Missouri State Lady Bears (10-4, 2-1 MVC) vs. Creighton Bluejays (8-4, 3-0 MVC) 

Game Overview
After seeing their six-game win streak come to an end Thursday at Drake, the Missouri State Lady Bears will look to get back on track against the Missouri Valley Conference's preseason favorite, the Creighton Bluejays, Saturday afternoon in Omaha.

Missouri State nearly came all the way back from a 20-point second-half deficit against Drake before falling by an 88-84 score. Creighton, on the other hand, routed Wichita State by 41 points and enters Saturday's contest alone in first place in The Valley with a perfect 3-0 league mark.

Saturday's contest is the four of eight Missouri State games this season that will be broadcast live by Mediacom in southwest Missouri on MC-22.

Quick Hits
► The Lady Bears are 3-0 following losses in 2009-10
► Missouri State will be looking to end a four-game losing streak vs. Creighton in Omaha; the Lady Bears have not beaten the Bluejays on their home court since Feb. 20, 2005; MSU has lost three straight and four of its last five games vs. CU overall
► Following Thursday's loss at Drake, MSU has lost a combined nine straight games vs. Drake and Creighton on the road
► Casey Garrison leads the MVC in assists (6.1) and scoring (18.8), ranking 17th and 26th among all Division I players, respectively, as of Jan. 5; she also leads the league in offensive rebounding (3.5) and minutes played (36.0) and ranks second in steals (2.8) and fourth in rebounding (7.9)
► With her career-high 36-point effort Thursday, Jaleshia Roberson became the first Lady Bear to post multiple 30+ point games in the same season since Tahnee Balerio recorded four such games in 2006-07
► Missouri State leads the Valley in scoring (77.2), assists (15.7), steals (10.7) and offensive rebounding (15.2) coming into Saturday's game

Series History
Missouri State holds a 26-15 advantage in the series with the Bluejays, but has dropped four of the last 10 meetings and four straight on CU's home floor. In 18 previous meetings in Omaha, the Bluejays have come away victorious in 11 contests.

Last year, the Bluejays broke a Missouri State opponent record by hitting 15 three-pointers en route to a runaway 92-63 victory in Omaha. Six Bluejays finished in double figures, led by Kelsey Woodard's 19 points. CU swept the season series with a 74-61 win at JQH Arena, with Woodard again leading the way with 18 points. 

The Coaches
Nyla Milleson (Kansas State, '85) is in her third season as the head coach at Missouri State with a 31-43 mark as the Lady Bears' mentor and an overall record of 216-79 in 10 years as a collegiate head coach. Prior to taking the reins of the MSU program, the Goodland, Kan., native guided Drury University to a 185-36 record 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, advancing 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. Milleson is a perfect 5-0 against SIUE, with all five wins coming during her time at Drury. Including her 187 wins at the high school level, Milleson notched her 400th career coaching victory with MSU's win at Oral Roberts on Dec. 19.

Jim Flanery (Creighton, '87) is 139-96 in his eighth 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 2-002-03 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 span. In 16 games against Missouri State, Flanery's teams have gone 7-9, with four of those wins coming in Omaha.

Scouting the Lady Bears
Missouri State entered the season looking for its first winning campaign in four years. Last year's edition of the Lady Bears went 10-20 overall and finished seventh in the Missouri Valley Conference behind a deep freshman class that accounted for 68 percent of the club's offensive production.

The Lady Bears have gotten balanced contributions across the board, as all five starters are averaging better than eight points per game coming into Saturday's contest. Sophomore Casey Garrison has picked up right where she left off a year ago when she led all Division I true freshman in total scoring. So far, the Bolivar, Mo., native is the top scorer (18.8 ppg.) and assister in the MVC, ranking 17th nationally in assists per game (6.1) and 26th in scoring entering the week. Garrison also ranks among the circuit's leaders in offensive rebounding (1st-3.5 rpg.), steals (2nd-2.8 spg.), minutes played (1st-36.0 mpg.), rebounding (4th-7.9 rpg.), field goal percentage (4th-.508) and free throw percentage (10th-.828). Sophomore forward Lacey Boshe is MSU's third-leading scorer, averaging 9.6 ppg., while her .505 field goal percentage is second on the club and ranks fifth in the conference. The Lady Bears' second-leading scorer, sophomore Jaleshia Roberson (14.4 ppg.) has posted two 30+ point games in MSU's last five outings. Roberson has connected on 39 of her last 81 (.481) three-point attempts and her .412 shooting percentage from beyond the arc ranked 35th in the country entering the week. Senior Melissa Busby is another MSU threat from long range, coming into the weekend shooting .345 from beyond the three-point arc. The Edmond, Okla., native also ranks 10th on the Lady Bears' career three-point field goals chart with 118 makes.

As a team, Missouri State is outscoring the opposition by an average of 5.9 points per contest and shooting .436, while its defense has forced an average of 20.4 turnovers in 14 games this season.

Scouting the Bluejays
Returning four starters and seven letterwinners from last year's 22-12 squad, Creighton was the preseason Missouri Valley Conference favorite. The Bluejays haven't disappointed thus far, entering Saturday's contest on top of the league standings with a perfect 3-0 MVC start. CU is the top three-point shooting team in the conference, averaging 8.7 treys per game. CU's offensive attack is keyed by a trio of double-figure scorers, with preseason MVC Player of the Year pick Megan Neurvirth leading the way with her 13.7 ppg., average. Neuvirth is also pulling down 6.8 boards to rank ninth in the conference. Junior guard Kelsey Woodard (12.3 ppg./2.6 apg.) is one of the most prolific three-point shooters in the league, coming into the weekend with a .440 percentage from beyond the arc. CU's top rebounder, junior Sam Schuett, ranks third in the MVC with an 8.0 rebound per-game average. Scheutt has been deadly from long range as well, having connected on 44.9 percent of her three-point attempts.

Creighton has been the conference's top defensive team, holding opponents to a league-low 58.3 ppg. The 'Jays have also been strong on the glass, outrebounding their 12 opponents by an average of 3.1 boards per outing.

So Far, So Good
MSU's 10-4 start is its best since the 2003-04 season, when it won 10 of its first 11 games en route to a 28-4 finish and the school's 12th NCAA Tournament appearance. In each of the Lady Bears' last eight starts that included at least seven wins in their first 10 games, they have gone on to earn a bid to the Big Dance. With their win over UNI on Saturday, the Lady Bears recorded their 10th victory, marking the earliest date they have done so in 12 years.

Streaking Along
Missouri State saw its six-game win streak come to an end with Thursday's loss at Drake, but the Lady Bears posted some impressive offensive numbers during the streak. Missouri State is shot .455 from the floor, including .406 from beyond the arc, and outscored the opposition at the foul line by a 118-63 margin while hitting 77.6 percent of its free throw attempts during the six-game stretch. MSU  outscored the opposition by an average of 11.7 points and recorded 17.2 assists per contest.

On an individual level, Casey Garrison was red-hot in all phases of the game. The sophomore guard connected on 52.9 percent of her field goal tries and 30-of-33 (.909) of her free throw attempts, while averaging 18.2 points, 7.7 rebounds and 7.0 assists per outing. Jaleshia Roberson (17.5 ppg.) connected on 22-of-48 (.458) three-point attempts, while Lacey Boshe (12.2 ppg.) shot .522 from the field and .926 from the foul line over the course of the streak. 

Out In Front
Missouri State's 2-0 MVC start was its first since the 2003-04 season. Historically speaking, however, getting out in front of the pack in conference play is nothing new to the Lady Bears. In their 18 seasons in the Valley, the Lady Bears have won their first two games on nine occasions, winning the Valley regular-season title four times and finishing no lower than third in the standings in any of those years. Including MSU's nine seasons in the Gateway Conference, the Lady Bears have advanced to the postseason in nine of the 11 years they have started 2-0 in league play. MSU has gone on to win its first four conference games six times in those 11 years.

Bundle Up
With its first conference road swing on tap, Missouri State has a chance to reverse a discouraging recent trend. The northern reaches of the Missouri Valley Conference have not been kind to the Lady Bears over the past few years, as MSU has won just two road games against Creighton, Drake, Bradley and UNI combined over the last four seasons. Including Thursday's loss to Drake in Des Moines, MSU has dropped 16 of their last 18 games away from home against the four northernmost schools in the Valley. The Lady Bears have lost nine straight on the road vs. Drake and Creighton, and MSU has gone a combined 3-14 against the two schools on their home floors since the 2001-02 season.

Comeback Kids
No lead has been safe for Lady Bear opponents so far in 2009-10, as MSU has claimed victories in three games where they have faced double-digit deficits. The Lady Bears trailed by as many as 12 against Bradley last Thursday before rallying for a five-point win, then climbed out of an 11-point hole to post a 90-80 victory vs. UNI two days later. MSU also defeated UTEP on Dec. 4 after trailing the Miners by 11 in the first half. Prior to that win, the Lady Bears had not overcome a deficit of 10 points or more in nearly two seasons, dating back to a Jan. 12, 2008, victory over Southern Illinois.

Hand It Over
Missouri State is leading the Missouri Valley Conference in team assists, coming into Saturday's game with a 15.7 apg. average. The Lady Bears are handing out an average of 1.1 assists more per outing than Bradley, which is second in the league in the same category. Casey Garrison's 6.1 assist per-game average is tops in the circuit, while Jaleshia Roberson ranks 10th among all Valley players with a 2.6 apg. average.

Garrison's 13-assist performance vs. Tulsa not only represented a new career high, but also set a JQH Arena record and helped the Lady Bears post their highest single-game assist total (25) in four seasons. Her total tied four others for the sixth-highest in school history and was the most recorded by a Missouri State player since March 8, 2003, when Kari Koch handed out 13 assists against Evansville.

Stealing the Show
Paced by the performance of sophomore guard Casey Garrison, Missouri State also leads the Valley in team steals. The Lady Bears are averaging 10.7 steals per outing, while Garrison is one of three Lady Bears to rank among the circuit's top performers in individual steals. The Bolivar, Mo., product is averaging 2.8 takeaways per game to rank second in the league, while Christiana Shorter and Jaleshia Roberson are also among the league's top 14 in steals. Shorter ranks 11th with a 1.6 spg. average, while Roberson is right on her heels in 14th with an average of 1.4 steals per outing.

Free and Easy
As was their calling card in 2008-09, the Lady Bears are once again gaining a measurable advantage at the free throw line. Through their first 14 games of this season. MSU has outscored the opposition by a 256-174 margin at the foul line, connecting on 73.4 percent of their tries. The Lady Bears lead the Valley in both free throws made and attempts. MSU has attempted 97 more charity tosses than its opponents, an average of +6.9 per outing so far this season. Additionally, three Lady Bears rank among the MVC's top 15 free throw shooters coming into Saturday's game. Jaleshia Roberson's .829 percentage from the line is the ninth-best mark in the circuit, while Casey Garrison is tied for 10th with a season mark of .828 from the stripe. Lacey Boshe has also been consistent from the foul line, shooting .780 coming into the weekend.

In Rare Company
Twice this season sophomore guard Casey Garrison has achieved feats only one previous player in Missouri State history had accomplished prior to the 2009-10 campaign. With her 35-point, 17-rebound performance at Arkansas State (Nov. 27), the sophomore guard joined Cindy Henderson (37 points/24 rebounds on Jan. 20, 1975) as the only other Lady Bear on record to score at least 35 points and record at least 15 rebounds in a single game. It was Garrison's second career double-double consisting of 30 points or more, making her only the fourth MSU player on record (along with Henderson, Jeanette Tendai and Jenni Lingor) to record more than one such game in her career.

Garrison quite possibly topped that effort on Dec. 8 vs. Tulsa when she became the second Lady Bear to record a triple-double with an 11-point, 11-rebound, 13-assist performance against the Golden Hurricane. MSU assistant coach Carly (Deer) Stubblefield was the only other Lady Bear to accomplish the feat (Jan. 23, 1998).

Buzz Cracks Century Mark
Senior guard Melissa Busby enters Saturday's game 10th on the school's all-time three-point field goals list with 118. MSU's active leader in games played (86), Busby also has a chance to climb further on the three-point attempts chart, coming into the contest seventh all-time with 360 tries from beyond the arc. The Edmond, Okla., native only needs two more triples to catch Jamie Bartlett in the ninth spot on the career three-point field goals list and 35 more attempts to match Sarah Klaassen (395) in the sixth position on the career attempts chart.

Missouri State All-Time
Missouri State is in its 41st season of women's collegiate basketball and has an all-time record of 684-479 (.588). 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. The Lady Bears are in their 28th NCAA Division I season and 18th MVC year. MSU was in AIAW competition on the state, regional and national levels through the 1981-82 season, moved to Division I and Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference play in 1982-83 and started MVC competition in 1992-93 when the Gateway merged with The Valley.

MSU Peaks in The Valley
The Lady Bears are 212-93 all-time in MVC play with a 125-28 home record against league foes. Missouri State has won at least a share of 11 regular-season titles and nine conference tournaments since the 1989-90 season. MSU has played in 10 of the 17 Valley tournament championship games and 12 of the 24 title games since the inception of the Gateway Conference Tournament in 1983.