After a 3-0 trip to Florida, Mizzou women’s basketball seems to have found its rhythm. This past week the Tigers won their two games against Bradley and Northwestern at the Fort Myers Tip-Off. The team is now 7-2 and No. 76 in the NET rankings.B1G wins🐯#MIZ x #OurZoupic.twitter.com/WmBCtB9m2h— Mizzou Women’s Basketball (@MizzouWBB) November 29, 2025But Mizzou faces a tough challenge ahead, when they face California (No. 71 in the NET) in the third annual ACC-SEC Challenge. Previously the Tigers are 1-1 in the challenge, losing the inaugural year to Virginia on the road before bouncing back in year two at home against SMU.The two conferences tied at 7-7 in 2023 before the SEC won the next season 10-6. After one day of action, the SEC is in the driver’s seat with a 5-1 record (waiting to add Tenn/Stanford result).Outside of the showdown with Cal, the Tigers host SIUE in a regional showdown. Here’s what to know about both matchups and how Mizzou can improve to 9-2.California Dreamin’The marquee matchup for Mizzou is the Cal Golden Bears. This is the first meeting between the two teams since the Cal Classic in Berkeley in 2017, where Mizzou walked away with the win 55-52.Cal is coming off its best record in over a decade, finishing 25-9 and securing an eight seed in the NCAA Tournament under former Mizzou head coach target Charming Smith. However, the Golden Bears lost in the opening round to Mississippi State. The team is off to another hot start, currently 6-2 on the year with their only losses coming at the hands of Vanderbilt and Auburn on neutral sites.The Golden Bears do a good job winning close games, as half of the teams’ wins have come by less than 10 points. The main separator for Cal has been their ability to pass the ball, leading to easier buckets. The team is averaging 16 assists per game while holding its opponents to 10.6.While Lulu Twidale doesn’t lead the team in assists, she uses her passing to balance out her high-end scoring. The junior guard is averaging 2.9 assists per game plus a team-leading 14.6 points per game. Twidale will need to be the primary focus for the Tigers defense, both limiting her good looks and clogging up passing lanes to avoid her finding open teammates.Beep beep, 🚙 get out of the way 📺>>FLO College #weplayforthebay|#gobearspic.twitter.com/DTCSoR9NZc— Cal Basketball (@CalWBBall) November 25, 2025Regional RallyThe final game of the week is a Sunday showdown with Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, better known as SIUE. Mizzou is a perfect 7-0 against the Cougars, with the last win coming in 2022 in Columbia 79-46.SIUE is coming off a poor season where they finished 6-23 with four wins in OVC play. They are on pace to smash that win total, starting off the year 4-2 and winning three of their first four games. The Cougars’ big advantage thus far has been the turnover margin. Currently, SIUE is only committing an average of 14.3 turnovers per game. On the flip side, the team has forced 16.8 per game, leading to an average of 16 points.Freshman Kiyoko Proctor has been a huge difference this year, leading the team in both points and assists. In her first year of collegiate athletics, she is averaging 14.8 points, 3 assists and 1.7 assists. Her best game so far came against Indiana State where she scored 26 points, recorded four assists and two steals. Proctor has helped spark this turnaround for the Cougars, so she will likely be at the top of Harper’s scouting report.. @SIUEWBB Kiyoko Proctor Receives OVC Freshman of the Week Honorshttps://t.co/w4ehKv83yL— SIUE Cougars (@SIUECougars) December 2, 2025Player to Watch: Grace SlaughterAfter several weeks of “okay” basketball, Grace Slaughter finally burst onto the scene at the Fort Myers Tip-Off, cementing her status as the star of this year’s team. During the two-game stretch the Grain Valley junior scored 52 points, grabbed 23 rebounds while draining seven three-pointers. She knows how to set the tone for a Mizzou team that is prone to slow starts, scoring 16 in the first quarter against Bradley and 15 against Northwestern.Our all-tournament girly 👑#MIZ x #OurZoupic.twitter.com/TDL1cOvw22— Mizzou Women’s Basketball (@MizzouWBB) November 30, 2025In that Northwestern game, Slaughter set a new career-high of 33 points on 12-21 shooting and 4-6 from deep. She did much more than score with nine rebounds and five assists, showing off her insane motor on both ends of the floor on the second half of a back-to-back.Slaughter will need to play a key role if the Tigers aim to knock off Cal in the ACC-SEC Challenge. That game takes place at 8 p.m. on Thursday from Mizzou Arena, and is available to watch on the SEC Network.