Starting Five - Storylines for the South Dakota State Game
1) The 20th-ranked Missouri State Lady Bears (4-1) close out the non-conference schedule Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. against a solid South Dakota State (4-2) team that is receiving votes in both major polls and has two top-25 wins already this season. MSU is 54-8 overall since Dec. 20, 2018, ranking fifth nationally in total wins since that date behind Baylor, Oregon, UConn and Stanford.
2) Missouri State is on a 16-game home winning streak, a JQH Arena record that ranks sixth in school history. MSU finished 2019-20 as one of 10 teams in NCAA Division I to go unbeaten at home, and has won by an average score of 82.5-59.3 with a plus-13.1 rebound margin during the 16-game streak.
3) MSU returns four starters and 10 players from last season, with 75% of scoring, 87% of rebounds, 89% of assists, 83% of blocked shots, 86% of steals and 81% of minutes played returning to the roster. MSU has nine players on its roster who have played in a Sweet 16 game, two more than any other team in the country.
4) Missouri State has won the rebounding battle all five games this year and 31 of the last 35, with a plus-14.8 margin this season ahead of the school-record pace (+9.9) and a .796 defensive rebounding percentage better than last season's NCAA-leading .773 mark.
5) The Lady Bears entered the season ranked in the top 25 for the first time since 2000, marking the fourth time in school history that MSU earned a preseason ranking by the Associated Press and the USA Today Coaches Poll. Missouri State has been ranked in 21 consecutive editions of the Coaches Poll, dating to Nov. 18, 2019, the longest streak in school history. The 2000-01 Final Four team appeared in 19 straight polls.
The Opponent
South Dakota State is 4-2 and owns top-25 wins over 15th-ranked Iowa State and No. 18 Gonzaga in addition to Drake and Creighton. The Jackrabbits are receiving votes in both major polls after ascending to as high as No. 21 in the Coaches poll in early December. SDSU has qualified for nine of the last 12 NCAA Tournament and joined MSU in the 2019 Sweet 16.
   Myah Selland averages 17.7 points and 6.2 rebounds to lead a balanced attacked with six scorers putting up at least 7.5 points per contest.
   The Jacks are 4-0 at home and 0-2 on the road, and average 67.5 points, allow 64.7, and shoot 42.9 percent overall, 33.3 percent on 3-pointers and 73.3 percent at the foul line.
Series History
Missouri State is 1-0 against South Dakota State, winning 72-43 on March 7, 1974 in the AIAW Region VI Tournament in Brookings, S.D.
