The Ten Count
- Fresh off a win over MVC preseason favorite Drake on Sunday, the Bears take to the road Wednesday (8 p.m.) against Bradley at Carver Arena in Peoria. The game has been picked up for a national telecast on CBS Sports Network.
- Missouri State has won six of its last seven games, averaging 79.0 points and 11.3 three-pointers per game in that span with a 16.9 scoring margin. Former high school teammates Isiaih Mosley (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) and Ja’Monta Black (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) have paced the MSU offense in that run with 19.0 and 13.3 points per game, respectively.
- Black is just 14 points away from 500 for his career (71 games). He has scored a 3-pointer in 13-of-15 games this season with 10 multiple-trey games.
- Among the NCAA’s 350 Division I programs, the Bears rank high in all phases of offensive accuracy — 13th in 3-point FG percentage (.395), 22nd in FT percentage (.773) and 28th in FG percentage (.483), while helping MSU post the 43rd-highest scoring average (78.9) in the nation. According to KenPom.com, the Bears also rank 24th in effective FG% (.550) and 63rd in offensive efficiency (107.8).
- Four different MSU players are averaging double figures in scoring against Bradley in their careers: Gaige Prim (15.8 ppg), Isiaih Mosley (13.0), Donovan Clay (12.4) and Ja’Monta Black (12.3), all with at least 4 games against BU.
- Jaylen Minnett (Sr., Terre Haute, Ind.) posted a season-high 22 points vs. Evangel last Thursday behind a 7-of-11 effort from 3-point range. He ranks 14th nationally in 3-point percentage (.472) and 21st in 3-pointers per game (3.23), while ranking 5th among active Division I players in career 3-pointers (327).
- Isiaih Mosley (Jr., Columbia, Mo.) and Gaige Prim (Sr., Aurora, Colo.) both eclipsed 1,000 points at Missouri State in Sunday’s win over Drake. They now have 1,003 points apiece (71 career games for Mosley, 67 for Prim) as Bears, becoming the 30th and 31st members of the Missouri State’s 1,000-Point Club.
- The Bears are 13-17 all-time in Peoria, including an 83-79 overtime loss in their most-recent trip to Carver Arena (2/19/20) and a 69-64 win against the Braves (1/12/19) the season before.
- Gaige Prim is coming off his 6th double-doubles of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds in Sunday’s win over Drake. Prim ranks 15th nationally in double-doubles while charting 27th nationally in FG percentage (.592) and 47th in rebounds per game (8.5), all of which lead the Missouri Valley Conference.
- Isiaih Mosley’s 17.4 ppg scoring average ranks 79th nationally and 2nd in the MVC. Last season, Mosley became the first Bear to lead The Valley in scoring (19.8) while also ranking as the MVC’s top free throw shooter (.847).
- Bears freshman Isaac Haney (G, Springfield, Mo.) has knocked down a 3-pointer in 3 of his last 4 games (6-of-11 in that span). He averaged 11.5 points per game last week, including a season-high 18 points vs. Evangel on Dec. 30.
- Donovan Clay (Sr., Terre Haute, Ind.) is averaging 10.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game in MVC play. Over the last 5 games overall, Clay is averaging 11.2 points and 8.4 rebounds while shooting .636 (21-of-33) from the field.
- Lu’Cye Patterson (So., Minneapolis, Ind.) is 6-1 as a starter and is averaging 9.0 points per game in MVC games while shooting .615 (8-of-13) from the field against league foes.
Coach Dana Ford
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- Dana Ford (Illinois State, 2006) is 59-45 (.567) in his fourth season as Missouri State head coach, including a 37-14 ledger at JQH Arena, 17-23 record in away games, and 5-8 mark at neutral sites. He is now 116-110 (.513) in his eighth season as a head coach, including four seasons at Tennessee State. Ford is 4-3 all-time against Bradley.
- Ford picked up his 100th career victory on Feb. 7, 2021 at Illinois State (72-62). The Dec. 15, 2021 win over South Dakota State was Ford’s 100th as Bears head coach.
- Last season, Ford was named to ESPN’s College Basketball 40 Under 40 list at No. 35 and was on the list of national finalists for both the Skip Prosser Award and Ben Jobe Award. The Bears completed the 2020-21 campaign with a 17-7 overall record and 12-6 ledger in the Missouri Valley Conference (third) before advancing to the MVC Tournament semifinals. Missouri State was 7-2 in road conference games to match a program high-water mark, while Isiaih Mosley and Gaige Prim earned All-MVC first team honors, and Demarcus Sharp earned a spot on the MVC All-Newcomer Team.
- He was introduced as Missouri State’s 18th men’s basketball coach on March 22, 2018 after coaching the previous four seasons at Tennessee State. The native of Tamms, Illinois was 57-65 (.467) at Tennessee State, including a 52-39 ledger in his last three seasons in Nashville. He coached five All-OVC players and two OVC All-Newcomer Team selections during his tenure at TSU. Under his leadership, TSU doubled its home attendance average and twice earned votes in the AP Top 25 poll in 2016-17.
- Ford, 37, earned the Ben Jobe Award in 2016 as the nation’s top Division I minority coach. That same year, he was named Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year and NABC District 19 Coach of the Year after engineering one of the biggest turnarounds in NCAA history, swaying Tennessee State from a 5-26 record in his first season to a 20-11 mark in 2015-16.
- He has served as an assistant at Tennessee State, Wichita State and Illinois State and was responsible for recruiting future NBA talents such as Robert Covington (Trail Blazers) and Fred Van Vleet (Raptors).
Series History
- The series between the Bears and Braves began when MSU joined The Valley for the 1990-91 season. Missouri State leads the rivalry, 41-25. The Bears are 13-17 all-time in Peoria but did not play at Carver Arena last season.
- Bradley swept the Bears during the 2019-20 season, but the Bears avenged that streak in 2020-21 with wins in both contests — both at JQH Arena.
- In Game One (Feb. 13, 2021), Missouri State got 24 points and seven 3-pointers from Ja’Monta Black, while Gaige Prim added 20 points to help lead the Bears to an 80-58 win. The Bears, who rolled to their fourth straight MVC win, knocked down a season-high 14 treys, including four from Jared Ridder and three from Demarcus Sharp, while firing at a 57.4 percent clip from the field for the game. Bradley, which played without four of its starters, was led by Ville Tahvanainen with 13 points, while freshman Darius Hannah posted 10, all in the second half. BOX SCORE
- In Game Two (Feb. 14, 2021), Missouri State got 27 points from Isiaih Mosley and 20 more from Gaige Prim to help push the Bears to a 72-57 win. MSU snagged its 10th MVC win for just third time since 2007. Bradley was led by Rienk Mast who posted 15 points and a game-high 11 rebounds. The Bears were impressive on the glass all afternoon, out-rebounding the Braves by a 36-26 margin and allowing BU just four offensive caroms and two second-chance points for the game. Mosley helped ignite first-half Bears runs of 13-0 and 10-0 to give MSU a 39-29 lead at the midway point. BOX SCORE
Rebound Foundation
- Bears’ head coach Dana Ford and his wife, Christina, are founders of the Rebound Foundation. The not-for-profit raises funds and awareness to help renew and restore women who have experienced a life of domestic abuse. The foundation provides a stable home and fresh start to abuse victims and their children. The Rebound Foundation currently provides homes in Springfield, Mo., and Chicago, Ill.
- This year’s Rebound Foundation game will be Sunday, Feb. 6 vs. Loyola.
- Pledge to assist the Rebound Challenge today! Pledge Link
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