Joplin, Mo. --   The Missouri Southern men's basketball team will play host to Central Oklahoma this Saturday. Tip off from Robert Corn Court inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center is slated for 3 pm. 

Game Information

Teams:              Missouri Southern (12-8, 6-5 MIAA) vs. Central Oklahoma (12-6, 7-3 MIAA) 

Date: Saturday, Jan. 28, 2017
Tip-Off: 3:00 pm
Location: Joplin, Mo.
Site: Robert Corn Court/Leggett & Platt Athletic Center (3,240)
Series Record: Southern leads 6-4
Coaches: Jeff Boschee (50-31 overall/at MSSU - 3rd year).  Tom Hankins (30-20 overall/at UCO - 2nd year)

Media Coverage

MSSU Radio: Mike McClure - Play by play - ESPN Joplin - 101.3, 103.5 FM, AM 1560 KXMS 88.7 FM
Internet Audio: www.mssulions.com
Live Video: www.mssulions.com
Live Stats: www.mssulions.com
Lions on Facebook:  Facebook.com/mososports
Lions on Twitter: @mososports; @mssumensbball

The Series

Southern holds a slim 6-4 advantage in this relatively short series between the two teams. The first time the two teams played was in 1973 with Central Oklahoma taking that game in Joplin. The two teams didn't paly again until 1991, then played twice more until 2013 when UCO joined the MIAA. Southern has won the past four games in a row. The Lions are 3-2 at home, 1-2 on the road and 2-0 in neutral site games. 

NCAA Individual Stat Leaders

CJ Carr is 8th nationally in total steals, while ranking 12th in total field goals attempted, 17th in steals per game, 26th in total points 32nd in total field goals made, 33rd in total assists, 42nd in scoring, 44th in total minutes, 50th in assists per game and 54th in free throws made. Elyjah Clark ranks 41st in three pointers attempted, while ranking 47th in total threes made.    

NCAA Team Stat Leaders

Southern ranks 19th in free throw percentage, while ranking 20th in free throws made. The Lions rank 27th in offensive rebounds per game, 31st in turnover margin. 40th in three point attempts, 46th in free throw attempts and 48th in scoring.     

MIAA Individual Leaders

Carr leads the MIAA in total steals, steals per game, and total assists, while ranking second in assists per game, free throws made, total field goal attempts and total points. He ranks third in scoring, total minutes and total field goals made. Elyjah Clark ranks third in three point attempts. 

MIAA Team Stat Leaders

The Lions lead the MIAA in scoring and offensive rebounds per game. The team ranks second in three point attempts, free throws made, free throw percentage, and total rebounds. Southern ranks third in three pointers per game, total three pointers made and turnover margin. 

Getting Offensive (About Boards)

The Lions lead the MIAA in offensive rebounds this year, averaging 13.4 offensive boards per game. That equates to 14.3 second-chance points a game.   

High-Scoring Freshman

Elyjah Clark is third on the team in scoring this year with 14.3 points per game and he ranks 11th in the MIAA in that category. However, he is the top-scoring freshman in the entire MIAA.  

Three Point Streak

The Lions failed to make a three-pointer at Arkansas Tech in their match-up in 2012-13. It was the first time in 403 games that Southern had failed to hit a three pointer, dating back to Jan. 20, 1999 against Missouri S&T. The Lions have had a three in 132-straight games since Arkansas Tech in 2012-13. 

High Scoring Affair

The Lions scored the second-highest points of the season against Randall when they scored 105 points. The 37-point margin of victory is the most since the Lions defeated Avila by 41 points in the 13-14 season (108-67). 

Game of Firsts

Against Arkansas Tech, the Lions scored 90 plus points and lost for the first time this year and just the second time under Jeff Boschee. They also allowed 100 plus points at home for the first time since the 2009 season.

New Starting Five

For the first time in program history (since joining the NCAA), the Missouri Southern men's basketball program started five entirely new players to the roster the first two games to the season this year. All five players in the starting lineup did not play last year at MSSU.  

Keep Em Low

The Lions held Lindenwood to just 55 points which is a season-low for any MSSU opponent. The 55 points are the lowest allowed in a single-game for Southern since 48 in the 2014-15 season against Benedictine and the lowest against an MIAA opponent since 54 against Northeastern State on Jan. of 2015. 

New School Record

The Lions set a new school record with 42 attempted three pointers against Missouri S&T. The mark surpassed the 34 set last season against Washburn. 

Home Sweet Home

Missouri Southern can count on some of the best fan support in Division II. The Lions rank 15th nationally in home attendance, averaging 1,278 fans per game. That number ranks fifth in the MIAA.

Three's Alive

The Lions tied a school record with 15 made three-pointers in a win against Northeastern State. It is the fifth time in school history to hit 15 treys in a game as the Lions did it against St. Gregory's in 2003, Missouri Western in 2009 and 2013, as well as Southwest Baptist in 2015. 

Single-game High

CJ Carr scored 47 points earlier in the year against Minnesota State. That point total is the fourth-highest single-game total in the NCAA this year and the second-highest in MSSU single-game history. 

Bring Em On

The Lions have the 23rd-toughest schedule in Division II men's basketball this season and the toughest in the MIAA. The schedule ranks third-toughest in the Central Region and the closest MIAA team in toughest schedule is Fort Hays State at No. 29. 

Lions On The Radio 

The majority of the Lions games this season can be heard on the Missouri Southern Radio Network in Joplin. Partnering with ESPN Joplin, the Lions can be heard on 101.3 FM, 103.5 FM, 88.7 FM and AM 1560. 

Lions on TV

All Missouri Southern conference home games will be brought to you live this season courtesy of KGCS TV in Joplin. Fans can catch the action over the air live on Digital Channel 22 as well as on local cable systems. 

Up Next

The Lions will have the midweek off before playing host to Pittsburg State on February 4. Tip off from Robert Corn Court inside the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center is slated for 3 pm.