Missouri State Lady Bears (19-7, 13-4 MVC) vs. Illinois State Redbirds (19-8, 12-5 MVC)
Date and Time	Saturday, March 2 | 2:00 p.m.
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena | Springfield, Mo.
Tickets	Tickets
TV	MVC TV Network/ESPN+ (Harry Schroeder, Kelly Burke) | Watch
Radio	KWTO 93.3 FM (Tom Ladd, Lynne Miller) | Listen Live | Varsity Network
Live Stats	Live Stats
Promotions	Kids Day | Senior Day | 2023-24 Promo Calendar
Missouri State	Game Notes | Women's Basketball Home Page
Illinois State	Women's Basketball Home Page
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	Thursday, March 7 at UIC | 7:00 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 closes out its home slate with a key Missouri Valley Conference matchup against Illinois State on Saturday afternoon (2 p.m.). MSU leads the all-time series 49-36, but the Lady Bears and Redbirds have alternated victories in their last six meetings.  
• MSU is 13-1 at home this season. At Great Southern Bank Arena, the Lady Bears are scoring 71.5 points/game and are holding opponents to just 58.9 points/game. MSU is also limiting its foes to 9.4 assists/game while forcing 18.2 turnovers/game in front of its home crowd. 
• Missouri State's next win would secure its seventh consecutive 20-win season. The Lady Bears have already clinched their 10th consecutive season with 12 or more conference victories.
• In the Beth Cunningham era, the Lady Bears are 25-3 when scoring 70+ points. Under Cunningham, Missouri State is 29-0 when allowing 65 points or less and 36-4 when holding opponents to 70 points or less. 
• Defense and rebounding have been vital to the Lady Bears' success this season. Missouri State ranks second in The Valley in scoring defense, holding opponents to 63.0 points/game. The Lady Bears rank first in the MVC in rebounding defense (30.2) and second in rebounding margin (+6.35), which trails only first-place Drake.
• Point guard Lacy Stokes has been named MVC Newcomer of the Week seven times this season. 
• MSU is 16-1 this season when winning the battle on the boards, 17-2 when owning more assists than its opponents and is undefeated at 9-0 when knocking down more free throws than its competition. 
• After finishing last season ranked 251st nationally in three-point percentage (.292), the Lady Bears currently rank 56th nationally and second in the MVC, shooting .345 (134-388) from three-point range.
• Two Lady Bears average double-figure points this season for MSU - Lacy Stokes (11.0) and Kennedy Taylor (10.7). Stokes also leads MSU with 115 assists and 53 steals on the year, while Taylor leads the team in double-figure point games (16), double-figure rebound games (6) and double-doubles (6) this season. In MVC games, Taylor is 3rd in The Valley in FG% (.536). 
• Missouri State has three freshmen averaging 10.0 or more minutes per game. Kyrah Daniels is scoring 9.3 points per game, owns 15 blocks and leads MSU with 33 three-point field goals this season. Kaemyn Bekemeier is shooting .507 from the field and .400 from three, while Louis Volker is shooting .532 from the field and has collected 58 rebounds. 

The Series
    Missouri State leads the all-time series against Illinois State, 49-36, including a 25-15 record in Springfield. The two teams have alternated victories across the last six contests. Missouri State's last home win against the Redbirds was on Feb. 2, 2020.
    In this season's previous matchup in Normal, the Redbirds handed MSU its first conference loss of the season. MSU led by three after the third quarter, but an Illinois State 10-3 run to end the game snapped Missouri State's seven-game win streak. The Lady Bears knocked down eight triples in the contest and forced 18 turnovers, but the difference-maker came at the free throw line, where Illinois State went 31-for-36 compared to MSU's 4-for-8 on the night. 
    In last season's meeting in Springfield, the Lady Bears suffered a 63-67 loss as Illinois 
State came from behind in the fourth quarter. Despite holidng the lead for the majority of the 
game, MSU was plagued by cold shooting in the fourth and the Redbirds took advantage down 
the stretch. Kennedy Taylor (18 pts., 14 reb.) and Indya Green (12 pts., 13 reb.) posted double-doubles.
        
A Lady Bear Win Would...

• Mark MSU's seventh consecutive 20-win season. 
• Secure a 14-1 record at home this season for the Lady Bears. 
• Keep Missouri State inside the top three of the MVC standings.