What an incredible atmosphere.”

The 13-game winning streak matches the longest in program history.

Cunningham finished with five points and three assists, while her older sister, Tigers junior point guard Lindsey Cunningham, added a game-high five assists.

Missouri, which led by as many as 21 in the third quarter, shot 35.3 percent in the first quarter and trailed Charlotte 16-15 before heating up during a 29-point second quarter and heading to halftime in firm control up 44-30.

Frericks was particularly aggressive early in the third quarter as the Tigers ended any hopes the 49ers might have had of a rally.

“We have to go out there and be the aggressors in that situation,” she said.

The Tigers were 6 of 17 from the field in spotting the 49ers an early lead, but connected on 10 of 14 from the field in the second quarter.

Missouri opens SEC play at 6 p.m. Monday against Tennessee on the SEC Network.

This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 8:22 PM with the headline "No. 23 Missouri women cruise past Charlotte 88-71, remain undefeated."