No. 9 Missouri State upsets No. 1 Liberty in Conference USA Tournament

The month of March in college basketball comes with some legendary upsets, and the Conference USA tournament brought about one for the ages. The Missouri State Bears, the No. 9 seed in the tournament, shockingly upset the No. 1 Liberty Flames 77-69. This effectively ends their bid for March Madness.

Game Recap

Liberty was entering the tournament with a 25-7 record and a 17-3 conference record, which was four games above the No. 2 team in the tournament (Sam Houston State). Missouri State, meanwhile, went just 16-17 with an 8-12 record in the conference. Even worse, they ended the regular season 1-9, including 0-7 in the month of February.

The Bears had won against the FIU Panthers, but against the Flames, it was an uphill battle. The Flames ended the first half with a 37-33 lead, and with 15:16 left in the second half, they had a 50-42 lead.

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Then, the Bears caught fire. They scored 15 unanswered points, taking a 57-50 lead at 9:55 in the second half. While the Flames tried to keep it close, pulling within one (58-57 at 7:46), Missouri State pulled away. Liberty never got within a two-pointer, and they lost 77-69.

Takeaways

For the Bears, senior forward Micahel Osei-Bonsu had the game of his life, with 31 points on 14 of 16 shooting. Missouri State shot 56% from the field and 50% from beyond the arc.

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Josh Smith (12) attempts a dunk but is blocked by NC State Wolfpack guard Jr. Paul McNeil (2) and guard Quadir Copeland (11) during the second half of the game at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images" loading="lazy" decoding="async" data-nimg="1" class="standard-img p_maxWidth" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/xjH7P6w2Pw2ztxP987HxgQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTY0MDtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/the_big_lead_articles_114/eaa0bdf11639282f9167b4c8452ca2fc" width="100%" style="; max-width:300px;"/>

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Meanwhile, the Flames went just nine for 31 from the three-point line, equating to a brutal 29.0% three-point percentage. Senior guard Colin Porter, who shot 37.4% from beyond the arc entering this game, didn’t make any of his six three-point shots. Senior forward Zach Cleveland led the way with 20 points, but he didn’t attempt a single shot from behind the arc.

With the most recent loss, Sam Houston is projected to take the Flames’ place in the tournament, with them winning the conference. The Bearkats are projected as a No. 13 seed, facing Kansas on the East side of the bracket.

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