Midweek Matchup Features Visit from Rival SIU

GAME 18 - Missouri State Bears (11-6, 2-2 MVC) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (9-5, 2-0 MVC)
Date and Time	Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022 \| 7:00 p.m. (Central)
Location	JQH Arena (11,000) \| Springfield, Missouri
Tickets	Tickets \| (417) 836-7678 \| Old Missouri Bank Box Office at JQH Arena
Promotions	---
Fan Info	Digital Game Program
Radio	KWTO (101.3 FM) (Art Hains, Mike Keltner) \| MSU Radio Network \| Listen Live
Television	ESPN+ (Don West, Mike McClure) \| Watch
Series	SIU leads the all-time series, 50-41 \| Last Meeting: MSU 68, SIU 53 (2/17/21) \| Stats
Live Stats	Live Stats
Game Notes	Missouri State \| Southern Illinois \| MVC Notebook \| MSU Media Guide
Follow	Facebook \| Athletics Twitter \| Basketball Twitter \| Instagram \| #MSUBears \| #BearsUnite
Up Next	Saturday, Jan. 15 at Valparaiso (4:00 p.m.) on ESPNU

The Ten Count

After a pair of thrilling Valley finishes last week, the Bears wrap a two-game home stand Wednesday when the Bears host Southern Illinois at 7 p.m. (ESPN+). Missouri State has won four of the last five meetings against the Salukis, including three in a row, in a rivalry that dates back to 1957.
Missouri State remains in the Top 100 of the NCAA NET rankings, entering the week at No. 94, while Southern Illinois is No. 147. According to the KenPom.com rankings, Missouri State ranks No. 80, and SIU is ranked 131st.
Isiaih Mosley's (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) is coming off a career-high 43-point outburst in Saturday's one-point loss to UNI, the third-highest scoring effort in Missouri State history, the most points by any player in the club's Division I era, the most points ever at JQH Arena, and tied for the best single-game scoring effort in the nation this year. His 27-point second half scoring total also tied a school record.
Bears guards Jaylen Minnett (Sr., Terre Haute, Ind.) and Ja'Monta Black (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) rank 2nd and 5th, respectively, in the MVC in 3-pointers per game. Minnett's 3.00 3-pointers per game ranks 37th nationally, while Black's 2.76 treys per outing ranks 69th. Black recently moved into 10th place on MSU's career 3-pointers list (128), while Minnett ranks 5th among all active Division I players in career 3-pointers (330).
Donovan Clay (Jr., Alton, Ill.) is averaging 9.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per game at JQH Arena this season (9g). The transfer from Valpo is also shooting 50-percent from the field (31-of-62) at home and posting 1.1 blocked shots per game. Clay has also snagged 5 or more rebounds in 10 of the Bears' last 11 contests.
The Bears enter the week ranked 11th nationally in 3-point percentage (.396), 21st in free throw percentage (.772), 22nd in field goal percentage (.485) and 44th in scoring offense (78.8). KenPom also ranks Missouri State as the 40th most-efficient offense in DI (111.4), ranking 16th in effective FG% (.555).
With his performance vs. UNI, Isiaih Mosley eclipsed 500 career points (534) at JQH Arena (37 games), putting him No. 3 on the arena's all-time scoring list behind Kyle Weems (982) and Jarred Dixon (630). Only Alize Johnson (14.9 ppg) has averaged more points per game in his career at home that Mosley's 14.4 ppg scoring average at home.
Gaige Prim (Sr., Aurora, Colo.) is averaging 17.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game in his career against the Salukis, including a rare 20-20 game against SIU in the last meeting between the teams (2/17/21) when he scored 29 points and snagged 21 rebounds in the 68-53 MSU victory.
Lu'Cye Patterson (So., Minneapolis, Minn.) is averaging 10.8 points per game in Missouri Valley Conference play this season and shooting .500 (18-of-36) from the field.
Missouri State's 9.9 three-pointers per game this season is well on track to shatter the club's single-season record for threes per game. The 2016-17 Bears made 8.18 triples per contest, followed by 2020-21 (7.50); 2006-07 (7.36); 2010-11 (7.12) and 2017-18 (7.09). The 2016-17 campaign also set a high-water mark for total 3-pointers (270). Currently, the Bears rank No. 8 nationally -- and tops in the Missouri Valley -- with 168 three-pointers this season.
The Salukis rank 18th nationally and lead the MVC in scoring defense, allowing just 59.4 points per game.

Coach Dana Ford

Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 60-46 (.566) in his fourth season as Missouri State head coach, including a 37-15 ledger at JQH Arena, 18-23 record in away games, and 5-8 mark at neutral sites. He is now 117-111 (.513) in his eighth season as a head coach, including four seasons at Tennessee State. Ford is 4-4 all-time against Southern Illinois.
Ford picked up his 100th career victory on Feb. 7, 2021 at Illinois State (72-62). The Dec. 15, 2021 win over South Dakota State was Ford's 100th as Bears head coach.
Last season, Ford was named to ESPN's College Basketball 40 Under 40 list at No. 35 and was on the list of national finalists for both the Skip Prosser Award and Ben Jobe Award. The Bears completed the 2020-21 campaign with a 17-7 overall record and 12-6 ledger in the Missouri Valley Conference (third) before advancing to the MVC Tournament semifinals. Missouri State was 7-2 in road conference games to match a program high-water mark, while Isiaih Mosley and Gaige Prim earned All-MVC first team honors, and Demarcus Sharp earned a spot on the MVC All-Newcomer Team.
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, TSU doubled its home attendance average and twice earned votes in the AP Top 25 poll in 2016-17.
Ford, 37, earned 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 (Trail Blazers) and Fred Van Vleet (Raptors).

Series History

SIU leads the all-time series, 50-41, in a rivalry that dates back to 1957. MSU is 25-15 at home (9-4 at JQH Arena), 10-28 all-time in Carbondale, and 6-7 at three different neutral sites against the Salukis.
The Bears have won four of the last five meetings, including both games last season.
In Game One, (2/10/21), Keaton Hervey scored a season-high 18 points, snagged 6 rebounds and blocked 3 shots to lead four Missouri State players in double figures as the Bears turned back SIU, 65-53. Hervey ignited a 16-6 second-half run that turned a 3-point halftime lead into a 13-point advantage. MSU shot 61 percent in the second half and out-rebounded the Salukis by a 35-27 margin. Ja'Monta Black added 13 points for the Bears with Isiaih Mosley pitching in 12 with a team-high 8 rebounds, and Gaige Prim stacking up 10 points and 5 assists. SIU was led by Lance Jones with 13 points, while Dalton Banks added 12 points and a team-high 6 rebounds off the bench for the Salukis. | Stats
In Game Two (2/17/21), Prim had career highs with 29 points and 21 rebounds to lead the Bears to a 68-53 win in Carbondale. The Bears never trailed in rolling to their sixth straight MVC win and first in Carbondale since 2014. Prim's rebound total tied for the 17th-best in program history. He also converted 13-of-19 field goals and blocked 3 shots. His 20-20 game was Missouri State's first since Alize Johnson had 24 points and 20 rebounds (vs. UNI, Jan. 4, 2018). Demarcus Sharp added 10 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists to the winning cause for the Bears. Lance Jones led SIU with 13 points, including the game's final six points when the outcome was in hand. | Stats

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.
This year's Rebound Foundation game will be Sunday, Feb. 6 vs. Loyola.
Pledge to assist the Rebound Challenge today! Pledge Link

Midweek Matchup Features Visit from Rival SIU

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Players Mentioned

Ja'Monta Black

Donovan Clay

Keaton Hervey

Jaylen Minnett

Isiaih Mosley

Lu'Cye Patterson

Gaige Prim

Demarcus Sharp

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Midweek Matchup Features Visit from Rival SIU

Next Event

Related News

Players Mentioned

Ja'Monta Black

Donovan Clay

Keaton Hervey

Jaylen Minnett

Isiaih Mosley

Lu'Cye Patterson

Gaige Prim

Demarcus Sharp

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