Evansville will enter the home stretch with an 8-10 overall record and 1-6 Missouri Valley Conference mark. The Purple Aces will be looking to snap a six-game losing streak, as Indiana State was able to rally late last Saturday to send the Purple Aces to their sixth loss in a row, 66-59. UE has played solid defense during the six-game stretch, yielding an average of just 63.3 points per game over the last six games, but a dry spell on offense in each game has hurt the Purple Aces. In fact, over the last five games, one long run by the opposition has been more than the margin of defeat for UE.

 
“We need to do a better job of putting a full 40 minutes together on both ends of the court,” said UE head coach Misty Murphy. “We have gone through stretches this year where we have played really well, but then we seem to lose our focus for the next 5-10 minutes, and that stretch kills us. We need to be able to maintain our focus for the full 40 minutes.”

Against Indiana State, senior forward Robyn Jennings led a balanced UE attack with 11 points. Jennings is one of four Purple Aces who currently average double-figures for UE with an average of 11.5 points per game. Junior guard Amy Gallagher (11.6 ppg) and seniors Ashley Austin (11.2 ppg) and Shannon Novosel (10.3 ppg) also average double-figures this year for UE.

Missouri State will bring an identical 1-6 MVC mark and a 5-13 overall record into Thursday’s game after dropping a 66-62 decision at Wichita State on Saturday. MSU, which features a roster full of six true freshmen, is paced by MVC Freshman of the Year frontrunner Casey Garrison, who ranks second in the Valley in scoring at 16.2 points per game. Garrison posted a 21-point, 13-rebound double-double from her guard position to lead the Lady Bears on Saturday at Wichita State.

Missouri State leads the all-time series over UE, 22-9, however, the Purple Aces have won four out of the last five series meetings overall.