Northeastern State at Missouri Southern Saturday, Jan. 29 | 3:30 p.m. | Leggett & Platt Athletic Center
Records	Northeastern State (10-9, 5-8 MIAA) • Missouri Southern (10-7, 7-4 MIAA)
Game Notes	Northeastern State • Missouri Southern
Listen	Bill Huddleston (play-by-play) NSU Digital Network
Watch	The MIAA Network
Live Stats	NSU Live Stats
Tickets	Tickets Available at Gate | Missouri Southern Ticketing
Social Media	@RiverHawksMBB  | @RiverHawksMBB  | Facebook

The Setup

• The RiverHawks will be looking for a weekend road sweep this Saturday, visiting Missouri Southern.   Northeastern State's last visit to Joplin resulted in a one-point win for the RiverHawks.  However, Missouri Southern led for only a minute in the previous meeting with the RiverHawks and took a one-point win in Tahlequah. 

Last Time Out

Northeastern St. 60, at Pittsburg St. 54 | Jan. 29, 2022 | Pittsburg, Kan.

• It was a tale of two halves, but Northeastern State edged out Pittsburg State 60-54 Thursday night for a season sweep of the Gorillas.
• The win for NSU is the first at Pitt State since 2001, with Dillon Bailey leading the RiverHawks in scoring for the first time this season with 15 points. 
• Christian Cook was NSU's only other player in double-figures with 11 points.  Rashad Perkins had nine off the bench, and Shakeil Bertrand had six points, three assists, and two blocks. 
• Emeka Obukwelu was limited to a season-low six points but led the team with seven rebounds. 
• The RiverHawks shot 47.8-percent (22-46) and were out-rebounded by two with 30 as a team.  Northeastern State was called for a season-high 24 fouls, with the Gorillas being sent to the line 21 times.

Storylines

• Emeka Obukwelu is seventh overall in the MIAA, averaging 16.6 points per game.  Nationally speaking, Obukwelu is among the top-100 in seven statistical categories.  He is the only player in the Division II men's basketball with a pair of 20 rebound games this season and is second in the MIAA with 9.2 boards per outing.  
• Rashad Perkins has turned into one of the top scoring threats in the MIAA off the bench this season, averaging 12.6 points per game.  At Missouri Western, his 40 points were the most for an NSU men's basketball player since 2014 and tied for the most in the game this season in the MIAA.  Perkins has been sent to the line 85 times, which is sixth most in the MIAA.
• Christian Cook has scored at least ten in 22 of the previous 24 contests, going back to last season.  In his short career at NSU so far, Cook has 473 points scored in 39 games.
• Tylor Arnold has two double-double games this season for NSU and is fourth in points (8.2), second in rebounding (5.4), and first in overall assists (53). Arnold played for head coach Ja Havens for three seasons at East Central (Okla.) and was on the top-10 list for career minutes played, career steals, and career throw percentage.  
• After missing the season's first eight games, Ryan Gendron made his first start on Jan. 22 against Lincoln.  Gendron is a transfer from the University of Tulsa and was signed out of high school to play baseball at Oklahoma State.  His brother Jake, is a redshirt on the NSU basketball program. 
• Northeastern State men's basketball set an attendance record during Thanksgiving break, with 2,231 fans attending their game against Haskell.  The number is good for the 15th-most in NCAA Division II basketball this season, with the program ranked 17th overall in attendance.
• The RiverHawks has made a three-pointer in 115 consecutive games.  Feb. 2, 2017 against Southwest Baptist is the last time NSU did not make a three.
• The 2021-22 season is the 93rd for men's basketball at Northeastern State.
• The RiverHawks are entering their tenth season as members of the MIAA and 25th season as an NCAA Division II program.

About Missouri Southern

• Since playing NSU, the Lions are 2-3 but are coming off a pair of 12+ point wins heading into Saturday's showdown. 
• R.J. Smith leads the Lions in scoring 20.5 points per game but has been absent from the floor since Nov. 20, 2021, against Truman State.  Stan Scott has paced the Lions in MIAA play, averaging 16.9 points per game, and is 15th nationally with 2.54 steals per game.
• MIAA leader so far with 11.8 offensive rebounds per game.  Despite this, the Lions are have won second chance points in seven of their 17 games, and are 5-2 when they do lead that stat line. 
• Missouri Southern allows 77.8 points per game, the highest in the MIAA this season with teams shooting 46.3-percent, good for tenth best out of 14 among Association programs. 

Last Time They Met

Mo. Southern St. 72, at Northeastern St. 71 | Jan. 11, 2021 | Tahlequah

• Northeastern State had four in double-figures, but they were upended late by Missouri Southern 72-71.
• Despite being out-shot and out-rebounded, Missouri Southern left with the win leading for just 1:01.  Turnovers plagued NSU throughout the night but proved to be even more costly in the final five minutes, where Southern forced three.
• Southern recorded 13 steals on NSU's offense and out-scored them 16-to-6 on turnovers. 

Series Notes

Northeastern State trails 19-26 | 14-5 at home | 5-18 in Joplin | 0-3 neutral 

• The last five out of the last six regular season meetings have been decided within six points. 
• Northeastern State has not won back-to-back games at Missouri Southern. 
• After winning 20 straight games to open the Leggett & Platt Athletic Center.  Northeastern State handed the Lions its first loss on their current home court in the Nov. 28, 2000 meeting (63-55).  Current NSU head coach Ja Havens was a graduate assistant in that win. 
• Havens earned his first win as head coach at NSU against Missouri Southern (90-89 at Missouri Southern on Dec. 3, 2020)