Mizzou women’s basketball puts its unbeaten start on the line at 2 p.m. Sunday when Lindenwood visits Mizzou Arena for the first regular-season meeting between the two programs. The game will be broadcast on SEC Network+ and on the radio through the Mizzou Tigers app.
The Tigers come in 4-0 after a 103-59 rout of UT Martin on Thursday, which was their second straight game with 100 or more points after doing the same against Tennessee Tech. That’s the first time the program has reached triple digits in back-to-back games since Jan. 11 and Jan. 14, 1984, and the 4-0 record is Mizzou’s best start since the 2022-23 team opened 5-0.
Four Tigers reached double figures against the Skyhawks. Senior guard Grace Slaughter, sophomore guard McKenzie Mathurin and senior guard Abbey Schreacke each finished with a team-high 17 points. Schreacke knocked down six 3-pointers, the second-most of her career, and Mathurin grabbed 11 rebounds for her first career double-double. Sophomore guard Neveah Caffey added 16 points.
Slaughter, who leads the Mizzou offense, sits 11th on the program’s all-time scoring list with 1,531 points. She is four points behind Erika Martin (1992-96), who is 10th with 1,535. Slaughter is one of 13 players from the 2023 class with at least 1,450 points and 445 rebounds in her career, and she enters the season on the Preseason All-SEC Second Team and the watch list for the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year Award.
The Tigers have also been strong at the rim. Freshman forward Ellie Muller blocked five shots against Tennessee Tech on Monday, making her the first Tiger with four or more blocks in consecutive games since Christene Flores on Dec. 3 and Dec. 7, 2011. Mizzou blocked 10 shots as a team against the Golden Eagles, its most in a game since March 1, 2018, against Ole Miss.
Muller and fellow freshman forward Khloe Ford are part of Mizzou’s No. 25-ranked recruiting class, the program’s highest-ranked class since 2018. With eight underclassmen on a 12-player roster, Mizzou has the highest share of underclassmen in the SEC at 66.67 percent. Caffey and Mathurin give the Tigers five top-100 recruits from the 2025 and 2026 classes, joining Hodge, Ford and Maples. Mathurin was ranked No. 39, Caffey No. 42, Hodge No. 54, Ford No. 82 and Maples No. 96.
Lindenwood comes in at 2-3 after beating Stephens College on Friday. The Lions are in their first season under head coach Phil Sayers, who earned his first career win with a 62-49 victory over Evansville on Nov. 7 and is working with 12 newcomers, six of them transfers. Senior guard Candace Dykstra leads Lindenwood with 10.5 points per game.
Sunday’s game is the first official meeting between Mizzou and Lindenwood, although the teams have played each other in three preseason exhibitions.
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