Shorthanded Mizzou Tigers opened women’s hoops season with win; game 2 is Thursday

Mizzou women's basketball guard Averi Kroenke stood on the court as the Tigers warmed up before facing Central Arkansas. on Monday night at Mizzou Arena

While her teammates sported yellow uniforms, she wore a black jumpsuit, indicating that she would not play due to injury.

Three other Missouri players wore identical attire: senior guard Saniah Tyler, junior forward Hannah Linthacum and sophomore guard Sydney Mains.

Four injuries are bad for any team, but for a Mizzou squad with just 13 players total, the situation becomes even worse. Yet even with a banged-up group, MU beat Central Arkansas 78-71 in its season opener.

And with just nine players available, everyone contributed.

"Nine is short," said first-year Mizzou coach Kellie Harper. "It's very short, but players want to play."

Junior guard Lisa Thompson earned the start for Kroenke. Almost poetically, she scored the first points of the game with 9:47 left in the first quarter to give Missouri a 2-0 lead. She played just 10 minutes, recording four points.

Similarly, Mizzou's only freshman, Hungary product Reka Toman, saw the court for 13 minutes. She scored four points in the win, underscoring the necessity of getting everyone involved.

"You have to have a next-person-up mentality," Harper said. "I think our players did a really good job of understanding everybody's got a little bit different (of a) role now."

Redshirt senior guard Jayla Smith is another player who will be expected to step up with Kroenke out. Smith played 21 minutes in the exhibition against Maryville last Tuesday, and that increased to 27 with nine points against Central Arkansas. She revealed her approach moving forward.

"Just confidence," Smith said. "Doing what coach says and being aggressive."

By grabbing a win over the Sugar Bears (0-1), the Tigers proved their injuries are not detrimental, but they're certainly not ideal. Tyler transferred from Kentucky to Missouri, bringing physicality and strength on defense.

The Tigers didn't need her to defeat Central Arkansas, but she could have bolstered the defensive side of the ball. The Sugar Bears logged a 40.6 field goal percentage and shot 25.8% from beyond the arc.

Linthacum is one of Missouri's two bigs, so her injury puts the Tigers in a dangerous position should anything happen to fellow forward Jordana Reisma. Reisma has emerged as a strong player for Mizzou, and she is more than capable of holding it down until Linthacum returns to back her up. Still, help would be appreciated.

When Reisma was substituted out as time wound down in the second quarter, junior guard Grace Slaughter had to step into the big role. The Grain Valley product played as the bottom one in the Tigers’ 1-3-1 zone defense.

Having Mains, a transfer from FAU, healthy gives the Tigers more versatility. Her return date is unclear, and that is also the case with Linthacum.

Tyler shows the most promise of them all, with Harper saying she is progressing quickly with her rehab and will hopefully be back "sooner rather than later."

For Kroenke, it's a different story. Though her pre-game garments were inconspicuously black, they couldn't hide the severity of her injury. Her crutches gave it away.

With a lower-body injury, Kroenke is expected to miss the whole year.

"Averi was the heartbeat of this team, and honestly still is," Harper said. "She has such a great spirit about her."

Kroenke's injury raises concern for Mizzou, as she is one of five returners on the team. During the 2024-25 campaign, she played in 32 games and led the Tigers in assists with 97.

Kroenke's hiatus from the court hurts a Missouri team that relies on her passing ability and utilizes her as a starter. She started in Mizzou's exhibition and played every minute, the only player to do so besides Slaughter.

Kroenke's injury may be troublesome for the team's success going forward, but it is also difficult on a personal level. A redshirt junior, she missed the entire 2023-24 season due to a foot injury she suffered before the season-opener against Belmont. In a heartbreaking parallel, history repeated itself two years later.

The Tigers, battered and bruised, came away with a win to start the year 1-0. It wasn't a large margin of victory, but considering the injuries, it felt like a huge triumph.

Missouri was to retake the court against Tulane (1-0) for game two on Thursday night (6:30 p.m. in New Orleans).

Copyright 2025 Columbia Missourian

This story was originally published November 6, 2025 at 2:43 PM with the headline "Shorthanded Mizzou Tigers opened women’s hoops season with win; game 2 is Thursday."