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It's back on the road for the University of Evansville men's basketball team, Wednesday at Missouri State where the Purple Aces will go after their third straight win. You can watch the game live on AcesTV, or listen on the Aces Basketball / Old National Bank Radio Network.

THE TOP 10 THINGS TO KNOW...UE AT MISSOURI STATE FEB. 4

1. Wednesday’s game will be the 48th between the Aces and Bears in a series that began 50 years ago. Missouri State leads the series 26-21. UE has won three of the last five, but the Bears have won four straight in Springfield.

2. In the last three Evansville-Missouri State games at Springfield, the Bears have won by 21, 52, and 38 points. At least the venue is different this year. Missouri State is playing in its new, 11,200-seat JQH (John Q. Hammons) Arena.

3. 2007 Evansville Bosse High School graduate Cardell McFarland is Missouri State’s sixth leading scorer with a 6.5 average. The freshman guard did not play in the game at Evansville because of a sprained ankle.

4. For the second time this season, Shy Ely is the MVC Player of the Week. The 6'4" forward totaled 18 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals in Thursday's 65-62 win at Drake, and added 22 points, six rebounds, one assist and two steals in Saturday's 60-54 win over Southern Illinois. Ely leads the league in scoring at 17.6 and is fifth in rebounding at 6.5.

5. Ely scored in double figures in all 13 games before Missouri State held him to nine points in the Aces’ overtime win January 7. He took a season-low three shots against the Bears, hitting two to go along with five free throws.

6. Jason Holsinger was the only Evansville player in double figures in the first game against Missouri State, scoring 19 points on 7-for-14 shooting. His steal late in overtime and Pieter van Tongeren’s put-back on a missed free throw attempt saved the Aces that night.

7. Two is the magic number for 14-7 Evansville to achieve its first winning season since 2000. Under second-year coach Marty Simmons, the Aces have already won five more games than in all of 2007-08.

8. The Aces on Wednesday have the opportunity for their third sweep against Missouri Valley Conference teams. They've already swept Indiana State and Drake. The last time Evansville took two from a trio of conference teams was 2000, when the Aces swept Drake, Illinois State and UNI.

9. With one more MVC win, 6-5 Evansville will have won its most since the 2002-03 team finished 8-10. The last time UE finished above .500 in the Valley was 10 years ago, when the Aces won the league with a 13-5 record.

10. Evansville will host Miami of Ohio (12-7, 5-2 MAC) in the ESPNU Brackbusters on Saturday, Feb. 21. For the first time, Evansville has been chosen for one of the TV games. A total of 102 teams from 17 conferences will compete in the seventh annual event. Thirteen of the 51 games will be televised nationally. UE’s game time will be announced next Monday.

To view the full game notes, click on the Mo. State Game Notes link on the men's basketball page here at GoPurpleAces.com.