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Bears Look to Bounce Back with Visit from Illinois State

Bears Look to Bounce Back with Visit from Illinois State

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MSU Athletics Communications

GAME 24 - Missouri State Bears (10-13, 4-6 MVC) vs. Illinois State Redbirds (7-15, 2-8 MVC)
Date and Time Wednesday, February 5, 2020 | 7:02 p.m.
Location JQH Arena (11,000) | Springfield, Missouri
Tickets Illinois State Game | Future Games
Radio KTXR (101.3 FM) (Art Hains, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live
Television ESPN+ (Scott Warmann, Danan Hughes) | Watch
Series Missouri State trails 31-44 | Last Meeting: MSU 67, ISU 63 (1/7/20) | Box Score
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Illinois State | MVC Notebook | MSU Media Guide
Follow Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Basketball Twitter | Instagram | #MSUBears | #BearUp
Coverage Dana Ford Weekly Media Availability (Tuesday) | MVC Weekly Coaches Call
Promotions Fan Interactive Pregame Light Show
Up Next The Bears travel to Southern Illinois on Saturday (Feb. 8) at 7 p.m. | Tickets

The Ten Count
  • The Bears conclude a two-game home stand Wednesday when they host Illinois State at 7 p.m. on ESPN+. Missouri State is looking to snap a three-game Valley slump while seeking a regular-season series sweep of the Redbirds for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
  • In his return to the starting lineup, Tulio Da Silva (Sr., Formiga, Brazil) posted 11 points and a team-high 8 rebounds in Saturday's game against Indiana State for his 60th career double-figure scoring game. He is averaging 11.0 points and 7.5 rebounds over the last 2 games. Wednesday's game will be his 50th as a Bear (592 points and 356 rebounds).
  • Over the last 4 games, Ja'Monta Black (Fr., Columbia, Mo.) is averaging 8.8 points and has made 9-of-18 (.500) 3-pointers. Black, who had a season-high 10 points at Northern Iowa last Wednesday, has knocked down at least one 3-pointer in 6 straight contests.
  • Keandre Cook (Sr., Baltimore, Md.) is just 5 three-pointers away from 100 for his career (55 games). At 755 points, he ranks 61st on MSU's career scoring chart and is also 39 points away from reaching the top 10 in career scoring at JQH Arena. He is averaging a team-best 15.8 points per game at home this season.
  • Gaige Prim (Jr., Aurora, Colo.) has scored 10 or more points in 15-of-18 games appearances this season and at least 8 points in every contest. Since moving into a starting role (last 6 games), Prim is averaging 15.0 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, including a pair of 23-point outings over the Bears' last 3 contests.
  • Isiaih Mosley (Fr., Columbia, Mo.) is just 16 points away from becoming the 18th freshman in program history to score 200 or more points in their rookie season -- and the squad's first since the 2015-16 season (Jarred Dixon and Obediah Church). He is the only Missouri State player to have started all 10 MVC games this season.  
  • A win by the Bears would secure their 48th straight winning season at home. Missouri State, which is currently 7-4 at JQH Arena this season with 4 home games remaining, has been over .500 at home every season since 1971-72.
  • The Bears have scored between 66-69 points 5 straight games (2-3). MSU is 5-4 when scoring 70 or more points this season. However, Missouri State is 23-8 under coach Dana Ford when holding its opponents under 70 points.
  • Ross Owens (Sr., Woodlawn, Ill.) played a career-high 26 minutes in Saturday's game against Indiana State. The longest-tenured Bear had 4 points, 4 rebounds, a 3-pointer and a steal while playing the entire second half.
  • The next appearance by Kabir Mohammed (Sr., Lagos, Nigeria) will be his 50th game at Missouri State. The transfer from San Jacinto (Texas) College has scored 203 points and snagged 156 rebound during his time in Springfield.
  • Missouri State remains 2 wins shy of 700 as a Division I program. The Bears are currently 698-489 (.588) in their 38th NCAA Division I season (since 1982-83).
Coach Dana Ford
  • Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 26-29 (.473) in his second season as Missouri State head coach, including a 18-8 ledger at JQH Arena, 7-16 record in away games, and 1-5 mark at neutral sites. He is now 83-94 (.469) in his sixth season as a head coach. Ford is 2-2 in his career against Illinois State.
  • In his first season in Springfield, Ford led the Bears to a tie for third place (10-8) in the Missouri Valley Conference with the program's first winning record in Valley play 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 Associated Press Top 25 poll during the 2016-17 season.
  • Ford, 35, 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 (Timberwolves) and Fred Van Vleet (Raptors).
Series History
  • The series between the Bears and Redbirds dates back to the 1967 NCAA Division II semifinals - a 93-76 win by the Bears en route to their national runner-up showing. However, Illinois State leads the all-time series, 44-31. The Bears are 21-13 in Springfield against the Redbirds (6-5 at JQH Arena). MSU is also 7-27 in Normal and 3-4 at neutral sites against ISU.
  • Earlier this season in Normal (Jan. 7), the Bears snapped an eight-game losing streak at Redbird Arena with a 67-63 win. Keandre Cook drew a charge and knocked down two clutch 3-pointers in the final to minutes to help Missouri State secure the win. Cook finished with a game-high 22 points with four treys to pace four MSU players in double figures. Gaige Prim notched 12 points with Isiaih Mosley and Tulio Da Silva scored 11 points apiece. Mosley's 8 rebounds led all players.Antonio Reeves scored 16 points to lead the Redbirds, who out-rebounded the Bears, 35-34. | Box Score
  • The Bears have not swept the regular-season series against ISU since 2010-11.
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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