Missouri sophomore Ashton Judd shoots the ball during the first half of the Tigers’ Dec. 2 matchup against the SEMO Redhawks. (Photo/Amber Winkler)

The visiting SEMO Redhawks didn’t cross the double-digit scoring mark until the second quarter, as hot shooting and dominant defense propelled the Missouri Tigers to a blowout win.

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Averi Kroenke watched from halfcourt as her teammates got shots up prior to facing the SEMO Redhawks. 

Whether she was sitting, standing or moving around with one leg suspended on a walking scooter, she was there — and with a smile on her face. She hadn’t yet made her debut for the Missouri Tigers since injuring her foot just after Media Day, but she was going to support her teammates regardless. 

They still had a game to play.

As Missouri prepared to take to its home court at Mizzou Arena against a familiar in-state opponent, it knew that expectations were high. Losing two games prior to facing SEMO made sure of that, as the Tigers wanted a win to begin getting back on the right track. 

That proved to be easier said than done, but head coach Robin Pingeton’s squad was able to pull out a win to start their weekend, overpowering the Redhawks en route to a 88-43 victory.

SEMO’s dynamic duo of Alecia Doyle and Jaliyah Green had been a bright spot for the Redhawks all season, both averaging 15 points per game, but with a strong Tigers’ defensive front, the pair was subdued, only combining for 12 points on the night. 

For the Tigers, it was Grace Slaughter who did the heavy lifting early on. By the end of the first quarter, the freshman already had as many points as SEMO had collectively, and she finished with 11 points and five rebounds on 63% shooting. 

Missouri started hot, instantly getting to the free throw line on the first possession to kickoff the scoring. From there, a slew of Slaughter makes fueled a mini-run by the Tigers, who found themselves with a comfortable cushion throughout the entire first quarter. 

SEMO never hit the double-digit mark in the first quarter, while Missouri graduate forward Hayley Frank found a groove, scoring five straight to close the first 10 minutes of play by putting the Tigers up 11 points. And off to the second quarter the two teams went.

Abbey Schreacke — who finished with 13 points on the afternoon — made things worse for the Redhawks almost instantly, hitting a deep 3-pointer from the right wing as the shot clock wound down. At that point, Missouri was up by 14 points, but it wasn’t done yet. SEMO finally crossed over to double digits with eight minutes to play, scoring two straight to mark a 5-0 run.

Then, two more Tigers scratched the scorecard. 

Ashton Judd notched her first points of the game on a long-range 3-pointer, and Sarah Linthacum followed it with a layup of her own to extend the Tigers’ lead back to 14. From there, Judd did what she’s been doing all season: scoring the basketball. 

Judd hit another 3-pointer, this time from the right corner, and then made her way to the charity stripe after drawing a foul on her made mid-range pull up. She finished the half with nine points and the game with 15 — shooting  50% from behind the arc in the process — playing a big part of the Tigers’ 22-point lead at halftime.

The scoring only continued for Missouri into the third quarter. Hannah Linthacum scored two straight baskets to extend the Tigers’ lead to 26, and despite Doyle’s best efforts, SEMO was too far into a hole to make a dent. A string of made baskets by Hayley Frank made sure of that.

Frank finished the third quarter with seven points — and led all scorers on the game, with 18 — to help the Tigers’ lead continually increase. With just over a minute to play, Missouri found itself up by 34 and the game was about as close to decided as it could have gotten. 

But still, the fourth quarter remained.

With seven minutes to play, SEMO had hit just three total shots, and didn’t cross the 30-point mark until about two minutes after that. Missouri’s defense made the Redhawks’ offense a non-factor all game long, and that was the case in the final 10 minutes as well. 

As turnovers continued to pile up for the Redhawks, so did points on the other end. Schreacke kept the Tigers afloat on offense as the final four minutes played out. And when they were over, the Tigers had officially secured their 88-43 blowout win over the visiting Redhawks. 

With the win, the Tigers improve to 6-3 and break a two-game losing skid dating back to their loss to Kent State on Nov. 25. Now, the test is whether or not they can respond by starting a winning streak, with their next test coming at home against Missouri State.

Tipoff from Mizzou Arena is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST Wednesday.