Upsets are the lifeblood of March Madness. They’re the moments when Cinderellas rise, Davids topple Goliaths, and college basketball rewrites its own mythology. Now, it’s obviously not on the same stage or scale, but a win over a Division I team (even in an exhibition game) is no small feat for Division II basketball. Yet, Maryville went ahead and did just that, facing Missouri.

After 15 seasons under head coach Robin Pingeton, the Kellie Harper era at Mizzou started with a shocker. The Tigers went down 89-84 in overtime to Division II Maryville. The last time Mizzou dropped an exhibition game was way back in 2001, against the Houston Jaguars, who, by the way, aren’t even an NCAA-sanctioned team.

Now, sure, it was just an exhibition game, so technically, it won’t show up in Mizzou’s 2025-26 record. But that doesn’t make it any less concerning, especially when the season’s less than a week away and the opponent belongs to Division II, even if it’s a strong one.

The biggest red flag was that the Tigers just couldn’t buy a bucket from deep. They went 3-of-30 from beyond the arc while Maryville splashed 12-of-34. The Saints even nailed two clutch triples in overtime, including one with 40 seconds left that sealed the deal. “We’re disappointed, (but I) don’t think we deserved to win the game,” Harper admitted afterward. “We’re not going to win a lot of games going 3-for-30 from the 3-point line.”

The Tigers also shot just 35.5% from the field and coughed up 18 turnovers, while Maryville owned the glass with 47 rebounds and shot a cool 56% after the break. For Tigers, Grace Slaughter led the way with 25 points, but the real bright spot was probably Jordana Reisma.

Reisma was an absolute anchor on both ends, finishing with 21 points, 11 rebounds, and five blocks in 37 minutes. When she went down in the fourth, holding her leg, Mizzou fans held their breath only for her to return minutes later to a roaring crowd and knock down a game-tying three with 1:30 left. But even that couldn’t save the Tigers. Their overtime rally fell short, and just like that, it was a reminder that there’s still plenty of work to do.

Because the real test is about to come.

Missouri gears up for a grueling SEC run

Missouri women’s basketball has its work cut out for the 2025-26 season. The Tigers’ 16-game SEC schedule tips off on New Year’s Day at Mizzou Arena against Texas. From there, it’s a tough grind through March 1, facing every SEC team at least once and meeting Arkansas twice, both home and away.

They’ll get eight chances to defend their home court this season, hosting Texas (Jan. 1), Alabama (Jan. 12), Arkansas (Jan. 15), Ole Miss (Jan. 22), Texas A&M (Jan. 25), Georgia (Feb. 8), Auburn (Feb. 19), and Oklahoma (March 1).

On the road, they’ll head into some fierce environments: Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Florida, Mississippi State, Arkansas, Tennessee, LSU, and Dawn Staley’s South Carolina, who had her own mini heartbreak recently, all thanks to a recruitment, by the way. But before that chaos begins, Mizzou opens its campaign with a winnable matchup against Central Arkansas. But it’s the November 15th clash against Kansas that already has a big red circle on the calendar, the first regular-season meeting between the rivals since 2011-12.

So, yes, an interesting stretch lies ahead. The Tigers will have chances to prove themselves in key matchups, but after their shaky exhibition showing, they’ll need to tighten up fast if they want to survive what’s shaping up to be a brutal SEC season.