COLUMBIA, Mo. - A slow start proved costly as Western Illinois women's basketball fell to Missouri 75-60 inside Mizzou Arena on Sunday afternoon (Dec. 22).

The Fighting Leathernecks (5-7) fell behind to the Tigers (11-2) by scores of 9-0 and 25-7 early in the game, and despite cutting the margin to single digits several times, Western was unable to come all the way back.

Ashley Luke led the Leathernecks with 20 points and eight rebounds, while Michelle Maher added 15 points.

In her return to Missouri, where she played her first two seasons in college, Tori Niemann finished with eight points, four rebounds, three assists and a career-high five steals.

Marley Hall added seven points and five rebounds, while Paige Harmon pitched in six points.

Western Illinois committed 10 turnovers during Mizzou's 25-7 start to the game, but the Leathernecks responded with a 14-4 run, keyed by two Maher triples, to cut the margin back to single digits.

Missouri's Morgan Eye, who finished with a game-high 22 points, hit back-to-back 3-pointers to spark a key another Tiger run, as they entered halftime ahead, 45-27.

With the Tigers leading 49-31 early in the second half, four different Leathernecks scored as Western's 9-0 run cut the deficit to 49-40 with 13:55 left.

Minutes later, another Eye triple pushed the margin back to 15 points, but a pair of Maher free throws made the score 61-52 at the 8:06 mark.

The Tigers responded with five straight points, not allowing Western within single digits the remainder of the way.

The defeat was the first time this season Western has lost when Maher scored at least 13 points, as the Leathernecks won the previous five.

Western Illinois was strong from the free throw line, connecting on 23-of-29 (79.3 percent), but again struggled from the field (16-of-52, 30.8 percent) and beyond the arc (5-of-21, 23.8 percent).

Mizzou finished the game 30-of-69 (43.5 percent) from the field, 11-of-29 (37.9 percent) from long range and 4-of-9 (44.4 percent) from the charity stripe.

For the Tigers, Jordan Frericks notched a double-double (14 points, 12 rebounds) and Bri Kulas added 17 points, eight boards and five assists.

The Leathernecks will look to snap their two-game skid on Sunday (Dec. 29), traveling to take on former Summit League foe Kansas City at 2 p.m.