Missouri State University

Missouri State has survived three runs by homestanding Indiana State in the first half, but has managed to hold a 29-28 lead at the intermission in the Missouri Conference finale for both clubs.

The Bears, looking for their 20th victory of the season and playing for seeding in next weeks MVC Tournament, jumped out to a 13-4 lead as the Sycamores missed seven of their first nine shots in the first half.

A three-pointer by Adam Leonard at the 12:59 mark put MSU up by nine before ISU rolled off an 11-2 run to tie the game, 15-15, after a break-away dunk by Dwayne Lathan.

A three-point play by Harry Marshall put Indiana State up briefly, 18-17, with 7:10 to go, before Leonard knocked down another three for the Bears 18 seconds later.

That three-pointer, plus an earlier trey by Kyle Weems, tied the Missouri State record for three-pointers in a season by teammates (144).

From there, the Bears built their advantage to five points three different times and led by four on the last possession of the half before a three-pointer out of the right corner by Aaron Carter made it a one-point game at the break.

Jermaine Mallett has seven points to lead Missouri State, while Nafis Ricks and Leonard have six apiece. MSU has shot 34.5 percent (10-of-29) and is 3-of-11 (.273) from three-point range. The Bears also owned a 25-18 rebounding lead.

ISU was led by Marshall with 9 points. The Sycamores were 12-of-31 (.387) in the half and 2-of-9 (.222) from beyond the arc. Indiana State, the No. 2 free throw shooting team in the nation, is just 2-for-5 from the charity stripe in the early going, but has committed just four first-half turnovers.