Starting Five - Storylines for the Sweet 16
1) Missouri State (25-9, 16-2 MVC) won the MVC Tournament championship and finished second in the regular season standings. The Lady Bears are 24-2 since a Dec. 16 loss to Gonzaga, and are making their 15th NCAA Tournament appearance. MSU has defeated AP Top 25 opponents in three consecutive games for the first time in school history, and is in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2001.
2) The Lady Bears went 16-2 in MVC play for the sixth time in school history, and are 31-5 in league play the last two seasons. In Valley games this season, MSU led the league in scoring defense (58.4), rebound margin (+10.9), offensive rebounds (14.6) and turnover margin (+4.67).
3) Missouri State went 9-0 in MVC road games for the first time ever this season, and has won a school-record 10 consecutive road games overall. Including a pair of neutral site contests in Kansas City before Christmas, the MVC Tournament and the NCAA win against DePaul, the Lady Bears have won 16 straight games away from Springfield, last losing Dec. 9 at Indiana.Â
4) The Lady Bears have won the rebounding battle 29 times in 34 games this year, and rank in the top 26 nationally in rebound margin (+8.7) and both offensive (.378) and defensive (.746) rebound percentage. MSU's rebound margin is the second-best in school history, behind only the 1975 club at plus-9.9.Â
5) Missouri State has made more free throws than the opposition in 22 of the last 25 games, connecting on 352 foul shots during that span compared to 297 total attempts for opponents. The Lady Bears rank in the top 18 nationally in both free throw makes and attempts.
NCAA Tournament History
Missouri State boasts a rich NCAA Tournament history with 15 total appearances, Final Four trips in 1992 and 2001, and Sweet Sixteens in 1993 and 2019. The Lady Bears are 16-14 all-time in NCAA play, and are playing in the third round for the first time since 2001.
Against the Field
Missouri State has played 10 games against eight teams in the NCAA field this season, going 5-5 with two wins against Drake and one each versus Little Rock, DePaul and Iowa State. The Lady Bears also played Indiana, South Dakota, Missouri and Gonzaga.
Series History
Missouri State is 0-2 against Stanford, losing 74-63 on the road in a top-20 matchup in December 1993, and in Estero, Fla., in November 2015 by an 82-65 final.
Scouting Stanford
Stanford is 30-4 overall and went 15-3 in Pac-12 play to finish second behind Oregon. The Cardinal own a win over No. 1 Baylor on the year, and All-American Alanna Smith averages 19.8 points and 8.7 rebounds to pace three players who score at least 14.1 points per game. As a team, Stanford averages 74.8 points and allows 60.6, shooting 44.9 percent overall, 35.3 percent from 3-point range and 69.7 percent from the foul line. The Cardinal own a plus-6.1 rebound margin, and have hit 307 3-pointers on the season.
Ames Regional Recap
The Lady Bears advanced to the Sweet 16 with an 89-78 victory over sixth-seeded DePaul and 69-60 win at No. 3 Iowa State. Against the Blue Demons,
Danielle Gitzen and
Alexa Willard each scored 20 points, surpassing 1,000 for respective careers 52 seconds apart in the third quarter, and the Lady Bears shot 53 percent overall and 11-for-20 from 3-point range. Missouri State owned a 42-31 lead on the boards, and held the nation's leader in 3-pointers to 10-for-35 from beyond the arc.
   Monday, Missouri State led for more than 36 minutes of the win at Iowa State, using 17 points from Willard and a gritty defensive performance to hold one of the nation's most potent offenses to 36 percent shooting and 2-for-17 from beyond the arc.
   The Lady Bears committed just 10 turnovers while handing out 14 assists, and never gave up the lead after the first quarter despite the Cyclones closing within a possession five separate times after MSU built a 43-32 lead midway through the third quarter.
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