Columbia News

The University of Missouri women's basketball team will participate in the fourth annual Elevance Health Women's Fort Myers Tip-Off, scheduled for November 28-29. The announcement was made by Intrasport.

Missouri is set to compete in the Shell Division and will face Bradley on November 28 at 12:30 p.m., followed by a game against Northwestern on November 29 at the same time. Both games are slated to take place at Suncoast Credit Union Arena, located on the campus of Florida SouthWestern State College. The contests will be nationally televised by ION, which is available through cable, satellite, major streaming platforms, and over-the-air distribution.

Mark Starsiak, senior vice president at Intersport, which owns and operates the event, said: "We are proud of the continued growth of the Elevance Health Women's Fort Myers Tip-Off, demonstrated once again by an impressive collection of teams that are participating in the fourth-annual event, but also that every game will be nationally televised by ION. These eight games will prove to be meaningful contests as the season evolves and we're excited to bring these showcase games to a national audience during Thanksgiving Week."

A total of eight teams will participate in Fort Myers. Butler, Dayton, Georgia, and Kansas are set to compete in the Island Division.

Earlier this year, Kellie Harper became Missouri's fifth head coach in program history. Over her 20 seasons as a Division I head coach, Harper has achieved a record of 393-260 with nine NCAA Tournament appearances. She has guided her teams to 15 top-three finishes within their leagues and secured four conference tournament championships. Including her time as a player at Tennessee, Harper brings 11 seasons of SEC experience. In the 2022-23 season, she led Tennessee's Lady Volunteers to their second consecutive NCAA Sweet 16 appearance.

Junior Grace Slaughter is expected to lead Missouri's roster this season. Last year she was named SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year and ranked 18th in scoring within the conference with an average of 15 points per game along with 3.6 rebounds.

Missouri’s roster has been updated with seven transfers: 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).

Travel packages for fans wishing to attend are currently available through www.womensfortmyerstipoff.com/travel. These packages include tickets for all games within either division as well as hotel accommodations and parking at the venue; ticket-only options will become available in August.

For updates regarding event news or ticket information, fans can visit www.womensfortmyerstipoff.com or follow Intersport Basketball on social media platforms Twitter (X) and Instagram via @IntersportHoops.

Season tickets for Missouri women’s basketball’s upcoming season start at $65 and are now available for purchase or renewal through official channels.