Starting Five - Storylines for the Gonzaga Game
1) The No. 18/20 Missouri State Lady Bears (9-1) play their third top-25 road game of the season Friday at 8 p.m. Central when they visit No. 18/17 Gonzaga (10-1) in match-up between two of the nation's top programs. The Lady Bears are now 33-4 overall since Dec. 20 of last season, trailing only Baylor (37) and UConn (34) nationally in total victories since that date.
2) The Lady Bears have shot 40 percent or better from the field in all 10 games this season, the team's longest such streak since 16 consecutive games from Jan. 6-March 5, 2005. Through Dec. 17, the Lady Bears ranked seventh nationally in 3-point percentage at .403 and 32nd overall at 45.5 percent from the field. Additionally, senior
Alexa Willard ranks second in 3-point shooting at 53.7 percent, helping MSU score at least 68 points in each game, the longest such streak since 16 games from Dec. 8, 2009-Feb. 24, 2010.
3) Missouri State has won the rebounding battle in nine of 10 games this season and owns a plus-8.6 margin on the glass this year after ranking second in school history at plus-8.3 last season.
4) The Lady Bears are off to their best start since the 2003-04 team opened 20-1, and best home start since that same club finished 17-0 in Springfield. Missouri State's nine wins prior to MVC play are the most in school history before the start of Valley competition.
5) The Lady Bears are 14-1 in their last 15 true road games and 20-2 in the last 22 games away from home, the two losses at No. 7 Oregon State in the 2019 Preseason WNIT championship game and versus No. 6 Stanford in the 2019 Sweet 16.
Series History
Gonzaga leads the all-time series 2-1, winning last season in Springfield and in 2012 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. MSU's win came in the second round of the 2005 WNIT in Springfield.
   In last year's 70-67 GU win,
Brice Calip scored 20 points for the Lady Bears and
Shameka Ealy added 12 on 4-of-6 shooting, while the Bulldogs were plus-10 on the glass.
   Though the teams have never met in Spokane, the city holds a special place in Lady Bear basketball history. MSU defeated fifth-ranked Duke in the 2001 Sweet Sixteen in Spokane Arena, following that with a 104-87 Elite Eight victory over Washington two days later to advance to the progam's second Final Four.
Scouting Gonzaga
Gonzaga is 10-1 overall and ranked 17th in the AP, 18th in the Coaches Poll, and ninth in the latest RPI, with its only loss in overtime at a Stanford club that is now ranked No. 1 in both major polls. Balanced and deep, the Bulldogs rank 13th nationally in field goal percentage at .477, and sixth at .404 from 3-point land, with six players averaging between 8.0 and 11.1 points per game. GU averages 74.2 points per game and allows 54.1 with a plus-5.4 rebound margin.
MSU Versus the Top 25
Missouri State has had relatively good success all-time against ranked opponents, going 23-51 versus AP top-25 foes with an 8-24 mark in true road games. MSU has won two of its last three road games against ranked teams, including at No. 13 Iowa State in last season's NCAA Second Round, and at No. 23 Minnesota in the 2019 season opener.
   Friday will be the 17th ranked versus ranked match-up in school history. The Lady Bears are 8-8 in such games, most recently a loss to Purdue in the 2001 Final Four. The last such regular season match-up took place on Dec. 16, 2000, when the 21st-ranked Lady Bears topped No. 16 Oklahoma by a 69-61 final in Springfield, and the last road win in a ranked vs. ranked game was at No. 7 Iowa in the 1992 NCAA Tournament second round.
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