SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State women’s basketball head coach Beth Cunningham announced today the Lady Bears’ nine-game non-conference slate, which includes eight postseason teams from a year ago, with four of those teams traveling to Springfield this season.
“We are looking forward to the season ahead. Our non-conference schedule is challenging as it features eight teams that played in either the NCAA Tournament or the WNIT a year ago. We will have numerous opportunities to grow individually and collectively as a team with each opponent we face throughout non-conference action, and we believe it is a schedule that will test us and ultimately prepare us for our MVC league schedule,” said Cunningham.
The Lady Bears hit the road for the season opener, traveling to face Little Rock on Mon., Nov. 6. The Trojans went 21-11 last season and earned a spot in the WNIT field, where they suffered a first round loss at SMU. The two teams will meet for the 19th time as Missouri State has won the last three matchups in the series, including a 55-48 victory last season in Springfield.
Missouri State stays on the road the next week with a trip to Saint Louis University on Wed., Nov. 15. The Billikens were 17-18 last season, but went on to win the Atlantic-10 Championship with a 91-85 overtime victory over Massachusetts to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. MSU leads the all-time series 14-3 and owns a 6-2 record on the road against SLU. Meanwhile, the Lady Bears have won the last three contests, including a 71-55 win in Springfield a year ago.
MSU will host its home opener on Wed., Nov. 22 as the Lady Bears welcome Southeast Missouri State to Great Southern Bank Arena. SEMO went 16-15 overall and 10-8 in the Ohio Valley Conference a season ago, with its season coming to an end in the OVC Tournament semifinals. Missouri State owns a 12-2 series advantage and is a perfect 8-0 at home against the Redhawks. The two teams will meet for the first time since 2013, a matchup that saw MSU capture a 77-66 home victory.
The Lady Bears head back out on the road to take on Oklahoma State on Sun., Nov. 26. The Cowgirls posted a 21-12 record last season en route to an NCAA Tournament appearance, where they suffered a one-point loss in the first round to a Miami Hurricanes team that advanced to the Elite Eight. MSU trails the all-time series 3-11 and is 1-7 on the road against OSU.
Kicking off the month of December, Missouri State hosts Tulane on Fri., Dec. 1 for just the third meeting in the programs’ histories. The Green Wave posted an 18-14 record last year and earned a bid to the WNIT, where they suffered a first round loss at Auburn. Each team owns a win in the all-time series with both games previously played in Springfield, as well. The last meeting between the Green Wave and Lady Bears was in 2001 with MSU suffering a three-point loss, 46-49.
Missouri State travels for the final time in non-conference action to face in-state rival Missouri on Wed., Dec. 6. The Tigers went 18-14 last season and made a WNIT appearance, where they defeated Illinois State, 61-51, in the first round before falling at Kansas in the second round, 75-47, to end the season. MSU trails the all-time series 13-22 and is 5-12 on the road in Columbia. This will mark the first matchup in Columbia since the 2020 season, as the teams split the last two meetings in Springfield.
An old conference foe makes its way to Springfield to open a three-game home stand that will close out the non-conference slate. Wichita State and Missouri State will face off on Sat., Dec. 16 for the first time since the 2019 season, a contest that MSU won 68-55 in front of the home crowd. The Shockers were 18-15 last season and advanced to the American Athletic Conference Tournament semifinals to earn a spot in the WNIT field. MSU owns a 51-37 advantage in the series and is 33-12 at home versus the Shockers.
“Additionally, we are excited to have the opportunity to play three games against in-state schools, as well as several other regional rivalry games in 2023-24. We also added a home tournament right before the holiday break this season, and believe we were able to bring in some teams that will excite the fan base,” Cunningham finished.
Finally, the Lady Bears will host a tournament at Great Southern Bank Arena prior to the holiday break. The tournament field includes MSU, BYU, Western Kentucky and Nevada.
Missouri State will face BYU on Wednesday, Dec. 20 and WKU on Thursday, Dec. 21. A full tournament schedule will be released at a later date.
The Cougars of BYU posted a 16-17 record a year ago and advanced to the West Coast Conference tournament semifinals, where they fell to No. 16 Gonzaga. BYU went on to make the WNIT field, hosting a first round game in which the Cougars ultimately fell to Rice, 67-71, to end the season. The 2023 matchup will mark only the second meeting between the two programs, with MSU winning the inaugural contest, 80-52, in Springfield.
The matchup with Western Kentucky will bring non-conference action to a close. The Lady Toppers were 19-14 overall and 14-6 in Conference USA play last season. WKU made an appearance in the CUSA Tournament championship game to secure a spot in the WNIT. Missouri State trails in the all-time series, 3-4, with a 2-2 record at home. The last meeting between the programs was in 2008 with MSU coming up just short, 70-77, in Springfield.
In addition to the nine-game regular season slate, Missouri State will also host an exhibition game leading up to the start of the season. The Lady Bears will face Missouri Western on Wed., Nov. 1 at Great Southern Bank Arena.
The Missouri Valley Conference women’s basketball schedule will be released in the coming weeks.
