Missouri State Lady Bears (8-4, 0-1 MVC) vs. Belmont Bruins (6-6, 1-0 MVC)
Date and Time	Thursday, January 2 | 6:30 p.m.
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena | Springfield, Mo.
Tickets	Tickets
TV	ESPN+ (Corey Riggs, Carly Stubblefield) | Watch
Radio	KWTO 93.3 FM (Tom Ladd, Lynne Miller) | Listen Live | Varsity Network
Live Stats	Live Stats
Promotions	$5 Tickets (except sections B, C and L) | 2024-25 Promo Calendar
Missouri State	Game Notes | Women's Basketball Home Page | Media Guide
Belmont	Women's Basketball Home Page
Follow the Lady Bears	Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | #LadyBears | #MoState
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	Saturday, January 4 vs. Murray State | 1:00 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 Lady Bear Necessities 

• Missouri State women's basketball opens a three-game home stand as the Lady Bears welcome Belmont to Great Southern Bank Arena for a Thursday night (6:30 p.m.) MVC showdown. MoState trails in the all-time series 2-3, but the Lady Bears own the two most recent victories in the series. 
• The Lady Bears are coming off a 69-62 loss on Sunday at UIC to open conference play, which snapped MSU's four-game win streak. Lacy Stokes led the Lady Bears with a game-high 21 points (6-8 FG, 8-12 FT) and seven assists. 
• MoState has been extremely successful on its home court, owning a 29-5 record at Great Southern Bank Arena under Beth Cunningham. This season, the Lady Bears are 4-0 at home and own a +18.5 scoring margin, +12.8 rebounding margin and are holding opponents to 52.5 points/game.
• MoState ranks 12th nationally in three-point field goal percentage this season, shooting at a .385 (79-205) clip from beyond the arc. Three Lady Bears have at least 15 3FG - Daniels (24), Rocca (18) and Bekemeier (17). Daniels ranks 44th in the nation with a .421 (24-57) three-point field goal percentage.
• Lacy Stokes (Sr., Mount Vernon, Mo.) continues to do it all for Missouri State from the point guard position. Stokes leads MoState in scoring (12.6 ppg), assists (53), steals (30) and minutes (34.7 mpg). The 5-4 guard ranks in the top 50 nationally in FTM (60 - 26th), FTA (74- 40th) and steals/game (2.50 - 49th).
• The Lady Bears have been extremely balanced on offense this season. Four Lady Bears are averaging at least 10.0 points/game.Through the first 12 games of the season, seven different Lady Bears have led the team in scoring and nine players have posted at least one game with 10 or more points. 
• It's important for MSU to settle in early and produce a strong first-half performance as the Lady Bears are 8-1 this season when leading at the half. When trailing at the half, MoState is 0-3. 
• Missouri State's bench play has been important this season with the Lady Bears owning a 6-0 record on the year when leading in bench scoring. MoState ranks 103rd nationally in bench points per game (22.8). Kaemyn Bekemeier (So., Republic, Mo.) is the top producer off the bench, scoring 10.0 ppg and shooting .527 from the field and .531 from three.  
• In the Cunningham era, Missouri State is 31-4 when scoring 70+ points, 37-1 when holding opponents to 65 points or less and 28-0 when opponents score less than 60 points. 
• Missouri State was picked to finish fifth in the MVC preseason poll for the second consecutive year. MSU finished third in the regular season a year ago with a 15-5 conference record. Stokes earned a spot on the preseason All-MVC first team after earning second-team honors a year ago, in addition to being named to the MVC All-Newcomer and All-Defensive teams.  

The Series 
Missouri State trails 2-3 in the all-time series against Belmont, but the Lady Bears own the two most recent victories in the series. 
    MSU suffered a setback in the first meeting last year, falling 66-55 in Nashville, with the comeback effort falling short. Kaemyn Bekemeier posted a team-high 14 points, while adding 5 boards and 3 assists. 
    Last season's game in Springfield between the Lady Bears and Bruins marked MoState's first-ever win in the series. Missouri State dominated in the wire-to-wire, 73-54, victory as the Lady Bears held the Bruins to 23.9 percent from the field and just 3-of-20 (.150) from long range. MSU had four players reach double figures inlcuding Kyrah Daniels (13 pts) and Lacy Stokes (10 pts, 6 reb, 6 ast). 
    The teams faced off again in the semifinals of the MVC Tournament with Missouri State emerging victorious, 63-48, to punch a ticket to the title game.The Lady Bears outscored the Bruins 34-21 and forced 12 Belmont turnovers in the second half, while holding Belmont to its lowest point total of the season. Stokes led the way with 21 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, followed by Daniels with 13 points.