3 questions Missouri women's basketball has answered, and 3 that still remain, this season

Missouri women's basketball played a familiar face in Virginia.

It wasn't UVA, Missouri has never played the Cavaliers before. It was the Hoos' head coach, Amaka Agugua-Hamilton. Coach Mox was 3-0 all-time against MU in her career spanning back to her days at Missouri State.

Coach Mox is 4-0 against Missouri after UVA held off the Tigers 87-81 in overtime as part of the SEC/ACC Challenge.

Here are three questions Missouri women's basketball has answered, and three questions we still have, eight games into the non-conference season.

3 answered questions about Missouri women's basketball

Multiple players have emerged outside of Hayley Frank

Hayley Frank is MU's go-to player on offense. She can score on multiple levels and is one of the program's all-time leading scorers.

But, she can't do it alone.

Thankfully for MU, Mama Dembele and Ashton Judd have emerged as offensive options.

Judd, as a sophomore, has been dangerous when she's found her touch. The sophomore from West Plains has gotten better at finishing at the rim to go along with her long-range shooting.

Those players need to emerge more for Missouri, not just in scoring points. But also in assists, rebounds and steals. Judd and Dembele have provided both.

The freshman can hold their own

When you talk about a baptism by fire, there's no better example than what Robin Pingeton asked of her freshmen this season.

New to the college game, Grace Slaughter, Hannah Linthacum and Abbey Schreake have all been asked to play plenty of minutes, and each has responded.

Slaughter has been the best and most consistent. She's started every game and she's been a consistent scorer and rebounder for MU. There's no question Slaughter is growing into Missouri's next star.

Linthacum has adjusted to playing as a college post player, grabbing rebounds and playing with her back to the basket. Schreake has been Missouri's backup point guard with Averi Kroenke's injury, and she's filled in admirably in learning a new position.

Schreake had a massive presence against UVA. She scored 15 points and hit three of her four 3-point shots. Without her, MU might have gotten blown out.

That's a boon for Missouri, which will play these freshmen plenty during SEC play.

Grace Slaughter is better than billed

We have written plenty about Slaughter since the end of last season. So far, everything we've written has become

When the Tigers needed something, Slaughter gave the team exactly what it needed.

Down four with a minute left, she hit a clutch 3-pointer to cut it to a one-point game which ultimately helped force overtime.

Slaughter scored 17 against Virginia as she went up against a roster of physical post players. She more than held her own, proving that she's ready for Power 5 competition.

3 questions we still have about Missouri women's basketball

Can the bad turnovers stop?

No team is perfect. Turnovers are a part of the game. But, Missouri needs to find a way to eliminate bad turnovers.

These are the inbounds passes that sail and lead to a fast break. This is when the opposing team gets an easy strip and gets possession before the MU offense can even set up.

These kinds of turnovers allowed Virginia to control the tempo and the pace of the game Thursday. It turned a 36-28 halftime lead for Missouri to a 44-43 UVA lead.

It sinks the momentum, and Missouri has shown it struggles to regain the momentum once it loses it. These turnovers are a reason why MU loses that momentum, and the Tigers had xx against Virginia.

Can Missouri find a way to defend better?

Communication has been an issue for Missouri.

Defensive rotations and assignments depend plenty on this in-game communication and Pingeton has been on the record saying the team needs to be better with this.

The Tigers have taken a step toward answering that question as Pingeton has started to input a zone defense. That worked against UVA, which bottled the Cavaliers in the second quarter.

But, that communication struggled in the second half. The defense struggled with closeouts at times and that allowed UVA to hit open 3-pointers.

Part of that communication stems from MU having three freshmen in its rotation but other parts are Missouri struggling to keep up with teams that are faster.

Is Missouri a Tournament team?

The ACC Network broadcast team seems to think so. However, after losses to Saint Louis and Kent State Missouri's resume needs some heavy lifting.

SLU very well may be a tournament team this year. Kent State, however, was a tough loss to take. It means MU needs to win against Illinois or Kansas State, maybe both, to get its resume in a place where the Tigers don't have to do plenty of heavy lifting throughout SEC play.

There's plenty of season to go. Missouri has the pieces to compete in the SEC outside of teams like South Carolina and LSU, two teams that are just at juggernaut level right now.

The Tigers need its freshmen to develop and need its veteran players to play clean basketball in December. Come January, this questions will become more clear.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: 3 questions Missouri women's basketball answered, and 3 that still remain