Joplin, Mo. -- The Missouri Southern men's basketball team will play host to the number one team in Division II as the Lions welcome Northwest Missouri to Joplin Saturday. Tip off is slated for 3 pm.
Game Information
Teams: Missouri Southern (15-10, 9-7 MIAA) vs. #1 Northwest Missouri (24-0, 16-0 MIAA)
Date: Saturday, February 18, 2017
Tip-Off: 3 pm
Location: Joplin, Mo.
Site: Robert Corn Court/Leggett & Platt Athletic Center (3,240)
Series Record:Northwest leads 31-21
Coaches: Jeff Boschee (53-33 overall/at MSSU - 3rd year). Ben McCollum (165-70 overall/at NWMO)
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
Northwest leads the overall series 31-21, but Southern has won nine of the last 16 games. Missouri Southern is 15-10 at home against Northwest Missouri, while the Lions are 5-18 in Maryville. Northwest has won all but one of the neutral site games. While many of the games have been close, Northwest's biggest victory margin was 27 points, in the 2006 MIAA Tournament. Southern's most-lopsided win was a 93-67 decision on January 29, 2000. Five out of the last ten games have been decided by a basket or less.
NCAA Individual Stat Leaders
CJ Carr is 18th nationally in total field goal attempts, while ranking 22nd in total assists and total steals, 23rd in assists per game, 25th in steals per game, 46th in total points, 47th in minutes per game, 54th in total field goals made and 52nd in scoring. Lawrence Brown ranks 45th in offensive rebounds per game, while Elyjah Clark ranks 49th in total three's and 53rd in three point attempts.
NCAA Team Stat Leaders
Southern ranks 22nd in both free throw percentage and offensive rebounds per game, while ranking 23rd in turnover margin, 41st in free throws made and 53rd in both scoring and turnovers forced.
MIAA Individual Leaders
Carr leads the MIAA in total steals, total assists, assists per game, steals per game, and total field goal attempts. Carr also ranks third in minutes per game, scoring, total minutes and total points. Elyjah Clark leads the MIAA in three point attempts, while ranking second in total three pointers made and third in three pointers per game. Lawrence Brown is second in offensive rebounds per game and third in total rebounds.
MIAA Team Stat Leaders
The Lions lead the MIAA in scoring, offensive rebounding and turnovers forced, while ranking second in three point attempts, free throw percentage, turnovers forced. The team ranks third in steals per game, three pointers per game, total three pointers made, total rebounds and total steals.
Getting Offensive (About Boards)
The Lions lead the MIAA in offensive rebounds this year, averaging 13.6 offensive boards per game. That equates to 14.1 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 137-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 16th nationally in home attendance, averaging 1,438 fans per game. That number ranks fifth in the MIAA.
MIAA Tournament
Missouri Southern has qualified for the MIAA Tournament, securing at least a play-in game.
Feeling Generous
CJ Carr set a new MSSU single-game record for assists against Pittsburg State with 16 in the game. The mark broke Eddin Santiago's mark of 15 set in 2000. The 16 assists are also the most in a single game in Division II this year.
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.
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 head out on the road for a rare Tuesday night game at Pittsburg State. Tip off is slated for 7:30 pm.
