The Missouri State Bears will be at McLeod Center to play the Northern Iowa Panthers in a Missouri Valley matchup. The game begins at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Feb. 10 and can be seen on ES3.
The Panthers come into this game on a high note after defeating Drake 82-66 on Saturday. Paul Jesperson was the game’s leading scorer with 21 points on 8-for-13 shooting. The Bears, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their awful 83-64 loss at the hands of Evansville on Saturday. Chris Kendrix had a game-high 21 points.
This is the second game of the season between these two teams, with the Bears winning the first matchup 59-58. Despite the loss, Matt Bohannon had a standout performance with 15 points, five rebounds, one assist, two steals, and five three-pointers.
The Panthers enter the game with records of 14-11 Straight Up (SU) and 12-12 Against The Spread (ATS). The Panthers are a phenomenal three-point shooting team with 8.0 made per game, one of the highest marks in Division I. Turning to the defensive side, the Northern Iowa defense has been very good, only giving up 65.3 points per game. Northern Iowa has given up very few turnovers with an average of only 10.2 per game.
Over on the other bench, the Bears have records of 10-12-1 ATS and 10-14 SU. The Bears are one of the top defensive teams on the road, essentially shutting down opponents to the tune of 69.2 points allowed per away game.
Missouri State beat Northern Iowa in their most recent meeting this season, but Northern Iowa still leads the head-to-head record, 8-2 SU, over their most recent matchups. The Bears hold the advantage ATS with a record of 5-4-1. Northern Iowa held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once in the last five matchups. On the other side of the court, Missouri State never accomplished this feat in that span.
Predictions: SU Winner – MoStU, ATS Winner – MoStU
Notes
Missouri State averages 67.1 points per game, placing the team just 226th in the nation. Northern Iowa ranks 31st in points allowed, giving up 65.3 points per game.
Missouri State scores just 62.4 points per away game (ranked 234th). Northern Iowa ranks 37th in points allowed at home, giving up 62.5 points.
Ranked 100th, the Northern Iowa Panthers have an offensive rating of 109.0. The Missouri State Bears rank 188th with a defensive rating of just 103.7.
Northern Iowa has an average field goal percentage of 46.7%. Missouri State is a subpar 1-7 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Northern Iowa Panthers rank lower for their field goal percentage (56th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (25th), but the Missouri State Bears have a better FG% ranking (293rd) than eFG% ranking (320th).
Northern Iowa ranks 71st in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.24. Missouri State is ranked lower at 266th with an A/TO of .92.
Missouri State has forced an average turnover rate of 18.4% this season. In games where its turnover rate is 18.4% or higher, Northern Iowa is an even 4-4.
