The Lady Bear NecessitiesÂ
- Missouri State women's basketball closes out a three-game road swing with a trip to Southern Illinois for a Saturday afternoon (4 p.m.) Missouri Valley Conference contest. MSU is 61-30 all-time against SIU, with a 23-19 record in Carbondale. MSU won both matchups against the Salukis last season.Â
- Point guard Lacy Stokes (Jr., Mount Vernon, Mo.) was named MVC Newcomer of the Week for the fifth time this season on Tuesday. In a split at Belmont and Murray State last weekend, Stokes averaged 10.5 points, 6.0 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game. She ranks 18th nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.74), 55th in assists per game (4.7) and 82nd in total assists (85).Â
- In last Sunday's 84-74 victory over Murray State, head coach Beth Cunningham secured her 200th career win (200-132). She owned a record of 167-115 in nine seasons as head coach at VCU from 2003-2012 and is 33-17 in her second season at Missouri State.
- In the Beth Cunningham era, the Lady Bears are 21-2 when scoring 70+ points. Under Cunningham, Missouri State is 23-0 when allowing 65 points or less and 30-4 when holding opponents to 70 points or less.Â
- After finishing last season ranked 251st nationally in three-point percentage (.292), MSU currently ranks 35th in the nation at .359 (106-295). In their last outing against Murray State, the Lady Bears knocked down a season-high nine triples, including six treys in a crucial third period to earn a road win.
- MSU's freshman class continues to impress this season, highlighted by the trio of Kyrah Daniels, Kaemyn Bekemeier and Louis Volker. Daniels leads MSU in MVC action with 11.7 points/game, while also owning a team-leading 27 three-pointers over the entire season. Louis Volker is shooting .618 (21-34) in conference games, while Kaemyn Bekemeier is shooting .645 (20-31) from the field and .500 (7-14) from behind the arc in Valley games. The freshman class has accounted for nearly 25% (304 of 1236) of MSU's points this season.
- Missouri State is 5-0 this season in games decided by five points or less. The Lady Bears have won those five games by a combined 10 points.Â
- This season, MSU is 10-0 when outrebounding its opponents and 12-1 when owning more assists.Â
- Missouri State is the only team remaining in The Valley that is undefeated at home this season (10-0) after the Lady Bears handed Murray State its first loss at home last weekend.Â
The Series
   Missouri State leads the all-time series against Southern Illinois, 61-30, which includes a 23-19 record on the road in Carbondale. Missouri State has won the last three games in a row and owns victories in eight of the last 10 matchups.Â
   The Lady Bears swept the season series a year ago. In the first meeting last year in Springfield, Missouri State had to come from behind in the second half, outscoring the Salukis by 20 points in the third to retake the lead for good.
Aniya Thomas had 25 points and 10 assists, while
Kennedy Taylor (13 pts., 15 reb.) and
Jade Masogayo (13 pts., 11 reb.) also turned in double-doubles. MSU pulled down 62 rebounds in the matchup, for a plus-28 rebound margin.Â
   In the return trip to Carbondale, it was a different story as the game came down to the wire. With Missouri State leading by four heading into the fourth period, the Salukis made it a two-point ballgame with two seconds remaining, but MSU grabbed a crucial offensive board to secure the 70-68 victory on the road. Thomas had 21 points, followed by Masogayo with 16.
Indya Green also grabbed 11 rebounds and had four assists.
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A Lady Bear Win Would...
- Mark Missouri State's fourth consecutive victory over Southern Illinois.
- Move MSU to 4-0 in games played on Saturday this season.Â
- Keep Missouri State inside the top three in the MVC standings.Â
