Northeastern State vs. Central Missouri	Thursday, March 3 | 6 p.m. | KC Municipal Auditorium
Game Notes	Northeastern State •  Central Okla.
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The Setup

• Northeastern State will face Central Oklahoma in the MIAA Tournament Thursday evening for the second time ever. The rival schools have only met three times previously outside of regular season play. 
• Thursday's winner will advance to the MIAA Semifinals on Saturday, 2014 is the last time NSU advanced that far in the tournament.  

Last Time Out

Northeastern State 60, vs Central Missouri 49  | March 2, 2022 | Kansas City, Mo.

• Northeastern State stifled the Mules to 34.1-percent shooting, and the 49 points matched a season-low for Central Missouri.   The RiverHawks also matched a 1993 MIAA Tournament record allowing just 13 points in the first half, and earned their first postseason since 2014, where they beat Central Missouri that season.
• Central Missouri got the opening bucket, and NSU scored ten unanswered points, never relinquishing the lead.  The Mules missed their first 15 attempts at the arc but cut a 17 point deficit down to seven with 3:05 left.  
• Rashad Perkins was the lone NSU player in double-figures with 13 points, and he led the team with seven rebounds.  Christian Cook and Dillon Bailey had nine, Emeka Obukwelu chipped in eight.

Storylines

• Emeka Obukwelu is 11th overall in the MIAA, averaging 15.1 points per game.  Nationally speaking, Obukwelu is among the top-100 in five 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 third in the MIAA with 8.2 boards per outing.  Obukwelu crossed the 1,000 career point plateau at Missouri Southern.
• Christian Cook has scored at least ten in 27 of the previous 34 contests, going back to last season.  In his short career at NSU so far, Cook has 564 points scored in 50 games.
• Rashad Perkins is third on the NSU roster in points per game at 12.0.   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 scored his 1,000 overall career point on Jan. 29 at Missouri Southern. 
• Tylor Arnold has two double-double games this season for NSU and is fourth in points (9.2), second in rebounding (4.9), and third in overall assists (65). 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.   He scored his 1,000 NCAA Division II point on Feb. 3 against Emporia State.
• Caison Hartloff has started to shoot a hot hand off the bench for the RiverHawks landing five three-pointers in his hometown of Claremore on Feb. 26.  The true-freshman played a season-high 24 minutes and had 15 points in the NSU win over the Hillcats. 
  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 25th-most in NCAA Division II basketball this season, with the program ranked 21st overall in attendance.
• The RiverHawks has made a three-pointer in 125 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 Central Oklahoma

• Central has been ranked as high as No. 9 in national polls this season and is No. 15 by the coaches and No. 23 by the media. 
• The Bronchos claimed a share of its first MIAA Regular Season Title is the tournament's top seed.
• Isaiah Wade was named to the Small College Basketball's Bevo Francis Watch List Top 50.  The sixth-year senior is averaging 18.7 points per game, fifth most in the MIAA, and 8.3 rebounds per game, good for three best in the MIAA.
• The Bronchos lead the MIAA in nine statical categories and are second in eight others.  They are ranked fifth nationally with 482 made free throws and 28th with 456 assists.   Commits the most fouls per game in the MIAA a 14.3 and they are ninth in committing 12.0 turnovers per game.
• Callen Haydon leads the UCO with 165 assists this season which paces the MIAA. 

Last Time They Met

Central Oklahoma 75, at Northeastern State 62 | Feb. 19, 2022 | Tahlequah

• Northeastern State let a 14-point halftime lead slip away as Central Oklahoma rallied for a 75-62 victory in MIAA Conference action at the NSU Event Center here Saturday afternoon.
• The RiverHawks were on fire in the opening 20 minutes, hitting 17-29 from the field for 58 percent and was 7-14 from behind the arc to take a 41-27 lead into the break.  Emeka Obukwelu was 5-6 from the floor to lead all scorers with 11 first-half points.  UCO was held to 9-31 from the field for 29 percent.
• NSU battled foul trouble and poor shooting in the second half as UCO turned up the defensive intensity to pull away for the victory.

Series Notes

Northeastern State trails 4-7 | 3-3 at home | 0-4 in Warrensburg | 1-0 neutral 

• The oldest active series for the RiverHawks that dates back to 1925.
• Thursday's meeting is just the fourth postseason meeting between the two rival schools.
• Inside Hamilton Field House, NSU is 17-25 overall and has won the last three meetings on UCO's home floor.
• NSU downed the Bronchos, 83-71, in overtime to close Jack Dobbins Field House on Feb. 27, 2013. 
• Northeastern State is the first team to play at UCO's Hamilton Field House (Jan. 8, 1965).
• In MIAA play, the RiverHawks trail the series 8-12.
• Head Coach Ja Havens played against UCO twice during his senior season at Northeastern State.