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Bears Set to Take on Washington State

December 11, 2024

By: MSU Athletics Communications
Game 10 - Missouri State Bears (5-4) at Washington State Cougars (8-2)
Date and Time Saturday, December 14, 2024 | 4:00 p.m. (Central)
Location Beasley Coliseum (11,671) | Pullman, Washington
Tickets WSUCougars.com | 1-800-GO-COUGS
Radio KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Corey Riggs, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live |
The Varsity Network App
Television ESPN+ (Ann Schatz, Matt Muelbach) | Watch
Series Washington State leads 1-0 | Last Meeting: WSU 89, MSU 84 (ot) (11/29/14) | Box Score
Follow Along Live Stats | Digital Program
Game Notes Missouri State | Washington State | MVC Notebook | MSU Media Guide 
Follow Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Basketball Twitter | Instagram | #GoBears | #ItAllCounts
Bears Mobile App App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next Wednesday, Dec. 18 vs. Lincoln (7 p.m.) | Great Southern Bank Arena | Tickets

The Ten Count
  • Missouri State returns to the road Saturday when the Bears square off with Washington State in Pullman, Wash. (4 p.m. Central / ESPN+) for MoState's final non-conference road game of the season. The Bears are 1-1 in true road games this season.  
  • Junior standout Vincent Brady II (Indianapolis, Ind.) needs 3 three-pointers to reach 100 for his collegiate career (70 games). This season, Brady is shooting a team-best 42.3 percent from 3-point range and is coming off a 15-point outing against Indiana State -- including three treys -- in his return to the Bears' rotation.
  • Dez White (So., Jefferson City, Mo.) is coming off a 30-point effort in Missouri State's conference opener against Indiana State. He was 9-for-18 from the field, 5-of-11 from three and 7-for-8 at the stripe with 5 assists and 2 steals. He is the 102nd Bear to score 30 points in a game and first since Alston Mason scored 36 vs. Drake (1/24/24), which was also the last time a Missouri State player had 5 threes in a game.
  • White is one of 7 Division I players to score in double-figures in every game this season (minimum of 9 games), while leading the MVC in scoring average (18.9) which ranks 44th nationally. 
  • The defensive-minded Bears have forced 10+ turnovers in every game this season and have averaged 15.22 takeaways per contest, which ranks 48th nationally and 1st in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Bears also rank 40th nationally -- and 1st in the MVC -- in steals per game (9.3).
  • Jalen Hampton (Jr., St. Louis) is 2nd in the MVC in total rebounds (75) and rebounds per game (8.3). Likewise, his 3.0 offensive boards per game ranks 3rd in The Valley. He ranks 56th nationally in rebounds per game.
  • Michael Osei-Bonsu (Jr., Bolingbrook, Ill.) ranks in the top-5 in the Missouri Valley in three key categories: 2nd in offensive rebounds per game (3.11), 3rd in total rebounds per game (7.7), and 5th in steals per game (1.89). He is averaging 8.5 rebounds over the past four contests and is coming off his first double-double (13 pts., 10 reb.) vs. Indiana State last Saturday.
  • After last year's 69-64 win at Saint Mary's (12/23/23), the Bears are looking to collect a road win against a WCC foe for the second straight season. The MoState win over the (KenPom) No. 48 Gaels was its best non-conference road victory since a win at No. 40 Missouri (11/18/98). 
  • Allen Udemadu (Sr., Lagos, Nigeria) turns 24 on Saturday. The transfer from Morgan State has played in 5 games this season and is tied for third on the squad in blocked shots (2).
  • The Bears snagged 11 steals against Indiana State last Saturday, marking the 5th time in 9 games they have recorded double-figure steals. MSU's 84 steals is already more than half of last season's 33-game total (142).

The Series
  • The Bears and Cougars have met just once previously -- 10 years ago in Anchorage, Alaska.
  • In the final seconds of regulation, MSU's Dorrian Williams drove to the basket for the potential game-winning shot at the buzzer, but his layup off the glass spun around the rim and came out to force overtime. Washington State capitalized on its good fortune and sent Missouri State home with an 89-84 defeat in extra time in the Great Alaska Shootout 4th/6th-place game on Nov. 29, 2014. Box Score
  • Williams finished with 13 points and game highs 6 rebounds and 8 assists for the Bears who led by 12 at the intermission and by 14 early in the second half. Camyn Boone added 19 points for Missouri State before fouling out, while Loomis Gerring and Marcus Marshall each scored 18, and Austin Ruder added 14. DaVonte Lacey led all scorers with 31 points, including 8 in overtime, to lead four Washington State players in double figures in the scoring column. The Cougars went 18-for-27 (.667) from the field after the intermission and shot a solid 83 percent at the foul line to keep themselves in the game. The Bears were in command for most of the game and got a dunk from Boone and pair of free throws from Williams to lead 49-35 with 18:38 to play before WSU's comeback.

Coach Cuonzo Martin
  • After an extensive national search, Missouri State University announced Cuonzo Martin as its men's basketball head coach on March 27, 2024. The man who orchestrated Missouri State's only MVC regular-season championship run during his first tenure in Springfield originally coached at Missouri State from 2008 to 2011.
  • Martin begins his second tenure at MoState with a 269-202 (.571) career record in 15 seasons as a Division I head coach with experience at MSU, Tennessee, California and Missouri. His teams have made nine postseason appearances in that span, including four trips to the NCAA Tournament, four appearances in the NIT, and a CIT title with the Bears in 2010. 
  • Coach Martin is also 66-45 (.595) in his fourth season (and second stint) at Missouri State University. Martin is 4-1 in his career against Washington State, all with Cal, including a 2-0 record in Pullman.
  • In Martin's first stint in Springfield (2008-11), he was named Missouri State's 16th head coach in time for the program's 100th anniversary season and its inaugural campaign at Great Southern Bank Arena. In his second season (2009-10), Martin guided MoState to a 24-12 overall ledger, a 19-2 home record, and an impressive run to the CIT Postseason Tournament title.
  • His third season at MSU (2010-11) was one of the program's most memorable, as the Bears finished 26-9 overall on the way to the program's first-ever MVC regular-season title with a 15-3 league record. The Bears fell to Indiana State in the finals of the MVC Tournament in St. Louis and capped an unforgettable campaign by advancing to the second round of the NIT. Martin was named 2011 MVC Coach of the Year and recipient of the Ben Jobe Award as the nation's top minority head coach. Over Martin's last two years at MoState, the Bears were 35-3 at home and did not lose a non-conference home game.
  • Martin has made three head coaching stops since leaving Springfield with stints at Tennessee (2011-14), California (2014-17) and Missouri (2017-22).
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