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Missouri State

Keaton Hervey

Bears Host Indiana State in Valley Weekend Series

December 31, 2020

By: MSU Athletics Communications
GAMES 6-7 - Missouri State Bears (4-1, 1-1 MVC) vs. Indiana State Sycamores (3-4, 0-2 MVC)
Dates and Times Game 1 - Saturday, Jan. 2 | 5:00 p.m.
Game 2 - Sunday, Jan. 3 | 3:00 p.m.
Location JQH Arena (11,000 | 3,991) | Springfield, Missouri
Tickets Indiana State Game 1 | Indiana State Game 2
Fan Guide Game Program  |  2020-21 JQH Arena Fan Guide
Promotions Upper-Level Tickets $10 | MSU Students Free with BearPass ID
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Art Hains, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live
Television Saturday | ESPN+ (Mike McClure, Kelby Stuckey) | Watch
Sunday | ESPN3 (Corey Riggs, Tom Ladd) | Watch
Series Missouri State leads 49-26 | Last Meeting: MSU 78, INST 51 (3/6/20) | Box Score
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Indiana State | MVC Notebook | MSU Record Book
Follow Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Basketball Twitter | Instagram | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite
Up Next The Bears travel to Valparaiso, Jan. 9-10
Next Home Series - vs. Drake, Jan. 17-18 | Game 1 Tickets | Game 2 Tickets

The Ten Count
  • Missouri State returns home Saturday (5 p.m.) and Sunday (3 p.m.) to take on Indiana State in a two-game Valley set at JQH Arena. The Bears are 26-4 all-time in Missouri Valley home openers, including a 10-2 ledger at JQH Arena.
  • The Bears are shooting for their 50th all-time win against the Sycamores as they lead the all-time series, 49-26. The teams first met in the 1952 NAIA national tournament in KC on the Bears run to back-to-back national titles. MSU won 2-of-3 against Indiana State last year and has won 9-of-10 meetings, dating back to 2016. Indiana State's win over the Bears on Feb. 1, 2020 snapped a 7-game MSU win streak in the series and was just ISU's sixth-ever win in Springfield.
  • Preseason All-MVC selection Gaige Prim (Sr., Aurora, Colo.) has scored in double figures in 18 straight games, dating back to last season. He was named MVC Co-Player of the Week on Dec. 22 and currently ranks 1st in the MVC in blocks (2.8), 1st in offensive rebounds (3.8), 2nd in scoring (18.4), 2nd in rebounds (7.6), 3rd in assists (4.4) and 4th in FG% (.673). Prim enters the weekend ranked 14th nationally in FG% and blocks, while his offensive rebounding average ranks 21st among all Division I players.
  • Missouri State currently boasts three of the top five scorers in the MVC with Isiaih Mosley (So., Columbia, Mo.) leading the league at 20.6 points per game, followed by Prim (18.4 ppg) who ranks second, and Ja'Monta Black (So., Columbia, Mo.) who ranks No. 5 in the Valley (16.2 ppg) heading into the weekend.
  • The Bears are ranked 23rd nationally in defensive rebounds per game (30.2) while the team's +6.7 rebound margin ranks 74th. In Monday's second game at UNI, the Bears were out-rebounded for the first time this season and for just the second time over their last 15 games.
  • Mosley has posted three straight 20-point games headed into the weekend. He racked up a team-high 20 points in Monday's game at UNI after matching his career high in Sunday's win over Panthers with 26 points (22 in the second half). The last time an MSU player scored 22 points in a half was Alize Johnson (2nd half vs. Indiana State) on 12/31/16.
  • Black's 4.0 three-pointers per game currently lead the MVC while his .455 percentage from beyond the arc ranks 9th. He has knocked down multiple treys in every game this season (two games with 5 or more), while the Bears' Iron Man also leads all MVC players in minutes played (35.2).Mosley has scored in double figures in every game this year and 9-of-10 contests overall.
  • Missouri State's home-court win streak currently sits at 7. Indiana State was the last visiting team to win at JQH Arena with its 78-68 decision on 2/1/20. The Bears have won 10 or more home games each of the last four seasons.
  • Demarcus Sharp (Jr., Charleston, Mo.), an NJCAA Division I All-American at Colby (Kan.) Community College last season, will be playing in his first-ever games at JQH Arena this weekend. Sharp played both contests at UNI, coming off the bench twice to rack up 8 points and 5 assists in 44 minutes on the floor. He missed the Bears first three contests this season while recovering from a foot injury
Coach Dana Ford
  • Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 36-34 (.514) in his third season as Missouri State head coach, including a 25-8 ledger at JQH Arena, 9-20 record in away games, and 2-6 mark at neutral sites. He is now 93-99 (.484) in his seventh season as a head coach. Ford is also 4-1 against Indiana State (1-1 in Springfield).
  • Last year, Ford engineered a solid season finish that saw the Bears go 9-9 in the MVC and upset third-seeded Indiana State in the Valley Tournament quarterfinals. MSU matched or out-rebounded 24-of-33 opponents, including nine of their last 10, to finish 25th nationally in rebound margin (6.2). The Bears also posted their second-best free throw percentage (.749) of the program's Division I era and had their highest scoring average in league games (71.6) in 10 years. The Bears also boasted two All-MVC performers for the second year in a row with second team selection Keandre Cook and third-teamer Gaige Prim, who also was recognized on the MVC All-Newcomer Team.
  • In his first season in Springfield in 2018-19, Ford led the Bears to a tie for third place (10-8) in The Valley with the program's first winning conference record since 2011. He guided two players -- Tulio Da Silva (first team) and Keandre Cook (third team) -- to All-MVC honors in addition to three players on the MVC All-Newcomer Team, including Newcomer of the Year Da Silva.
  • He was introduced as Missouri State's 18th men's basketball coach on March 22, 2018 after coaching the previous four seasons at Tennessee State. The native of Tamms, Illinois was 57-65 (.467) at Tennessee State, including a 52-39 ledger in his last three seasons in Nashville. He coached five All-OVC players and two OVC All-Newcomer Team selections during his tenure at TSU. Under his leadership, Tennessee State also doubled its home attendance average and twice earned votes in the AP Top 25 poll in 2016-17.
  • Ford, 36, was awarded the Ben Jobe Award in 2016 as the nation's top Division I minority coach. That same year, he was named Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year and NABC District 19 Coach of the Year after engineering one of the biggest turnarounds in NCAA history, swaying Tennessee State from a 5-26 record in his first season to a 20-11 mark in 2015-16.
  • He has served as an assistant at Tennessee State, Wichita State and Illinois State and was responsible for recruiting future NBA talents such as Robert Covington (Rockets) and Fred Van Vleet (Raptors).
Series History
  • The Bears lead the all-time series against Indiana State, 49-26, in a rivalry that dates back to 1951-52. Missouri State is 31-6 in Springfield (9-3 at JQH Arena), 16-19 in Terre Haute, and 2-1 in St. Louis at the MVC Tournament (including the 2011 championship game) against Indiana State.
  • The Bears took 2-of-3 from the Sycamores last season and have won 9-of-10, dating back to 2016.
  • In the first meeting a year ago (Feb. 1), Indiana State snapped a seven-game MSU win streak in the series in just the Sycamores sixth-ever win in Springfield. The Bears made a furious comeback to take the lead in the second half but faded down the stretch in a 78-68 setback. MSU fell behind by as many as 15 in the first half, missing 9-of-11 shots during one stretch while the Sycamores made 14 of their first 21 attempts to build a 30-15 advantage. Gaige Prim led the Bears with 23 points and 7 rebounds for the game.
  • Missouri State avenged the loss in Terre Haute on Feb. 16, getting 22 points and 9 rebounds from Lamont West in a 71-58 victory. Ross Owens added 8 assists for MSU, while Prim scored 10 points. The Bears out-rebounded the Sycamores by a 45-26 margin and got 38 bench points in the win.
  • The Bears won the season series with a 78-51 win in St. Louis (March 6) in the quarterfinal round of Arch Madness. Missouri State upset the No. 3 seeded Sycamores with 17 points and 8 rebounds by Prim, while Isiaih Mosley tallied 10 points. The No. 6 seeded Bears shot 50 percent from the field and were +19 again on the glass in the win.
Rebound Foundation
  • Bears' head coach Dana Ford and his wife, Christina, are founders of the Rebound Foundation. The not-for-profit raises funds and awareness to help renew and restore women who have experienced a life of domestic abuse. The foundation provides a stable home and fresh start to abuse victims and their children. The Rebound Foundation currently provides homes in Springfield, Mo., and Chicago, Ill.
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