PREVIEW: No. 11 Missouri State Lady Bears prepare for No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes

BATON ROUGE, La. (KY3/Ozarks Sports Zone) - Coming off a First Four March Madness win Thursday, the Missouri State Lady Bears are already focused on their next opponent in the NCAA Tournament.

The No. 11 Lady Bears will take on the No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Tournament. Tip-off is set for 1:30 p.m. Saturday. ESPNU will carry the broadcast.

Missouri State says they feel they have an advantage coming into the game because they already played a March Madness game on Thursday. The Lady Bears defeated the Florida State Seminoles, 61-50, on Thursday.

The Lady Bears also have a coaching staff that is very familiar with the Buckeyes. Prior to MSU, Coach Amaka “Mox” Agugua-Hamilton coached in the Big Ten at Michigan State for six seasons.

Missouri State also has two coaches with Big Ten experience as well. Coach Mox believes this will help them plan for the Buckeyes.

“Same coach, so it definitely helps because we’re familiar with his style. Very offensive-minded team, even though they are going to try and press and slow us down that way, but speed us up on offense. They play fast, early offense, transition and he’s always been that way,” Coach Mox said.

The First Four win on Thursday is giving the Lady Bears confidence going into Saturday.

“Having a win like that whether it’s in the first four or in the first round it solidifies we are here for a reason and we’re going to get this done. We’re not just here to be in the tournament, we’re here to win,” said senior Mariah White.

The Lady Bears finished practice a little after 4 p.m. Friday and seemed loose in the time media was able to watch.

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