Missouri State

GREG BELL
Basketball, 1985-87
Inducted February 12, 2005

Greg Bell transferred to Missouri State University in 1985 from Southeastern (Iowa) Community College and was a starting forward on the first two MSU basketball teams to reach Division I postseason play. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Bell was a regular for the Bears of coach Charlie Spoonhour as MSU went 24-8 in 1985-86 and 28-6 the following season. The 1986 Bears finished second in the Mid-Continent Conference, and were selected to play in the National Invitation Tournament. Missouri State defeated Pittsburgh and Marquette in the first two rounds and lost a one-point decision at Florida in a bid to go to the NIT semifinals at Madison Square Garden. The following year, the Bears ran through the AMCU with a 13-1 conference record, won the league tournament, and drew the first-ever MSU selection into NCAA play. The Bears went to the Southeast Regional in Atlanta, Ga., as a 13th seed and knocked off Clemson, 65-60, before falling to Kansas, 67-63. SMS took a 15-game winning streak into the KU game and finished the season with an MSU all-time victory mark in the 28-6 campaign. Starting with a 26-point, 13-rebound effort in a home win over Arkansas, Bell scored in double figures 22 times as a junior as he hit .547 from the field while averaging 12.8 points and a team-best 5.8 rebounds a game. He was on the AMCU All-Newcomer team. As a senior he averaged 10.1 points and 7.0 rebounds and hiked his field goal accuracy figure to .570. He was SMS Coors Player of the Week five times in two years and was a vital part of the MSU 24th ranking in the nation in the final USA TODAY/CNN season poll. Bell finished with 752 points, 424 rebounds and a .557 field goal percentage in 66 MSU games.