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Missouri State

Donovan Clay

Bears Wrap Road Swing Tuesday at Indiana State

January 15, 2024

By: MSU Athletics Communications
Game 18 - Missouri State Bears (10-7, 2-4 MVC) at Indiana State Sycamores (14-3, 5-1 MVC)
Date and Time Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2024 | 6:00 p.m. (Central)
Location Hulman Center (9,000) | Terre Haute, Indiana
Tickets TicketMaster.com | (812) 237-3770
Radio KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Corey Riggs, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live |
The Varsity Network App
Television MVC TV Network
Bally Sports (Midwest / Kansas City / Indiana / South) 
(John Rooney, Dan Muller) | Bally Sports App | Watch on ESPN+
Series Missouri State leads 54-27 | Last Meeting: MSU 66, INST 62 (2/26/23) | Box Score
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Indiana State | MVC Weekly Release | MSU Media Guide
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Bears Mobile App App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next Bears host Illinois State on Saturday, Jan. 20 (1 p.m) | Tickets

The Ten Count
  • Coming off its first win of the new year, Missouri State takes its resurgence into Terre Haute on Tuesday (6 p.m. Central, MVC TV Network) against MVC co-leader Indiana State. The Sycamores are 7-0 at the Hulman Center this winter where they average 90.3 points per game with a +29.6 scoring margin.
  • The Bears have won 14 of the last 16 meetings against the Sycamores, including 5 of the last 6 in Terre Haute. Under coach Dana Ford, the Bears are 9-2 against ISU and 13-3 in Valley road games played in the state of Indiana.
  • The Bears are 7-0 this season when shooting 45 percent or better from the field and are coming off a 46.4-percent effort in Saturday's win at Evansville (the team's best shooting effort since Dec. 19 vs. Lindenwood). Likewise, MoState is 8-0 when it fires at a 32-percent clip or better from beyond the arc.
  • N.J. Benson (So., Mt. Vernon, Ill.) is coming off a memorable game against Evansville, posting a career-high 22 points on 10-of-14 field goals with 13 rebounds and 3 blocks in the win. It marked his 4th double-double of the season, which matches ISU's Jayson Kent for The Valley lead. Benson is also 2nd in the MVC in blocks (36) and blocks per game (2.12), which rank 19th and 23rd, respectively, in the NCAA rankings. He is also the conference leader in offensive rebounding per game (2.88). He needs 10 rebounds to reach 200 and 3 blocks for 50 in his career (44g).
  • The Bears are 8-3 this season and 77-31 under coach Dana Ford when matching or out-rebounding their opponents. MoState leads The Valley in rebounds per game (38.59), rebound margin (+4.2) and defensive rebounds per game (29.53).
  • Veteran guard Raphe Ayres (Jr., Arlington, Va.) logged a career-high 14 points in Saturday's win at Evansville, knocking down 4-of-5 threes (also a career high) to go with 5 rebounds. He has 10 games this year with 3 or more boards.
  • Donovan Clay (Sr., Alton, Ill.) needs 15 points for 1,500, 8 rebounds for 800, 2 blocks for 150 and 4 steals for 100 in his career (144g). He currently ranks 17th among active DI players in games played (144), 34th in rebounds (792), 34th in blocked shots (148), and 80th in scoring (1,485). His 874 points in 81 games at MSU ranks 44th on MSU's career list. 
  • Alston Mason (Jr., Phoenix, Ariz.) ranks 5th in the MVC in scoring (17.2) and 3-pointers per game (2.40) with double-figure scoring efforts in 13-of-15 games this season. His 16.2 road scoring average leads all Bears players.
  • Matthew Lee (Sr., San Juan, P.R.) ranks 3rd in the MVC and 65th nationally in assists per game (4.8). He needs 16 points to reach 700 for his career (97 games) and 3 three-pointers for 100.
  • Setting a new defensive standard this season, the Bears rank high in three of KenPom's Defensive Four Factors - 11th in FTA/FGA (.23.7); 20th in effective FG Pct. (.452), and 43rd in offensive rebound pct. (25.3).  MSU is also 50th nationally (2nd in MVC) in FG Pct. Defense (.403) and 30th (3rd in MVC) in 3-point FG Pct. Defense (.290).
  • Sixth-year head coach Dana Ford (99-73) is on the brink of100 wins with the Bears which would make him the eighth MSU coach to reach the century mark in victories. Under Ford, the Bears have won 27 Valley road games (second only to Drake's 28 in that span), while the Bears are 19-12 in Valley road games since 2020-21.
  • Cesare Edwards (Jr., Hartsville, S.C.) is 7 points from 200 for his career (55 games). He ranks 63rd nationally in 2-point FG percentage (.667) and has 5 double-figure scoring games this year, including 3 off the bench.
     
The Series
  • The Bears lead the all-time series against Indiana State, 54-27, including a 33-6 ledger in Springfield (13-3 at GSB Arena), 17-20 in Terre Haute, and 4-1 at neutral sites. The Bears have won 14 of the last 16 meetings, including 5 of the last 6 at Hulman Center.
  • Last year in Springfield (1/15/23), the Bears were led by 21 points from Donovan Clay and 20 from Bryan Trimble in a 64-62 win. On the inside, Clay came up one point shy of a career high and finished 7-of-15 from the field with a pair of threes. After leading by four at the midway point, the Bears came out strong in the second half, getting back-to-back buckets from Kendle Moore ahead of a triple from Brian Trimble, and a traditional 3-point play from Clay. Before the under-12, the Bears extended their lead to 10 before Cameron Henry and Courvoisier McCauley led a late ISU charge to make it 56-52 with 3:23 remaining.  but a Clay layup later gave MSU an eight-point cushion with a minute-and-a-half to play.   
  • In the rematch in Terre Haute (2/26/23), MSU was led by a season-high 22 points from Kendle Moore to snag its fifth Valley road win of the season, 66-62. The Bears held off a late surge by the Sycamores to finish things off with Moore providing a clutch rebound on ISU's last possession, and then burying a free throw with 1.2 seconds left to clinch it. Joining Moore in double figures for MoState was Donovan Clay with 15 and Alston Mason with 10. Indiana State was led by Cooper Neese with 14 points, while Cade McKnight added 12. The Bears held off several runs by the Sycamores in the game's final 10 minutes, but Mason and Clay stretched a four-point MSU lead to 54-46 with 6:50 remaining to hold off the home club.
  • See page 8 of game notes for complete series history.
Coach Dana Ford
  • Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 99-73 (.576) in his sixth season as Missouri State head coach, including a 58-22 (.725) ledger at Great Southern Bank Arena, 30-39 record in away games, and 11-12 mark at neutral sites. He is now 156-138 (.531) in his tenth season as a head coach, including four seasons at Tennessee State. Ford is also 58-40 (.592) in Valley games (31-18 at home, 27-22 away).  
  • Ford is 9-2 all-time vs. Indiana State (5-1 at home, 3-1 on the road, 1-0 neutral).
  • He picked up his 150th career win on Nov. 20, 2023 with the Bears' 87-69 win over Abilene Christian in the Virgin Islands and his 100th career victory on Feb. 7, 2021 with a Bears' win at Illinois State (72-62). He coached his 100th game at Missouri State on Dec. 15, 2021 vs. South Dakota State. His win over Oakland on Nov. 27, 2022 in The Bahamas was his 75th victory at MSU, while his OT victory at Drake on Jan. 18, 2023 was his 50th MVC win.
  • In 2022-23, the new-look Bears featured 14 new faces and ultimately turned the squad into Valley contenders. The Bears landed an All-MVC selection in second-teamer Donovan Clay and All-Bench Team honoree Chance Moore. Clay, who was also on the MVC All-Defensive Team, led the Bears in scoring (11.9 ppg) and assists (108) while becoming the first Bear since 2018-19 to reach the century mark in assists. Moore averaged 10.6 points per game and racked up 17 double-figure scoring games.
  • Ford's fifth season in Springfield concluded with a 12-8 conference record, making him the first sideline boss in program history to collect a dozen or more conference wins in three straight seasons. The Bears allowed just 63.2 points per game on the year, which ranked 24th nationally and was the club's best scoring defense in more than a decade. MSU also eclipsed its season record for blocked shots (140) -- a mark that had held for nearly a quarter century -- and ranked second in The Valley in rejections.
  • 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, 39, earned the Ben Jobe Award in 2016 as the nation's top Division I minority coach, a distinction he has been nominated for three times. 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 (Clippers) and Fred Van Vleet (Rockets).
  • Ford was recognized by 417 Magazine as one of its top 100 most-influential professionals in 2022 and 2023. He also serves on the NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee. 
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 is Saturday, Feb. 17 vs. Valparaiso
  • Pledge to assist the Rebound Challenge today! Pledge Link
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