Nov. 29, 2011

Missouri State Bears (4-0) at ORU Golden Eagles (4-2)
Nov. 30, 2011, 7:05 p.m. (Central)

Mabee Center (10,575), Tulsa, Okla. I Game Notes (PDF) I Tickets

GAME INFORMATION:

Series: MSU leads 4-3 (2-2 in Tulsa)
Television: KCZ, The Ozarks CW (Springfield), Metro Sports (KC), Charter Cable (St. Louis)

Radio: KTXR (101.3 FM) and MSU Bears Radio Network (LISTEN LIVE)
Live Stats: www.ORUGoldenEagles.com
GameDay Gear I MSU Game Notes I MVC Notes

THE GAME:

Missouri State begins a two-game road swing Wednesday (Nov. 30) when it invades the Mabee Center (10,575) in Tulsa to take on the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (4-2) at 7:05 p.m. The game will be televised on KCZ, The Ozarks CW and MSU television affiliates Charter Communications (St. Louis) and Metro Sports (Kansas City).
Both programs are riding four-game winning streaks as the Bears are coming off a thrilling 69-64 overtime win over Tulsa at JQH Arena on Saturday night. In that game, Anthony Downing (Jr., G, Atchison, Kan.) knocked down an off-balance three-pointer with 4.0 seconds remaining to force overtime. In the extra period, MSU knocked down a trio of three-pointers and made 7-of-8 field goals and free throws to ice the win. Caleb Patterson (Sr., C, Ames, Okla.) posted a career-high 19 points behind a pair of three-pointers, while Kyle Weems (Sr., F, Topeka, Kan.) scored 17 points and matched a career-best with 12 rebounds in posting his 11th career double-double.
The Golden Eagles have reeled off four straight wins, including a 73-65 home win over Florida International on Nov. 22. Michael Craion (Sr., F, Kansas City, Mo.) scored 19 points to lead ORU, which shot 55.1 percent from the field and knocked down eight three-pointers. ORU, which averages 2,347 per home game, has won 11 straight home games dating back to last year.

COACH Paul Lusk:

Paul Lusk (Southern Illinois, 1995) is 4-0 in his first season at Missouri State and 6-23 in two years as a head coach. He is 2-0 in road games and will be meeting ORU for the first time as a head coach.
Lusk, who turned 40 on Nov. 14, took the reigns as MSU's 17th head coach on April 1, 2011. Lusk came to Springfield after seven seasons at Purdue (2004-11), including the last three as associate head coach. Now in his 14th season in the coaching profession, Lusk has previous assistant coaching stops at Southwestern Illinois (1996-97), Missouri Southern (1999-2002) and Southern Illinois (2003-04) in addition to a one-year head coaching stint at (Div. III) Dubuque (2002-03). Lusk has coached in six of the last eight NCAA Tournaments

THE TEN COUNT:

• Missouri State's Michael Bizoukas (Sr., G, Munster, Ind.) ranks 22nd in the nation in assists per game (6.3) and 40th in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.13). The transfer from DePaul ranks second in the MVC in both categories this week.
• Oral Roberts has a strong Missouri connection with five active players from the Show-Me State. Kansas City-area standouts D.J. Jackson (Fr., O'Hara HIgh), Roderick Pearson (Sr., Raytown South High), Trey Cox (Fr., Lee's Summit High), Dominique Morrison (Sr., Raytown High), and Michael Craion (Sr., Ruskin High) are all Missouri residents, while Pearson played two seasons at Southeast Missouri State before transferring to ORU in 2008-09.
• The Bears are 4-0 for the fourth time since 1996, including previous 4-0 starts in 1996, 2005, 2006 and 2009. The 2009-10 club jumped out of the gates with a 10-0 start before losing its non-conference finale in overtime at Arkansas (12/22/09).
• MSU embarks on a key two-game road trip this week with a Wednesday night trip to Summit League preseason favorite Oral Roberts (7:05 p.m.) and a Saturday journey to Mountain West preseason favorite New Mexico (9 p.m.). The Bears are one of just nine Division I teams with a 2-0 record or better on the road this season and have already topped a pair of conference favorites in Nevada (WAC) and Arkansas State (Sun Belt).
• In Monday's USA Today Sagarin Ratings, Missouri State is No. 15, and Oral Roberts is No. 128.
• Reigning MVC Player of the Year Kyle Weems (Sr., F, Topeka, Kan.) is coming off a career-high 12-rebound effort against Tulsa on Saturday at JQH Arena, a 69-64 Bears' victory. The effort was his 14th career double-figure rebounding game and paired with his 17 points gave him a double-double for the 11th time. Weems also notched two dunks, a pair of blocks and three steals against the Golden Hurricane and has scored in double figures three straight games after a slow start to his senior campaign.
• Missouri State enters the week as one of 27 unbeaten teams in the Division I ranks. The last time the Bears were in such elite company was the 2009-10 season when Cuonzo Martin's Bears stormed out of the gates to a 10-0 start. MSU was one of eight undefeated clubs before dropping a 66-62 overtime decision at Arkansas on Dec. 22, 2009.
• Former MSU signees Ken Holdman (Sr., Tulsa, Okla.) and Damen Bell-Holter (Jr., Hydaburg, Alaska) have both missed significant time with injuries this season for ORU. Holdman will miss the season with a torn ACL, while Bell-Holter has missed the last five games with backs spasms.
• Whistled for just 15.7 fouls per night, Oral Roberts ranks 23rd out of 338 Division I programs in fouls. The Golden Eagles are also 46th in free throw percentage (.740).
• Oklahoma native Caleb Patterson (Sr., C, Ames, Okla.) leads the MVC and is 42nd nationally in free throw percentage (.909). He is also 161st in this week's Division I rankings in field goal percentage (.489).