The Missouri State Lady Bears (2-10, 0-1) will look to bounce back from Friday’s (Jan. 4) MVC-opening loss at Drake with a 2:05 p.m. matchup against the Creighton Bluejays (8-4, 1-0) at the Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha, Neb.
Missouri State will also be attempting to put the brakes on a 14-game road losing streak, including eight in a row in MVC play. The Lady Bears have not beaten a conference foe since a 70-60 win over CU last Feb. 23 in Springfield.
Sunday’s game will be broadcast locally in Springfield on KTXR 101.3 FM and on the web at www.radiospringfield.com. It will also be the fourth of eight Lady Bear games in 2007-08 that will be televised on Mediacom (MCC-14) in Springfield. Live stats for the contest can also be accessed at both www.missouristatebears.com and Creighton’s athletics web site, www.gocreighton.com.
Last Time Out: Drake showed why it entered as the Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite, dominating the Lady Bears in all phases of the game in a 72-42 victory in the league opener for both clubs Friday evening in Des Moines.
DU held Missouri State to .217 (15-of-69) shooting from the field while hitting 44 percent of its field goal attempts to improve to 8-4 on the year.
Drake seized control of the contest with an 11-0 run after Tiff Terwelp’s 15-footer at the 17:26 mark tied the game at 4-4. Lindsay Whorton, who burned the Lady Bears for 27 points in the two teams’ last meeting in February, knocked down a three from the left wing, then buried a jumper on the Bulldogs’ next possession with 13:33 left on the clock to give DU a 15-4 advantage.
The Bulldogs’ would go on to outscore Missouri State 31-4 over a 12 and-a-half minute span, stretching their lead to as many as 27 points before the Lady Bears converted seven straight free-throw attempts late in the period to close the gap to 37-17 at the half.
The Lady Bears struggled to generate any offense in the opening half, hitting just five of their 43 (.132) shots from the field in the game’s first 20 minutes, a record-low percentage for a DU opponent in a single half. MSU went over 10 minutes without a field goal before Marisha Brown converted a short jumper with just over a minute to play before the break.
Drake, on the other hand, came out smoking, knocking down 15-of-32 (.469) field-goal attempts in the first stanza. Whorton led the way with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field, including 3-of-4 from beyond the three-point arc.
The Bulldogs used a 19-10 burst to open the second half, pushing their lead to 56-27. They would extent that advantage to as many as 34 and the Lady Bears would get no closer than 25 points the rest of the way.
Missouri State went 0-of-10 from three-point range after averaging 12 treys per game over their last three outings. The Lady Bears 21.7 percent shooting night represents their lowest single-game effort since a school-record low .204 effort against Colorado in the second round of the 1995 NCAA Tournament.
Creighton notched a decisive 83-47 victory over Wichita State in Omaha Friday in its MVC opener. The Jays shot .441 from the floor, including 12-of-28 from three-point range, while holding the Shockers to just .273 shooting from the field and finishing with a 52-39 total rebounding edge. Four players scored in double figures for CU and the Bluejays’ bench outscored WSU’s 44-15.
The Coaches: Nyla Milleson (Kansas State, ’85) is 2-10 in her first season as the head coach at Missouri State and 187-46 overall. The Goodland, Kan., native led Drury University to a 185-36 mark in seven seasons, highlighted by a national runner-up finish in 2003-04. In all, the Lady Panthers made five NCAA Division II Tournament appearances and advanced to the Sweet 16 in four of those years. Milleson was honored as Heartland Conference Coach of the Year four times, as Drury won five conference titles in all.
Jim Flanery (Creighton, ’87) is 96-72 in his sixth season as head coach of the Bluejays. The Guthrie Center, Iowa, native guided Creighton to consecutive 24-9 seasons in his first two years at the helm. His 2002-03 team shared the MVC regular season title, and the 2003-04 Bluejay squad captured the WNIT Championship.
Prior to accepting the head coaching job at Creighton, Flanery served as an assistant coach under Connie Yori for 10 seasons at CU, helping the Bluejays compile a 170-115 record over that period.
In 11 games against Missouri State, Flannery’s teams have compiled a 3-8 mark with all three victories coming in Omaha.
Series Record: Missouri State holds a 25-11 advantage in the series with the Bluejays, including a 7-3 mark in their last 10 meetings.
Missouri State dropped a 61-51 decision to CU in Omaha on Jan. 25 in the two schools’ first meeting last season. Junior guard Ally Thrall and freshman forward Sam Schuett led Creighton with 14 points apiece, while sophomore forward Breton Wyett paced the Missouri State attack with 20 points.
The Lady Bears returned the favor in Springfield, knocking off the Jays by a 70-60 score to stop an eight-game losing streak. Tahnee Balerio scored 19 points and handed out a career-best 12 assists, as MSU shot .607 from the floor in the second half while holding CU to just 23.8 percent shooting after the break.
Scouting Creighton: The Bluejays return 10 letterwinners and all five starters from last year’s 13-19 squad that just missed qualifying for the NCAA Tournament with an improbable run through the State Farm MVC Tournament. CU dropped a heartbreaking 65-64 decision to host Drake in the championship game after knocking off third-seeded Indiana State and the league’s No. 2 team, Illinois State, to reach the final.
Senior forward Sara Cain (10.3 ppg./5.5 rpg.) leads CU in scoring while fellow senior co-captain Ally Thrall (8.9 ppg./3.3 apg.) leads the Valley in three-point shooting, having connected on 46.8 percent of her tries through the first 12 games of the season. Thrall also ranks second in the league in assist to turnover ratio (1.86). Sophomore forward Sam Schuett (9.4 ppg./6.4 rpg.) is second on the club in scoring and leads the Jays in rebounding. An MVC All-Freshman Team honoree last year, Schuett is shooting nearly 93 percent from the foul line while leading CU in field-goal percentage (.429).
Creighton has played a challenging non-conference schedule that includes road games against Rutgers, Nebraska, Kansas and Iowa State. The Jays have played just four of their 12 games at home, posting a perfect 4-0 mark through Friday’s win over Wichita State.
As a team Creighton leads the MVC in free throw percentage (.768) and ranks second in assists per game (15.3) and three-point field goals made per contest (7.42). The Jays are also third in the league in scoring (+4.7) and rebound (+3.4) margins while averaging 66.8 points per outing.
Windex Woman: Senior forward Tiff Terwelp broke into MSU’s career rebounding top 10 with her 14-board effort in Friday’s loss at Drake.The Quincy, Ill., native enters Sunday’s contest with 654 boards for her Missouri State career after passing LaTanya Davis (648) for the No. 10 spot. She needs just seven more to reach Sandy Meyer in the ninth slot and only 12 more to match Karen Rapier’s 666 at No. 8.
Earlier this season, Terwelp cleaned the glass to the tune of 18 rebounds in the loss at ASU. That effort matched single-game performances by Lynn Strubberg (1/28/83 at Northwest Missouri St.) and Roshonda Reed (1/16/99 at Indiana St.) for the third-highest rebound total in MSU history. Terwelp’s previous career-high of 16 boards came in a 70-51 loss at Tulsa last December.
On The Road Again: Since snapping a seven-game road losing streak with an 83-76 win over Indiana State in Terre Haute last January, the Lady Bears have dropped their last 14 contests on the road and their last 15 away from Hammons Student Center overall. Over the last two years, Missouri State has won just two true road games and only four of its 34 games away from Hammons.
A Look At The Numbers: Several Lady Bears rank among the Missouri Valley Conference’s statistical leaders through the non-conference portion of the season. Maggie Dwyer ranks second in the MVC in offensive rebounds (2.92 rpg.), eighth in scoring (13.4) and ninth in three-point field goal percentage (.396), while Tiff Terwelp is the league’s third-leading rebounder with an 8.0 rpg. average. Additionally, Terwelp is third in offensive rebounding (2.67 rpg.) and Jacque Griggs ranks fourth (2.42) in that same category.Tahnee Balerio currently ranks fifth in the Valley in assists per game (3.9), sixth in minutes played per game (32.0), eighth in free throw percentage (.800) and 10th in steals (1.6 spg.).
As a team Missouri State leads the Valley in total rebounding at 41.4 rpg., but 10th in rebounding defense at 42.2 rpg. The Lady Bears are second in offensive rebounds (16.0 rpg.).
Missouri State ranks either last or next-to-last in 10 categories, including scoring defense, scoring margin, free-throw percentage, field goal percentage, three-point field goal percentage, assists, steals, turnover margin, assist-to-turnover margin and rebounding defense.
Valley Openers: With their loss at Drake Friday, the Lady Bears are now 11-5 in Missouri Valley Conference openers and 18-7 overall in conference openers since formal competition began in the Gateway in 1983. The defeat was MSU’s largest loss in MVC regular-season play since an 84-47 setback at Creighton six years ago (1/6/02).
Preseason Picks: Missouri State was picked to finish seventh in the Missouri Valley Conference preseason poll of coaches, media and sports information directors. The Lady Bears received 136 points, while preseason favorite Drake received 24 of 40 first-place votes and 348 total points.
MSU Peaks in The Valley: The Lady Bears are 195-72 all-time against Valley opponents with a 115-20 home record against league foes. Since joining the MVC in 1992, the Lady Bears have won at least a share of eight regular-season titles and seven conference tournaments. Missouri State has played in 10 of the 15 Valley tournament championship games.
Instant O: After averaging just 57.8 points per game in their first eight contests of the season, the Lady Bears scored 176 points combined against Oral Roberts (Dec. 15) and Canisius (Dec. 21). That figure represents the best two-game scoring total for MSU since December 2004, when the Lady Bears knocked off Saint Louis (86-56) and Eastern Kentucky (91-81) in succession. Additionally, MSU’s 97 points vs. Canisius represented the highest point total by a Lady Bear club since a 107-53 win over Evansville on March 8, 2003.
Balerio Back in Gear: Senior guard Tahnee Balerio was a driving force in the Lady Bears’ offensive in their last three non-conference games. After totaling just 14 assists in MSU’s first eight games, the Buhler, Kan., native registered a career-high 12 against Oral Roberts, then handed out 10 in both the win over Canisius and an 82-64 loss at Western Kentucky (Dec. 29). Balerio also tallied 17 points in the victory over Canisius, matching her best scoring effort since a 20-point performance in the Lady Bears’ season-opener at Texas (Nov. 11).
Busby Makes Her Mark: Sophomore guard Melissa Busby has made the most of her return to the Missouri State starting lineup, totaling 68 of her 87 points on the season in the Lady Bears’ last three non-conference contests.
In her first start of the season Busby connected on 6-of-11 three-point tries and led the Lady Bears with a career-high 24 points in a 96-79 loss at Oral Roberts (Dec. 15). She followed that up with another strong offensive showing in the Lady Bears’ win over Canisius (Dec. 21). Busby knocked down six three-pointers in the first half and finished with 23 points for the game on 7-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc. She matched that shooting performance with a 7-of-11 effort against Western Kentucky. The Edmond, Okla., native knocked down six treys in the second half versus the Lady Toppers to finish with 21 points, her third 20+ point performance in a row.
Mags to Riches: Junior forward Maggie Dwyer has found her shooting stroke over the Lady Bears’ last six non-conference contests. While averaging a team-high 17.8 points per game over that stretch, Dwyer shot .430 from the field, including .429 from three-point range after connecting on just 28.6 percent of her field-goal attempts in Missouri State’s first five games of the season. She averaged team highs of 32.0 minutes and 6.8 boards per contest in the Lady Bears final six games leading up to the conference season.
No Cupcakes Here: Missouri State’s 11 non-conference opponents have combined to go 88-59 (.599) in 2007-08. The Lady Bears’ schedule has produced two games against ranked opponents (#22 Texas and #17 DePaul), and all but Tulsa (4-9), Saint Louis (5-10) and Canisius (6-7) are at the .500 mark or above.
For the Record Books: The Lady Bears’ 96-79 loss at Oral Roberts (Dec. 15) will be remembered for several significant individual performances that left their mark on the Missouri State record book. Melissa Busby’s six treys matched seven other performances by a Lady Bear for the 10th-most three-point field goals made in a single game. Melody Howard (twice), Tina Robbins (12/5/93 at Iowa), Jackie Stiles (twice) and Kari Koch (twice) also buried six triples in a game for MSU.
Tahnee Balerio’s seven steals marked a new career high for the senior point guard and equaled the single-game efforts of 13 other Lady Bears for the seventh-best all-time performance in school history. Additionally, Balerio’s 12 assists matched her career best in that category (2/23/06 vs. Creighton) and ranks as the No. 10 single-game total, along with 11 other such performances by MSU players.
Century Mark for Terwelp: Senior forward Tiff Terwelp played in her 100th career contest for Missouri State in the loss at Oral Roberts (Dec. 15), becoming the 34th Lady Bear to top the century mark in games played. Fellow senior Tahnee Balerio will also reach the 100-game plateau for her MSU career in Sunday’s game.
Double Trouble: A Lady Bear has finished in double figures in rebounding in eight of MSU’s last 10 contests. Four different players have posted double-digit rebound games in that span, and three of those have registered point-rebound double-doubles, including Tiff Terwelp (vs. Arkansas State), Jacque Griggs (vs. UALR) and Maggie Dwyer (vs. Tulsa and Western Kentucky). In all, eight Lady Bears have established new single-game rebounding highs so far in 2007-08.
Dwyer Honored: Junior forward Maggie Dwyer received her second MVC Newcomer of the Week honor Dec. 26 following a career-high 29-point effort in MSU’s win over Canisius (Dec. 21). Dwyer was similarly honored Dec. 10 after averaging a team-best 15 points to go along with six boards as Missouri State split its two contests against Tulsa and Saint Louis.
Behind Dwyer’s 10-of-21 shooting performance against Canisius, MSU shot a season-high 50 percent from the floor, and its 97 points represented the Lady Bears’ best offensive showing since the 2002-03 season. Dwyer established a new career scoring high for the third consecutive game, pouring home 17 in the second half to help the Lady Bears turn around a one-point halftime deficit and pick up their second win of the season.
Missouri State took control of the game for good when Dwyer’s three-point play with 16:18 left in the game turned a 54-52 Lady Bear lead into a five-point advantage and sparked a 29-14 run that saw MSU stretch its lead to as many as 17 points. The Grand Haven, Mich., product accounted for 12 points during the decisive Missouri State scoring spurt and finished the night with seven rebounds and three assists.
Adams Arrives: The Lady Bears received a boost with the addition of Jamie Adams, a two-year MSU volleyball starter who began practicing with the Lady Bears the week of Dec. 10. Adams scored four points, grabbed a team-high seven rebounds and recorded two blocks in her Lady Bear debut vs. Oral Roberts (Dec. 15).
Adams, who will have two years of basketball eligibility, earned second-team All-MVC honors in 2006 and 2007 and helped the volleyball Bears to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
Lord, Wyett Leave Lady Bears: Sophomore center Ashley Lord and junior forward Breton Wyett have elected to leave the Lady Bear program.
Lord played in all 28 games for the Lady Bears as a freshman in 2006-07, starting 18 contests while averaging 3.3 points and 3.7 rebounds. This season, the Moran, Kan., native saw action in each of MSU's first three contests, averaging 0.7 points and 2.0 rebounds in just 6.7 minutes of playing time per game.
Wyett was the Lady Bears' second-leading scorer last year, averaging 10.4 points and 5.0 rebounds per outing while shooting a team-high .462 from the field. She led the Missouri Valley Conference in blocks per game with a 1.96 average and recorded 45 blocks in all, the fourth-highest single-season total in MSU history. Wyett leaves Missouri State as the program's No. 2 all-time shot-blocker with 96 career rejections.
Balerio on Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award Watch List: In recognition of her accomplishments both on and off the court, senior guard Tahnee Balerio has been selected as one of 30 initial candidates for the 2007-08 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award for women’s basketball.
Lowe’s Senior CLASS (an acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School) Award recognizes college senior athletes who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season can bring.
Balerio is one of 30 candidates in the running for the 2008 women’s basketball award, for which 10 finalists will be selected in early February. The winner will be announced at the Women’s Final Four in Tampa, Fla., during the weekend of April 5-6.
One Down: MSU’s 72-61 victory over Tulsa on Dec. 4 allowed the Lady Bears to cross a number of items off their to do list, including:
►posting their first win of the 2007-08 season after six straight losses to begin the campaign;
►giving new head coach Nyla Milleson her first win at MSU and as a Division I head coach;
►halting a school record-tying 10-game losing streak dating back to February of 2007;
►ending a four-game home losing streak, their longest since the 1985-86 season;
Welcome Wagon: Milleson and her staff have received four commitments to join the Lady Bears in 2008 during the November early signing period. Local products Lacey Boshe (Marshfield, Mo.) and Casey Garrison (Bolivar, Mo.) will be joined by a pair of Texas prep standouts, Jasmine Malone (San Antonio) and Regan Soldner (Southlake) in the class of 2008.
700/600 Club: Tiff Terwelp become the 12th Lady Bear to reach the career 700-point, 600-rebound plateau when she grabbed a team-high 10 boards in MSU’s loss to UTSA (Nov. 29). The Quincy, Ill., native surpassed the 700-point mark with a nine-point effort vs. Green Bay on Nov. 17.
Climbing the Charts: With her 17-point effort versus UTSA (Nov. 29), Tahnee Balerio topped the 900 career point mark and moved up to the No. 20 spot on the Lady Bears’ career scoring chart. Balerio’s first field goal of the night against the Roadrunners with 17:04 to play in the first half pushed her past Lynne Miller and Kimberly Scoggin, who previously shared the 20th spot at 891 career points. Balerio needs four more points to reach Gail Beck in the No.19 spot on the chart and 39 points to become the 19th player in school history to reach the 1,000-point plateau. Tiff Terwelp also broke into the top 30 when she scored her 731st career point vs. DePaul (Dec. 2) to move past Meg Tierney for the 30th spot.
Balerio Cracks Career Top 10 Lists: Senior guard Tahnee Balerio passed Jamie Bartlett for the No. 6 spot on MSU’s career top 10 chart for three-point field-goal attempts with her only attempt of the night against Saint Louis (Dec. 7). She enters Sunday’s game needing 38 more tries to reach the fifth spot on the chart, currently held by Sarah Klaassen.
Balerio also moved past current Lady Bear assistant coach Carly (Deer) Stubblefield for the No. 9 slot on MSU’s all-time three-point field goals list last season with her 72nd career trey in a 68-65 loss at Wichita State (2/3/07). Balerio now has 107 career threes, which is 13 shy of Bartlett in the eighth spot on the chart.
For Openers: With their 92-55 loss at #22 Texas, the Lady Bears are now 20-19 all-time in season openers and have dropped their last four contests on opening night. The 37-point setback is the largest margin of defeat in a MSU season opener since the Lady Bears lost a 43-point decision (94-51) at Arkansas to start the 1985-86 season. It is also MSU’s worst loss since Jan. 6, 2002, when it fell by an 84-47 score at Creighton.
This season marks the fifth year in a row Missouri State has played its first game away from Hammons Student Center. Last year, MSU lost to Iowa, 79-70, in its season opener in Kansas City after dropping the first game of 2005-06 at Arkansas State and its 2004-05 opener at Richmond.
MSU vs. Ranked Opponents: With its 80-48 loss at #17 DePaul on Dec. 2, Missouri State dropped to 0-2 vs. ranked opponents on the season. The Lady Bears are now 19-36 all-time versus ranked opponents and have lost 10 straight against top 25 teams.
Missouri State’s last win over a ranked foe came against Gail Goestenkors’ fifth-ranked Duke Blue Devils in the 2001 NCAA West Regional semifinal (3/24/01).
MSU’s season opener at #22 Texas was the Lady Bears’ first opener versus a ranked opponent since the 2000-01 season when they defeated #10 LSU, 85-75. MSU is 2-2 all-time versus ranked teams in season openers.
Missouri State Postseason Run: One or both of the MSU basketball teams have made postseason appearances in each of the last 22 years.
With last year’s 7-21 finish, the Lady Bears missed the postseason for the first time since the 1996-97 season. The MSU women have seen postseason action in nine of the past 10 years and in 15 out of the last 17 seasons, dating back to the 1990-91 campaign.
Personnel: The 2007-08 Lady Bears’ roster includes two seniors, three juniors, two sophomores and four freshmen. The 11-member group includes four returning letterwinners and seven newcomers. The Lady Bears return three starters from last season, including All-MVC first team guard Tahnee Balerio. Also returning are 2006-07 starters Tiff Terwelp and Roxy Stiles. Sophomore guard Melissa Busby also returns for MSU following a strong debut campaign. Newcomers include Jamie Adams, Marisha Brown, Tiffany Coppage, Maggie Dwyer, Jacque Griggs, Janette Jackson and Jasmyne Watson.
Lady Bear Captains: Senior Tahnee Balerio, senior Tiff Terwelp and junior Tiffany Coppage will serve as tri-captains for the 2007-08 season. This marks the second year in a row Balerio and Terwelp have been selected Lady Bear captains.
If You Build It They Will Come: The Lady Bears are playing their 32nd and final season in Hammons Student Center in 2007-08. Missouri State broke ground on the $67 million JQH Arena on Dec. 21, 2006 in the east parking lot adjacent to Hammons. The new 11,000-seat arena is slated for completion in time for the start of the 2008-09 basketball season. Last year the Lady Bears drew 81,349 fans, or an average of 5,424 per contest, good for 18th in the nation. Missouri State has ranked in the top 20 nationally in average attendance in each of the last 17 seasons, including 1992-93 when the Lady Bears led all of Division I in that category.
Home Sweet Hammons: The Lady Bears are 321-105 (.754) at home since HSC opened in 1976-77. MSU has had 24 winning seasons, four losing campaigns and three seasons at .500 at HSC. The Lady Bears have gone undefeated at HSC six times (1989-90, 1991-92, 1993-94, 1995-96, 2000-01, 2003-04). From Dec. 18, 1990 to Dec. 27, 1992 the Lady Bears won 30 consecutive games at Hammons Student Center. MSU also had a 24-game winning streak dating from Feb. 15, 2003 before falling at home to #1 LSU in December of 2004. Over the last 18 seasons, Missouri State has averaged more than 13 wins per season and fewer than three losses in that same time. Missouri State has ranked in the top 15 nationally in attendance for 15 of the last 17 seasons and has been in the top 10 in 11 of those years.
Missouri State All-Time: Missouri State is in its 39th season of women’s collegiate basketball and has an all-time record of 655-446 (.595) for a total of 1,101 games. MSU began formal competition in 1969 and has now posted 26 winning seasons and made 13 NCAA Tournament appearances. The Lady Bears advanced to the Final Four in 1992 and 2001 and the Sweet Sixteen in 1993.
