Missouri State Lady Bears (10-4, 2-1 MVC) vs. Southern Illinois Salukis (2-10, 0-3 MVC)
Date and Time	Sunday, January 12 | 2:00 p.m.
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena | Springfield, Mo.
Tickets	Tickets
TV	ESPN+ (Mike McClure, Don West) | Watch
Radio	KWTO 93.3 FM (Tom Ladd, Lynne Miller) | Listen Live | Varsity Network
Live Stats	Live Stats
Promotions	Kids Day (Kids 12 and under get in free) | Great Southern Bank Scarf Giveaway (First 500 fans) | 2024-25 Promo Calendar
Missouri State	Game Notes | Women's Basketball Home Page | Media Guide
Southern Illinois	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	Friday, January 17 at Evansville | 6:00 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 its three-game home stand on Sunday afternoon (2 p.m.) when the Lady Bears welcome Southern Illinois to Springfield. MoState leads the all-time series 63-30 against SIU, including a 36-11 record at home. The Lady Bears have won the last five matchups and nine out of the last 10 against the Salukis.
• MoState has been extremely successful on its home court, owning a 31-5 record at Great Southern Bank Arena under Beth Cunningham. This season, the Lady Bears are 6-0 at home and own a +13.8 scoring margin, +9.0 rebounding margin and are holding opponents to 57.2 points/game. Stokes leads the way for MoState at home, averaging 12.8 ppg and owning a 3.1 A/TO ratio (25 A, 8 TO). 
• MoState ranks 9th nationally in three-point field goal percentage this season, shooting at a .382 (89-233) clip from beyond the arc. Four Lady Bears have at least 10 3FG - Daniels (26), Rocca (19),  Bekemeier (18) and Stokes (10). 
• Sarah Linthacum (Sr., Jefferson City, Mo.) was named the MVC Newcomer of the Week for the second time this season on Monday. Across wins against Belmont and Murray State, Linthacum averaged 14.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. She also shot .591 (13-22) from the field. She now owns 10 double-figure scoring performances in 14 games this season.
• Lacy Stokes (Sr., Mount Vernon, Mo.) continues to do it all for Missouri State from the point guard position. Stokes leads the team in scoring (13.5 ppg), assists (57), steals (33), free throw percentage (.812) and minutes (34.4 mpg). She is coming off the best scoring performance of her MoState career after pouring in 28 points (9-13 FG, 4-4 3FG, 6-8 FT) in the win over Murray State.
• Since the start of conference play, Kiley Bess (Sr., Poplar Bluff, Mo.) has led Missouri State in rebounding in all three games. She grabbed a career-best 12 rebounds in a two-point win over Belmont.
• A couple of keys to success for Missouri State this season have been:
  • Getting off to a quick start (10-1 when leading at the half and are 0-3 when trailing at the break).
  • Bench production (8-0 this season when leading in bench scoring). They are paced by Kaemyn Bekemeier, who is averaging 10.2 ppg and 5.0 rpg, while shooting .538 FG% off the bench.
• In the Cunningham era, Missouri State is 32-4 when scoring 70+ points, 38-1 when holding opponents to 65 points or less and 29-0 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 last year with a 15-5 league record. Stokes earned a spot on the preseason All-MVC first team after earning second-team honors a year ago.

The Series 
Missouri State leads the all-time series 63-30 against Southern Illinois, including a 36-11 record at home in Springfield. MoState has won the last five matchups and nine out of the last 10. 
    In last season's meeting in Carbondale, the Lady Bears found a way to grind out a win in the fourth quarter. After leading by two heading into the final period, Missouri State held the Salukis to 20% shooting from the field and just seven points in the fourth quarter to secure a 10-point, 62-52, victory. Lacy Stokes tied for the team lead with 14 points to go with five assists, while Kyrah Daniels added 10 points.
    In the most recent meeting, which took place in Springfield, the Lady Bears earned a dominant 35-point, 77-42, wire-to-wire victory over SIU. MoState held the Salukis to 28 percent (13-47) shooting from the field, while dominating on the glass with a +21 rebounding margin and outscoring SIU, 18-0, in second-chance opportunities. All 14 players on the roster touched the floor with Paige Rocca tying for the team lead with 15 points on a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.