Bears Beat: Arch Madness is finally here
© Andrew Jansen/News-Leader The Missouri State Bears defeated Loyola 74-62 at JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020. After the Bears lost in the final seconds to Little Rock on the opening night of the season, we knew in all likelihood that MSU's season was going to come down to three days in March.
Those days are finally here.
The road to get to Arch Madness wasn't as smooth as was once thought as MSU took a step back in its second year under Dana Ford. However, all can be forgiven with a three-game winning streak starting on Friday night.
Missouri State opens Missouri Valley Conference play Friday at 8:35 p.m. against Indiana State for a trip to the MVC semifinals. The two teams split their regular-season series with the road team winning each game.
The Sycamores could be the hottest team in the league entering the tournament but the Bears might not be far behind (if you want to just forget about the Valparaiso game last week).
© Andrew Jansen/News-Leader Head coach Dana Ford, of Missouri State, gets ready before the Bears game against Loyola at JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020. MSU got its dream scenario on Saturday when Valparaiso lost and it gave Southern Illinois a beatdown. Now the Bears have a favorable path to the MVC title game that avoids Northern Iowa until championship Sunday — where anything can happen.
Missouri State beat every team on its side of the bracket at least once. On the other side, there are a pair of teams (Northern Iowa, Bradley) who swept the Bears during the regular season.
The odds are against the Bears going on a run. They only went on one three-game winning streak all season and that was at the beginning of December when they played some team called Mississippi Valley State sandwiched in there.
Who knows. The Bears look good sometimes and meh at others. They can beat anyone (well, maybe Northern Iowa) and they can lose to anyone.
It's time to see how this Bears team wants to be remembered.
© Nathan Papes/Springfield News-Leader The Missouri State Lady Bears beat the Evansville Purple Aces 76-62 at JQH Arena on Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. Previously on News-Leader.com... In heartbreaking news, MSU hoops commit A.J. James was killed in an accidental shooting on Monday night.
The Lady Bears weren't in the Top 16 ranking revealed on Monday night but they might still have a chance at hosting even with the loss to Illinois State. Here's a look at where they stand.
After Missouri State's win over Southern Illinois to grab the No. 6 seed, the players talked a big game in my reaction piece.
2020 PG Skylar Wicks committed to Missouri State basketball on Sunday morning.
Missouri State basketball had its worst attendance in 40 years. Here are the numbers. I'll probably have something more in-depth in the nearish future.
The Lady Bears grabbed a pretty good road win at Bradley although they made it closer than it probably should have been in the end.
The Lady Bears lost to Illinois State but they might still be alive for a Top 16 seed despite the upset.
Missouri State lost to Valparaiso in a result that doesn't really matter anymore, I guess, but they were pretty bad.
Scribbly Bear
© Illustration by Wyatt D. Wheeler The Scribbly Bear cuts down the nets after the Bears avoided the play-in round of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. How to get the most of my work Lots of Missouri State content is about to be thrown at you here in the next few weeks. I'll have plenty on Arch Madness from St. Louis starting on Thursday.
I'll stay there until the Bears are done or if they win it all. After the season's over, I'll go right into Lady Bears for the remainder of the year.
You can get an online subscription to the News-Leader for 99 cents per month for the first three months right now.
© Andrew Jansen/News-Leader Brice Calip (11) and the Missouri State bench celebrate during the Lady Bears' 88-57 win over Southern Illinois at JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2020. Lady Bears Beat, Basketball Galactica Everything seemed to be over for the Lady Bears' hopes of hosting NCAA Tournament games at JQH Arena but that all changed when eight ranked teams lost on Sunday.
The door appears to have been reopened but they really can't afford to lose another game.
ESPN's Charlie Creme still had the Lady Bears as a No. 5 seed after the Top 16 reveal on Monday evening. From watching the reveal, I got the sense that the Lady Bears are the third team out — behind fellow No. 5 seeds Texas A&M and Indiana.
Missouri State has a few things working for them if they want to make the jump into the Top 16.
Every team ahead of the Lady Bears that are No. 4 or Texas A&M/Indiana are playing in their conference tournaments while MSU still has two-to-five games remaining.
Iowa and Indiana are both on the border of hosting and only one or neither of them will be able to win the Big Ten Tournament. Teams like Maryland and Northwestern will be the favorites in that tournament.
© Nathan Papes/Springfield News-Leader The Missouri State Lady Bears beat the Evansville Purple Aces 76-62 at JQH Arena on Friday, Feb. 21, 2020. Oregon State and Arizona find themselves in a similar situation. The Beavers are going to have to play an extra game while having a possible matchup with Stanford in the quarterfinals. Arizona could have a tough matchup with Arizona State in the quarterfinals with Oregon waiting for them in the semis.
DePaul enters the Big East Tournament as the No. 1 seed as it sits as the No. 16 team in the recent Top 16 ranking. It might have to win out to earn a hosting opportunity.
Texas A&M is the No. 4 seed in the SEC Tournament and already has a quarterfinals berth. It will be difficult for the Aggies to get more than one win as they have a potential date with No. 1 South Carolina in the semifinals.
Things will play themselves out but the Lady Bears appear to be in a position to get back into the hosting conversation. If they took care of Illinois State, it would've been an easy decision but here we are.
The Lady Bears will be favored in every game they play the remainder of the regular season and conference tournament. Hosting shouldn't be out of the picture just yet.
© Andrew Jansen/News-Leader Ross Owens, of Missouri State, passes the ball during the Bears' 74-62 win over Loyola at JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020. Arch Madness schedule Schedule
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
© Andrew Jansen/News-Leader The Missouri State Bears defeated Loyola 74-62 at JQH Arena on Saturday, Feb. 22, 2020. Looking to 2020... I put in a Sunshine Request for the Missouri State men's and women's basketball contracts for the 2020-21 season. Here is what they gave me:
Missouri State men:
Missouri State women:
© Bruce E Stidham - STIDZ Media/Special to the Springfield News-Leader Missouri State against Southern Illinois at JQH Arena on Feb. 29, 2020. The week ahead... My coverage this week will be dedicated to men's basketball and Arch Madness.
I will head up to St. Louis on Thursday for media availability up there. We will have a writer in place for the Lady Bears' potential clincher that night.
I'll stay in St. Louis until the Bears are done. Saturday's Lady Bears game will be covered for sure even if I'm not back for that.
If the men go on a special run, that'd make life crazy. If they don't, I'll be on Lady Bears' duty for the remainder of the season.
Views from this newsletter are News-Leader sports reporter Wyatt D. Wheeler's. If the News-Leader shared all of his views, we'd be in A LOT of trouble.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Bears Beat: Arch Madness is finally here
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