We’re a basketball school again!

Hey, Mizzou basketball fans. Yeah you, the one who can’t stomach the thought of watching the Tigers after their disappointing 3-3 start. We’ve got good news for you! There’s another team on campus, one that’s really good and really fun to watch!

Robin Pingeton’s Tigers have quietly rocketed to a 7-0 start, winning five of their past six by 16 or more points. That includes a dominant road win over SLU and two straight wins at neutral venues, including yesterday’s 88-67 win over Lehigh.

• The official dispatch from Sunday’s blowout over Lehigh highlights a number of impressive achievements, including Lauren Hanson’s scoring explosion:

Lauren Hansen’s 34 points are the most by a Tigers since Sophie Cunningham had 35 against Florida Gulf Coast (3/17/18).

Hansen had not scored more that 19 points since transferring to Mizzou from Auburn. Her previous career high of 24 happened during the 2019-20 season at Auburn.

Over the second and third quarters, Hansen shot 10-for-10 from the floor, 7-for-7 from three while scoring 27 points.

Hayley Frank dropped 16 points on only 6-of-9 shooting and added six rebounds.

Aijha Blackwell finished in double-figures for the third-straight game with 14 points and seven rebounds.

Haley Troup dished out a career-high seven assists in the contest.

Hayley Frank was named the Christmas City Classic’s Most Valuable Player while Lauren Hansen earned a spot on the All-Tournament team.

• At the Columbia Tribune, Chris Kwiecinski wrote about the surging Tigers, who are being helped along by a few role players making massive contributions.

[Sophomore Mama] Dembele isn’t putting up 10 to 15 points per game, nor has she put up gaudy stats in other categories, but she’s displaying a high basketball IQ that’s led to opportune plays.

The sophomore guard from Manlleu, Spain, currently leads the team with 13 steals and is second on the team with 26 assists.

“She’s starting to understand strengths and weaknesses in her game and other people’s games,” Pingeton said of Dembele. “She’s just really coachable. I think she feels so much more comfortable this year.”

Also called out in the article: freshman Izzy Higginbottom, who’s providing some scoring punch, and sophomore Sara Rose-Smith, a “rangy” rebounder who’s serving as additional help on the glass.

Yesterday at Rock M

• In which class is in session while Sam breaks down the ins-and-outs of Mizzou’s Black Friday loss to Wichita State
• In which our masthead unanimously chooses Tyler Badie to lead the MV3 after his record-setting day against Arkansas

More Links:

• Some incredibly surprising and bummer news dropped late on Sunday evening, so late that it almost got left out.

This won’t be a space for speculation, but it’s hard to fathom why this is the case. Parker was one of the leaders of the team and made arguably the biggest play of the season against Florida. It’s a shame to see him go, but thanks for the memories DPJ. We’ll miss you.

• SEC: It just means more... for Lincoln Riley to be scared of.

It’s hard to match the Mizzou precedent; that is, winning your division two out of the first three years.

Our preview will be out later this morning, but the official MU Athletics website put out a primer on Paul Quinn College, the NAIA HBCU visiting Mizzou on Monday evening.

• Anthony Kristensen gave readers a history lesson on Paul Quinn College at the Missourian.
• Mizzou Volleyball struggled in its weekend match up with Texas A&M, dropping three sets in a row. The Tigers finished their season 5-26, a rough final record given the program’s high standards.
• At the KC Star, Vahe Gregorian profiled Desiree Reed-Francois and the challenges she’s facing in her gig as Missouri’s AD.
• Lila Bromberg graded the Tigers for their season ending loss against Arkansas on Friday.
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• If you’re looking to sign up for a new streaming service, you can try FuboTV: click HERE for FuboTV access — FuboTV now has ESPN, CBS, FS1 and more sports channels.
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