Missouri State is off to a 2-0 Missouri Valley Conference start, and hosts a pair of 2-0 MVC clubs this weekend at JQH Arena in a pair of key early-season contests against the other two preseason top-three Valley teams.
   The Lady Bears, now 6-7 overall after winning five of their last six games, take on preseason favorite Drake (7-7, 2-0) at 7 p.m. Friday and UNI (6-7, 2-0) at 2 p.m. Sunday.
   Missouri State averaged 82.2 points over the final six games of 2017, and is averaging 10 3-pointers per game this season at JQH Arena.
   MSU head coach
Kellie Harper is aiming for her 50th MVC win this weekend, entering with a 49-25 record two games into her fifth conference season. Her .662 league winning percent ranks sixth in Valley history.
Series Histories
Missouri State and Drake are tied at 41 wins apiece in the all-time series, and the Lady Bears own a 27-16 lead in Springfield. MSU has averaged 78.7 points in its last 19 games against Drake.
    Missouri State owns a 49-27 lead in the series with UNI, though the Panthers are 8-4 in the last 12 meetings. MSU is 29-8 against the Panthers in Springfield.
Scouting Drake
Drake is 7-7 overall and 2-0 in MVC play as the preseason league favorite. Three Bulldogs average at least 11.3 points per game, with Sara Rhine's 15.9 average pacing the league's highest-scoring offense. Seven Drake players have at least 25 assists, and the Bulldogs score 82.4 points per game and allow 73.9 while shooting 45.9 percent overall, 32.7 percent on 3-pointers and 72.2 percent at the foul line.
Scouting UNI
UNI is 6-7 overall and 2-0 in MVC games after playing one of the nation's most difficult non-conference schedules, picking up wins against Iowa State and Kansas State of the Big 12. Kennedy Kirkpatrick leads the Panthers in scoring at 12.1 points per contest, and Megan Maahs nearly averages a double-double with 10.5 points and 9.8 rebounds. UNI averages 64 points per game and allows 61.9 with shooting percentages of .387 overall, .322 on 3-pointers and .689 from the charity stripe.
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