# 2021–22 Missouri State Bears basketball team

The 2021–22 Missouri State Bears basketball team represented Missouri State University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bears, led by fourth-year head coach Dana Ford, played their home games at JQH Arena in Springfield, Missouri as members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 23–11, 13–5 in MVC Play to finish a three-way tie for 2nd place. They defeated Valparaiso in the quarterfinals of the MVC tournament before losing in the semifinals to Drake. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Oklahoma.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Bears finished the 2020–21 season 17–7, 12–6 in MVC play to finish in third place. They defeated Valparaiso in the quarterfinals of the MVC tournament before losing to Drake in the semifinals.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 9, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southeast Missouri State | L 94–99 | 0–1 | JQH Arena (4,190) Springfield, MO |
| November 13, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Alabama State | W 78–60 | 1–1 | JQH Arena (3,922) Springfield, MO |
| November 17, 2021* 7:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Sam Houston State | W 77–55 | 2–1 | Bernard Johnson Coliseum (741) Huntsville, TX |
| November 22, 2021* 7:00 p.m., FloHoops | | vs. Long Beach State Naples Invitational first round | W 92–66 | 3–1 | CSN Fieldhouse (378) Naples, FL |
| November 23, 2021* 8:00 p.m., FloHoops | | vs. East Tennessee State Naples Invitational semifinals | L 76–77 | 3–2 | CSN Fieldhouse (317) Naples, FL |
| November 24, 2021* 8:00 p.m., FloHoops | | vs. George Washington Naples Invitational third place game | W 72–54 | 4–2 | CSN Fieldhouse (137) Naples, FL |
| December 1, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Illinois State | L 74–79 $^{OT}$ | 4–3 (0–1) | Redbird Arena (2,902) Normal, IL |
| December 4, 2021* 3:00 p.m., CBSSN | | No. 12 BYU | L 68–74 | 4–4 | JQH Arena (7,006) Springfield, MO |
| December 8, 2021* 6:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Little Rock | W 81–55 | 5–4 | Jack Stephens Center (1,057) Little Rock, AR |
| December 11, 2021* 3:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Oral Roberts | W 69–60 | 6–4 | JQH Arena (4,002) Springfield, MO |
| December 15, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | South Dakota State | W 75–63 | 7–4 | JQH Arena (3,027) Springfield, MO |
| December 18, 2021* 6:00 p.m., KOZL/ESPN3 | | Central Arkansas | W 106–70 | 8–4 | JQH Arena (2,561) Springfield, MO |
| December 22, 2021* 9:00 p.m. | | at Saint Mary's | L 58–75 | 8–5 | University Credit Union Pavilion (2,716) Moraga, CA |
| December 30, 2021* 12:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Evangel | W 103–56 | 9–5 | JQH Arena (1,721) Springfield, MO |
| January 2, 2022 7:00 p.m., MVC Network | | Drake | W 61–56 | 10–5 (1–1) | JQH Arena (3,242) Springfield, MO |
| January 5, 2022 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at Bradley | W 71–69 | 11–5 (2–1) | Carver Arena (3,756) Peoria, IL |
| January 8, 2022 5:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Northern Iowa | L 84–85 | 11–6 (2–2) | JQH Arena (3,352) Springfield, MO |
| January 12, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southern Illinois | W 81–76 | 12–6 (3–2) | JQH Arena (3,886) Springfield, MO |
| January 15, 2022 4:00 p.m., ESPNU | | at Valparaiso | W 74–57 | 13–6 (4–2) | Athletics–Recreation Center (1,621) Valparaiso, IN |
| January 19, 2022 7:00 p.m., KOZL/ESPN+ | | Illinois State | W 88–63 | 14–6 (5–2) | JQH Arena (3,362) Springfield, MO |
| January 22, 2022 2:30 p.m., CBSSN | | at No. 22 Loyola–Chicago | W 79–69 | 15–6 (6–2) | Joseph J. Gentile Arena (4,105) Chicago, IL |
| January 25, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Indiana State | L 72–76 | 15–7 (6–3) | Hulman Center (3,011) Terre Haute, IN |
| January 29, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Evansville | W 72–58 | 16–7 (7–3) | JQH Arena (3,894) Springfield, MO |
| February 2, 2022 8:00 p.m., BSMW | | at Southern Illinois | W 69–54 | 17–7 (8–3) | Banterra Center (3,630) Carbondale, IL |
| February 6, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | Loyola–Chicago | L 62–71 | 17–8 (8–4) | JQH Arena (6,117) Springfield, MO |
| February 9, 2022 7:00 p.m., BSMW | | at Drake | W 66–62 | 18–8 (9–4) | Knapp Center (3,305) Des Moines, IA |
| February 12, 2022 3:00 p.m., BSMW | | Valparaiso | W 84–66 | 19–8 (10–4) | JQH Arena (4,314) Springfield, MO |
| February 15, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Indiana State | W 79–70 | 20–8 (11–4) | JQH Arena (3,522) Springfield, MO |
| February 20, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN2 | | at Northern Iowa | L 75–95 | 20–9 (11–5) | McLeod Center (3,353) Cedar Falls, IA |
| February 23, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Bradley | W 83–67 | 21–9 (12–5) | JQH Arena (1,831) Springfield, MO |
| February 26, 2022 4:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | at Evansville | W 88–79 | 22–9 (13–5) | Ford Center (3,696) Evansville, IN |
| MVC tournament ||||||
| March 4, 2022 6:00 p.m., MVC TV | (2) | vs. (7) Valparaiso Quarterfinals | W 67–58 | 23–9 | Enterprise Center St. Louis, MO |
| March 5, 2022 5:00 p.m., CBSSN | (2) | vs. (3) Drake Semifinals | L 78–79 $^{OT}$ | 23–10 | Enterprise Center (6,371) St. Louis, MO |
| NIT tournament ||||||
| March 15, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN | | at (1) Oklahoma First Round – Oklahoma Bracket | L 72–89 | 23–11 | Lloyd Noble Center (3,439) Norman, OK |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. ||||||
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