Missouri State Lady Bears (14-5, 8-2 MVC) vs. Belmont Bruins (16-5, 9-1 MVC)
Date and Time	Friday, February 9 | 6:30 p.m.
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena | Springfield, Mo.
Tickets	Tickets  | Weekend Ticket Specials
TV	ESPN+ (Mike McClure, Carly Stubblefield) | Watch
Radio	KWTO 93.3 FM (Tom Ladd, Lynne Miller) | Listen Live | Varsity Network
Live Stats	Live Stats
Promotions	Hall of Fame | Kids Day | Scarf & Roll-A-Bana Giveaway  2023-24 Promo Calendar
Missouri State	Game Notes | Women's Basketball Home Page
Belmont	Women's Basketball Home Page
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	Sunday, February 11 vs. Murray State | 2:00 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 puts its 12-game home win streak on the line as the Lady Bears welcome Belmont for a Friday night (6:30 p.m.) showdown at Great Southern Bank Arena. MSU will look to capture its first win in series history against the Bruins. 
• The Lady Bears' last home loss came on Feb. 19, 2023 to Belmont.
• Point guard Lacy Stokes (Jr., Mount Vernon, Mo.) was named MVC Newcomer of the Week for the sixth time this season on Tuesday. Last Saturday at SIU, she scored 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field and went 4-for-5 at the charity stripe. She also pulled down five rebounds, tied for the game high with five assists and collected three steals. Stokes owns 10 games this season with at least five assists and ranks 29th nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.5) and 55th in assists/game (4.7).
• Missouri State is the only team remaining in The Valley that is undefeated at home this season (10-0). In those 10 games, MSU is averaging 69.2 points/game while holding opponents to 58.9 points/game. The Lady Bears also own a plus-6.8 rebound margin, are forcing opponents into 19.0 turnovers per game and are limiting foes to 9.7 assists per game at home this season. 
• MSU owns a 21-4 record at home under Beth Cunningham.
• In the Beth Cunningham era, the Lady Bears are 21-2 when scoring 70+ points. Under Cunningham, Missouri State is 24-0 when allowing 65 points or less and 31-4 when holding opponents to 70 points or less. 
• Missouri State is ranked 23rd in this week's CollegeInsider.com Mid Major Top 25 poll. 
• After finishing last season ranked 251st nationally in three-point percentage (.292), MSU currently ranks 53rd in the nation at .349 (107-307). 
• This season, MSU is 11-0 when outrebounding its opponents and 12-1 when owning more assists. 
• 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. 
• 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 11.5 points/game, while owning a team-leading 27 three-pointers on the year. Volker is shooting .568 (21-37) in Valley games, while Bekemeier is shooting .625 (20-32) from the field and .467 (7-15) from behind the arc in MVC action. 

The Series
    Missouri State has never beaten Belmont, trailing in the all-time series, 0-3. 
    The two squads faced off two weeks ago in Nashville for the first time this season. After a slow start to the game that saw MSU score just six points in the first quarter and face a 16-point halftime deficit, the Lady Bears cut the lead to three at the end of the third quarter. Ultimately, the Bruins owned the advantage in the fourth to pull away and secure an 11-point victory. 
    In the only matchup in Springfield in the history of the series, MSU found itself in a one-possession game in the fourth quarter. After MSU cut the Belmont lead to three, the Bruins put together five quick points, including a dagger three from Destinee Wells as the shot clock expired, to get enough separation from the Lady Bears to end MSU's eight-game win streak. That loss to the Bruins marks the last time the Lady Bears lost a game at home as they are currently riding a 12-game home win streak.
        
A Lady Bear Win Would...

• Mark Missouri State's first-ever victory against Belmont. 
• Extend MSU's home win streak to 13 games. 
• Keep Missouri State undefeated at home this season.