No. 13 Georgia beats Mizzou women's basketball in battle of mismatches

Missouri women's basketball put its best player to work against the best that No. 13 Georgia had to offer Monday night at Mizzou Arena.

The Bulldogs had towering Jenna Staiti, who seemed to find nearly every rebound possible. However, Missouri had Aijha Blackwell, whose aggressiveness was on display in the second half.

The two went toe-to-toe, nearly matching each other's stat lines: Blackwell finished with 27 points and 13 rebounds; Staiti had 22 points and 12 boards.

When the dust settled, Georgia won 72-62, showing the Tigers still have work ahead of them when it comes to catching up with the ranked in the Southeastern Conference, as they fell to 13-5 on the season and 2-3 in SEC play.

But it also showed Missouri has a superstar in Blackwell, who can take the next step as a top player in the SEC by feasting on the enigma she is for opposing defenses. Tigers coach Robin Pingeton listed off the reasons why Blackwell is so difficult to defend, starting with her size, quickness and explosiveness.

"She's so strong, she's so explosive, she can play with her back to the basket, she's got a great face-up game," Pingeton said. "I think she's starting to understand she creates so much attention."

Blackwell's presence shined, but she was without some key help. Monday was Missouri's second game without LaDazhia Williams, which made it another game of chess against a top-15 SEC team.

The Tigers displayed a deeper level of trust early on, subbing in Micah Linthacum and Jayla Kelly. Kelly was the first player off the bench, coming in for Blackwell.

Georgia didn't waste time striking fast.

The Bulldogs blazed through the first quarter, overpowering Missouri in the defensive post for rebounds and hitting nearly every mid-range shot they took. It didn't help that Missouri turned the ball over six times while trying to build some rhythm on offense.

Georgia was up 23-10 after the first quarter, but the Tigers rallied back with a similar second quarter that UGA enjoyed in the first.

Mama Dembele swiped two steals, Blackwell began driving to the basket more aggressively, and the shooting duo of Lauren Hansen and Hayley Frank began hitting shots from the perimeter.

Missouri trailed 34-31 at halftime, but the third quarter is when the mismatches began to work in Georgia's favor.

Staiti became more aggressive and it showed. She recorded two offensive rebounds and began to drive to the basket more instead of settling for jump shots. That forced the Tigers to commit to the post more and forced a Pingeton timeout with the Bulldogs up 43-36, as rebounds bounced to Georgia for five quick second-chance points.

It was the start of a back-and-forth battle between Staiti and Blackwell in the second half, which was founded on respect.

"She's the best rebounder in the country," Staiti said of Blackwell. "Defending her is hard. She had a great game, and it's hard to stop. She's always moving, she's always posting, she's going after every ball.

"A player that plays like that, it's hard to maintain sometimes."

Coming out of that timeout, Missouri was more aggressive going to the basket on drives from Hansen and Blackwell. That gave three UGA starters at least two fouls, with Jordan Isaacs having three midway through the third.

That's when Blackwell's mismatch began to shine.

The main problem Blackwell causes for defenders is her size. She doesn't tower over opponents like Staiti or South Carolina's Aliyah Boston, but Blackwell is quicker than those two, having spent time as a guard.

When Blackwell plays around the perimeter and guards treat her like a post, she can square up for a 3-pointer. Blackwell isn't as lethal of a shooter as Frank or Hansen are, but she's effective enough to remind defenses to stay at home.

"The biggest key for her continuing to move forward — that can really take her game to the next level — is just continuing to play with pace," Pingeton said. "You've got to be able to be explosive, but you've got to be able to decelerate around the rim."

In the second half Monday, when Georgia played up on Blackwell at the perimeter, she began to drive to the basket and draw fouls. That put Georgia's second-leading scorer on the bench with four fouls.

The only downside to Blackwell's evening was her five missed foul shots, which she mentioned herself postgame, but even that doesn't detract from her star performance overall. The SEC on Monday named Blackwell the league's co-player of the week alongside South Carolina's Boston.

Frank finished with 18 points, but the rest of the Missouri team had only three other players who scored points.

The Tigers may not have gotten Staiti to foul, but Blackwell got nearly everyone else on the Bulldogs' roster to do so. By the end, Blackwell drew 11 Georgia fouls.

Blackwell also recorded another double-double, her 13th on the season. She remained humble after the game when talking about how much she needed to improve.

"I get going and sometimes it's hard to stop," Blackwell said. "Just knowing my game, when to shoot and when to face up and the right moves to make."

Frank began to heat up in the fourth, hitting three straight 3-pointers.

But the Tigers couldn't stop Staiti. She closed out the game with foul shots, making a close game out of reach.

Blackwell made sure the Tigers were in the game until the end.

"No one on this squad likes to lose," Frank said.

Chris Kwiecinski is the sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, overseeing University of Missouri and Boone County sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter @OchoK_ and contact him at CKwiecinsk@gannett.com or 435-414-3261.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: No. 13 Georgia beats Mizzou women's basketball in battle of mismatches