Starting Five - Storylines for the NCAA Tournament First Round
1) Missouri State has continued its tradition of strong defensive play. The Lady Bears currently own the 10th-best scoring defense in the nation at 53.6, which is on pace to rank second in school history. MSU also ranks in the top 25 nationally in: offensive rebounds per game – 10th, blocks – 10th, rebounds - 12th, free throws made - 12th, blocks per game - 14th, free throw attempts - 15th, rebounds per game - 21st, field goal percentage defense - 24th and rebounding margin - 25th.
2) Out of the 31 opponents that qualify, Missouri State has held 25 out of 31 opponents under their scoring average entering their games against the Lady Bears. Across all 31 games, MSU is holding opponents to an average of 14.1 points below their scoring average prior to facing the Lady Bears. Missouri State has held nine opponents to 20+ points below their scoring average prior to facing the Lady Bears, including Power Five opponents USC and Missouri.
3) With one more assist,
Brice Calip will join Casey Garrison (2009-2012) as the only two Lady Bears in program history to record 1700+ points, 500+ assists and 700+ rebounds in their careers. Calip is currently 7th all-time in scoring (1,707), 5th all-time in assists (499) and 10th all-time in rebounds (706).
4) Abi Jackson has stepped into a key role for the Lady Bears this season. Jackson leads Missouri State with 12.8 ppg and 6.6 rpg this year. Jackson has recorded double digit scoring performances in a team-leading 20 games this season and has six double-doubles. She moved into 2nd on MSU's single-season blocks list with 77 on the year and is 5th on MSU's career blocks list with 106 total blocks as a Lady Bear.
5) Missouri State is 98-17 overall since Dec. 20, 2018, which is seventh nationally in total wins since that date and eighth in win percentage (.851). Five teams ahead of the Lady Bears on the wins list have been ranked No. 1 in the AP Poll over that span.
Series History
Missouri State and Ohio State have never met in the programs' histories.
The Opponent
Ohio State is led by Jacy Sheldon and Taylor Mikesell, who average 19.5 and 18.8 points per game, respectively. Rebeka Mikulasikova leads the Buckeyes with rebounds per game. As a squad, OSU averages 79.2 points and 36.3 rebounds per game, while shooting .460 from the field and .378 from three-point range. The Buckeyes average 16.8 assists and 8.9 steals per game.
MSU NCAA Tournament History
The Lady Bears have made 17 NCAA Tournament appearances, highlighted by Final Four trips in 1992 and 2001 to go along with Sweet 16 trips in 1993, 2019 and 2021.
Missouri State is one of eight programs to advance to a Sweet 16 in the 1990s, 2000s, 2010s and 2020s. The other programs to accomplish the feat include: South Carolina, UConn, Stanford, Maryland, NC State, Texas A&M and Texas. The Lady Bears own a 19-16 in the NCAA Tournament.
