SPRINGFIELD – The 24th-ranked Missouri State Lady Bears will play a seven-game non-conference slate this season that includes a high-profile tournament in Florida, three games at JQH Arena, and a visit to in-state rival Missouri, second-year head coach Amaka-Agugua Hamilton announced Thursday.

The Lady Bears open the 2020-21 campaign Nov. 27 with the #BeachBubble at the Gulf Coast Showcase in Fort Myers, Fla., taking on Florida Gulf Coast, Maryland and Wake Forest on three consecutive days after Thanksgiving.

"I'm excited basketball is back!" said Coach Mox. "It was difficult making adjustments to our non-conference schedule, but I am happy we are still going to be challenged early. The Gulf Coast Showcase is loaded with great teams, so we will see where we stack up and what we are made of in our first three games."

Though only 12 teams nationally finished with a better winning percentage last season than the .867 that MSU's 26-4 record produced, the Lady Bears will open with back-to-back games against such schools, starting with a true road game against a Florida Gulf Coast team that went 30-3 and finished 24th in the final USA Today Coaches Poll and 36th in the NCAA RPI.

Missouri State faces 12th-ranked Maryland, which went 28-4 last year and ranked third in the final RPI, on Nov. 28, and closes the tournament on Nov. 29 with Wake Forest from the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"We will have a few competitive home games and another tough challenge on the road at Mizzou," Agugua-Hamilton added. "All in all, I think we have a very strong non-conference schedule that will ultimately prepare us to make a run in conference play and continue to pursue championships!"

The Lady Bears make their home debut Dec. 5 against Tulsa, host Lincoln two days later at JQH Arena, and welcome South Dakota State to Springfield on Dec. 19. SDSU has appeared in nine of the last 12 NCAA Tournaments and joined Missouri State in the 2019 Sweet 16.

Missouri State and Missouri will meet for the ninth consecutive season on Dec. 13 in Columbia. The Lady Bears won last year's meeting in Springfield, 79-72.

Ranked in the preseason Association Press poll for the first time in 20 years, the No. 24 Lady Bears are the Missouri Valley Conference favorite as they return 10 players and four starters from last season's club that went 26-4 overall and 16-2 in league play as the outright regular season champions. MSU ended the year ranked 19th in the USA Today Coaches Poll, 23rd by the AP and eighth in the NCAA RPI. Senior guard Brice Calip and junior forward Jasmine Franklin are preseason all-MVC selections.

Season ticket inquiries can be directed to Duane Miller by phone at (417) 836-8899 or email at DuaneMiller@MissouriState.edu. Single-game ticket information will be announced at a later date.