Game 25 - Missouri State Bears (12-12, 8-6 MVC) vs. Belmont Bruins (17-8, 10-4 MVC)
Date and Time	Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2023 | 6:06 p.m. (Central)
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena (11,000) | Springfield, Missouri
Tickets	Tickets | (417) 836-7678 | Great Southern Bank Arena Box Office
Promotions &       Specials	Black Sweatbands (Student Giveaway) | Wear Black | Season Promos 3-for-15 Ticket Special
Fan Info	Digital Game Program | Gates open at 5:00 p.m.
Radio	KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Don West, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live Varsity Network App
Television	MVC-TV Network (Bally Sports Midwest) (John Rooney, Rich Zvosec) | Watch  ESPN+ (outside Valley footprint)
Series	Belmont leads 1-0 | Last Meeting: BU 74, MSU 61 (1/7/23) | Box Score
Live Stats	Live Stats
Game Notes	Missouri State | Belmont | MVC Weekly Notebook | MSU Media Guide
Follow	Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Basketball Twitter | Instagram | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	MSU travels to Evansville on Sunday, Feb. 12 | 1 p.m. | Tickets

Accessibility
Missouri State University is committed to providing an accessible and supportive environment for those with disabilities. To request reasonable disability accommodations, contact the Deputy Compliance Officer at (417) 836-6755 or DeputyComplianceOfficer@MissouriState.edu. 

The Ten Count

• Missouri State returns to Great Southern Bank Arena on Wednesday when the Bears host Missouri Valley Conference co-leader Belmont in a regionally-televised game at 6 p.m. The Bears have won 6 of their last 7 at home and will be entertaining the Valley newcomers from Nashville in their first-ever trip to Springfield. 
• Alston Mason (So., Overland Park, Kan.) has led the Bears in scoring in each of the last 4 games, averaging 20.5 points and 5.5 assists per game in that span. He is also shooting 45.5 percent from the field (25-of-55) and 92.3 percent from the free throw line (24-of-26) over the last 4 contests. 
• The Bears have emerged as one of the country's top shot-blocking teams, averaging 4.2 rejections per contest which ranks 2nd in The Valley and 55th nationally. The Bears are averaging 5.0 blocks per game over their last 4 contests with junior Jonathan Mogbo (F, West Palm Beach, Fla.) ranking 3rd in the MVC in blocks per game (1.23). 
  MoState has played 3 overtime games in Valley play this season (2-1), the team's most since 2016-17 (5).  
• During his tenure at Missouri State, head coach Dana Ford is 51-19 (.729) in home games at Great Southern Bank Arena, including an 8-3 ledger this season. The Bears have secured their 52nd straight winning home season, finishing over .500 at home every season since 1971-72 and encompassing three different home venues.
• The Bears are allowing nearly 11 fewer points per game at home than on the road this season. Missouri State has surrendered 58.1 points per game at "The Vault" and 68.9 ppg on the road this season. The Bears are also +4.8 on the glass at home and just +1.4 in rebound margin in road contests.
• Mogbo has also racked up 12 dunks over the last 5 games, giving him 27 flushes on the season, which ranks No. 6 on Missouri State's single-season dunk chart. He is 1 dunk away from Tulio Da Silva (2019-20) for the No. 5 position.
• The Bears rank 57th nationally -- and tops in the MVC -- in bench points per game (24.33). MSU also ranks 7th nationally in bench minutes (42.4 pct.). MSU's bench has outscored its opponent's reserves in 19-of-24 games this year.
• Chance Moore (So., Brookhaven, Ga.) is coming off a breakout week for the Bears, averaging 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks and 1.5 steals per game, while recording 28.5 minutes off the bench. Moore also shot 50 percent from the field (10-of-20), 50 percent from three (3-of-6) and 70 percent (7-of-10) at the line in a renaissance effort.
• Donovan Clay (11.7), Chance Moore (10.7) and Alston Mason are Missouri State's top scorers at home this season with Clay (5.9) also leading the team in rebounding at Great Southern Bank Arena.
• Per KenPom, the Bears had the 93rd-best non-conference strength of schedule in the nation and by far the best in the MVC (Bradley 151). MSU racked up 11,812 travel miles and played in all 4 continental time zones in non-conference play.
• The Bears are 11 treys away from 200 on the season, which would mark the 13th time in program history -- and sixth time in seven years -- MSU has reached that milestone. MSU's 7.88 threes per game currently ranks 2nd all-time in program history, trailing only last season's record-setting 8.32 treys per contest. 
• MSU ranks 36th nationally in scoring defense, allowing just 63.6 points per game this season. The Bears have surrendered 63.9 points per contest in MVC games -- 62.3 ppg when adjusting for regulation play only. 

The Series

• The Bears and Bruins have met just once with this season's 74-61 loss in Nashville on Jan. 7 serving as the only previous meeting between the clubs.
• In that game, Donovan Clay posted 20 points for Missouri State, but the visiting Bears committed a season-high 17 turnovers and were unable to stop a hot-shooting Belmont squad in a 74-61 setback. The Bruins turned MSU's mishaps into 23 points off turnovers and buried 11 threes to snap MSU's four-game MSU win streak. Cade Tyson led Belmont with 20 points behind three triples, while Ben Shepherd scored 17, also with three treys. The Bears shot an efficient 45 percent on the offensive end and connected on seven 3-pointers of their own. However, an eight-and-a-half minute scoring drought for the visitors midway through the second half was pivotal.
• After Chance Moore's 3-pointer with 15:10 to play pulled the Bears within 47-43, the only scoring Missouri State did during the ensuing stretch was four free throws from Moore. Meanwhile, Belmont pushed ahead 61-47 with 7:26 to play. Moore was the only other Bear in double figures with 12 points. | Box Score

Coach Dana Ford

• Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 84-63 (.571) in his fifth season as Missouri State head coach, including a 51-19 (.729) ledger at Great Southern Bank Arena, 26-33 record in away games, and 7-11 mark at neutral sites. He is now 141-128 (.524) in his ninth season as a head coach, including four seasons at Tennessee State. Ford is also 52-34 (.605) in Valley games (28-15 at home, 24-19 away). 
• Coach Ford is 2-7 all-time vs. Belmont (0-5 at Curb Event Center, 2-2 at Gentry Complex at TSU). This will be Belmont's first-ever trip to Great Southern Bank Arena.
• He picked up his 100th career victory on Feb. 7, 2021 with a Bears' win at Illinois State (72-62) and coached his 100th game at Missouri State on Dec. 15, 2021 vs. South Dakota State. His win over Oakland on Nov. 27 in The Bahamas was his 75th victory at MSU, while his OT victory at Drake (1/18/23) was his 50th MVC win.
• CBS Sports' Jon Rothstein listed Missouri State head coach Dana Ford among his "20 coaches on the rise entering the 2022-23 college basketball season."
• In a breakout 2021-22 campaign, Missouri State finished the season as one of the nation's most-efficient offensive teams, ranking 2nd nationally in free throw percentage (.797), 14th in field goal percentage (.482) and 23rd in 3-point FG percentage (.374) -- the only DI team to rank in the top 25 in all three. KenPom also rated the Bears 21st in effective FG percentage (54.6) and 23rd in adjusted offensive efficiency (113.2). MSU led the MVC in all of those metrics, except 3-point percentage, while also leading The Valley in scoring (77.3) and turnovers per game (10.6), which ranked 38th and 34th in the country, respectively.
• Likewise, the 2021-22 Bears finished as runners-up in the Missouri Valley Conference, racking up a 23-11 overall record and 13-5 record in the league. The Bears' season win total was the program's most since 2011 and the 10th-best in team history. The squad advanced to the MVC Tournament semifinals for the third straight year and also represented The Valley in the NIT in Ford's first postseason tournament showing at MoState. The Bears also set team records for 3-point field goals (283) while boasting two first-team all-conference players in the school's all-time best scoring tandem – Gaige Prim and Isiaih Mosley -- while Donovan Clay earned MVC All-Defensive Team honors, and Isaac Haney landed on the MVC All-Freshman Team. Jaylen Minnett was also named to the MVC All-Bench squad.
• For the third time in his head coaching career, Ford was a finalist for the Ben Jobe Award at the conclusion of the 2021-22 season.
• 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, 38, 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, 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).

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.
• Pledge to assist the Rebound Challenge today!  Pledge Link
• This year's Rebound Foundation Game is Tuesday, Feb. 21 vs. Murray State