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| Missouri State Lady Bears (12-7, 7-3 MVC) at Southern Illinois Salukis (7-12, 4-6 MVC) | |
| Date and Time | Wednesday, February 1 | 6 p.m. CT |
| Location | Banterra Center | Carbondale, Ill. |
| Tickets | Tickets |
| Radio | KBFL 96.9 FM (Tom Ladd, Lynne Miller) | Listen Live | Varsity Network |
| TV | ESPN+ (Dominic Hoscher, Mike Trude) | Watch |
| Live Stats | Sidearm Stats |
| Missouri State | Game Notes | Women’s Basketball Home Page |
| Southern Illinois | Women’s Basketball Home Page |
| Bears Mobile App | App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices) |
| Up Next | Saturday, Feb. 4 vs. UIC, 1 p.m. CT | Tickets |
Starting Five – Storylines for the Southern Illinois Game
1) The Missouri State Lady Bears are continuing their tradition of dominance on the boards this season. MSU ranks 7th nationally and 1st in the Missouri Valley Conference with 16.6 offensive rebounds per game, while ranking 2nd in the conference and 20th in the country in total rebound average with 42.5 per game. Missouri State also owns a +10.8 rebound margin, which is 1st in the conference and 7th nationally.
2) Missouri State fifth-year senior Sydney Wilson is the reigning MVC Player of the Week after averaging 12.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 3.0 steals last week, while shooting .588 (10-17) from the field and achoring two impressive defensive performances against UNI and Drake. She also grabbed a vital offensive rebound and scored the game-winning basket on the putback versus the Panthers. The honor marked the first MVC weekly award of her career. She also owns 111 career wins as a Lady Bear.
3) Aniya Thomas continues to do it all for the Lady Bears this season, as she leads the team with 14.2 points per game, 89 assists and 44 steals. She has recorded 11 consecutive games with 10+ points and has logged nine games with 5+ assists this season. Thomas also leads the team with three 20-point outings on the year and has reached double figures 16 times in 19 games on the season.
4) Freshman Jade Masogayo has hit her stride recently as she owns a .750 FG% (30-for-40) over the last six games. Against UNI, she went 6-for-6 from the field to become the first Lady Bear to shoot 100 percent from the field (min. 6 FGA) since Abby Hipp went 7-for-7 at Boise State on Nov. 10, 2019. She then started the next game against Drake with a 5-for-5 first-half outing to mark 11-straight made field goals.
5) Missouri State is 8-0 this season when holding opponents to 60 points or less and the Lady Bears are 8-0 when scoring 70+ points. They also own a 12-2 record when collecting more assists than their opponents, meanwhile that record falls to 0-5 when their opponent has more assists.
Series History
Missouri State leads the all-time series against Southern Illinois, 60-30, while owning a 22-19 advantage on the road. MSU took home a 78-57 victory in the first matchup between the two teams in Springfield earlier this season. In that matchup, Aniya Thomas led the way with 25 points and 10 assists, while Kennedy Taylor (13 pts., 15 reb.) and Jade Masogayo (13 pts., 11 reb.) also posted double-doubles.
The Opponent
Southern Illinois is 7-12 overall on the season and 4-6 in MVC play. The Salukis are led by Ashley Jones, who is averaging 15.8 points per game. Laniah Randle owns a team-high 6.2 boards per game, Promise Taylor has racked up 45 blocks and Quierra Love leads SIU with 76 assists and 40 steals. As a team, the Salukis are averaging 71.8 points and 36.2 rebounds per game, while owning a -5.3 scoring and -3.9 rebounding margin.
