COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri women’s basketball will host Cal in the annual ACC/SEC Challenge contest as announced by ESPN on Thursday.
The cross-conference matchup will be played at home in Mizzou Arena on Thursday, Dec. 4.
The contest will be the first challenge game of the Kellie Harper era. Harper became the fifth coach in Mizzou program history this offseason. In 20 seasons as a Division I head coach, Harper has led her teams to a 393-260 record with nine NCAA Tournament berths. She has piloted her squads to 15 top-three league finishes and four conference tournament championships. In 2022-23, Harper led the Lady Volunteers to the NCAA Sweet 16 for a second consecutive season.
Grace Slaughter enters her junior season to headline the Tigers’ new-look roster. 2024-25 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, ranked 18th in the SEC with 15.0 points a season ago while also contributing and 3.6 rebounds.
The reloaded roster will also feature seven impactful transfer additions, Chloe Sotell (Pepperdine), Jayla Smith (Purdue), Lisa Thompson (Rutgers), Sydney Mains (Florida Atlantic), Shannon Dowell (Illinois State), Jordana Reisma (Cleveland State) and Saniah Tyler (Kentucky).
The Golden Bears finished last season at 25-9 including a 12-6 mark in ACC play before falling to Mississippi State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.
The program is headlined by junior guard Lulu Twidale who averaged 13.2 points and 3.3 rebounds last year. Twidale recorded 95 triples which ranked second among all sophomores in the country.
The ACC/SEC Challenge will feature 16 games spanning December 3-4. The games will be televised across ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ACC Network and SEC Network.
The women’s challenge finished the inaugural year with a 7-7 tie, but saw the SEC coming out on top in year two, 10-6.
Coverage details, including platform designations and commentator information, will be announced closer to the 2025-26 college basketball season.
SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2025-26 season are on sale now and start at just $65. Current season-ticket holders can renew their tickets by using their Mizzou Tigers ticket account.
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