Game 12 - Missouri State Bears (6-5) vs.  UC Santa Barbara Gauchos (7-4)
Date and Time	Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024 | 1:02 p.m. (Central)
Location	Great Southern Bank Arena (11,000) | Springfield, Missouri
Tickets	Tickets | (417) 836-7678 | Great Southern Bank Arena Box Office
Promos & Specials	Holiday Game | Santa Visit | Holiday Sweater Theme | Kids Day | Promo Calendar
Fan Info	Digital Program | Gates Open at 12:00 p.m.
Radio	KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Art Hains, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live | The Varsity Network App
Television	ESPN+ (Tom Ladd, Jay Spoonhour) | Watch
Series	First Meeting
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Game Notes	Missouri State | UCSB | MVC Weekly Release | MSU Media Guide
Follow	Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Basketball Twitter | Instagram | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite
Bears Mobile App	App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Up Next	Next Game: Sunday, Dec. 29 at Evansville, 3:00 p.m. Next Home Game: Wednesday, Jan. 1 vs. Valparaiso, 7:00 p.m. | Tickets

Accessibility
Missouri State University is committed to providing an accessible and supportive environment for those with disabilities. To request reasonable disability accommodations, contact the Deputy Compliance Officer at (417) 836-6755 or DeputyComplianceOfficer@MissouriState.edu. 

The Ten Count

• Missouri State wraps a two-game home stand Sunday when the Bears host UC Santa Barbara at 1 p.m. It will be MSU's annual holiday-themed game, which includes a visit from Santa, holiday sweater theme and Kid's Day activities. It will mark the first-ever meeting between the Bears and Gauchos. 
• Missouri State head coach Cuonzo Martin is 48-12 (.800) all-time at Great Southern Bank Arena, including a 39-4 ledger over his last three seasons in Springfield (4-1 this year). Martin's Bears have won 24 consecutive non-conference home games, dating back to Dec. 22, 2008.
• Zaxton King (Fr., Lawrence, Kan.) has tallied multiple 3-pointers 9 times in 11 games this season, including 5 of the last 6 games. He has also scored in double figures 7 times, including 10 points vs. Lincoln on Wednesday.
• The Bears have eclipsed the top 50 in two of the KenPom "Four Factors," including 46th in offensive rebounding percentage (35.0) and 47th in FTA/FTA (40.5). Missouri State also charts high in miscellaneous components 3-point percentage (38.5) and steal percentage (7.7), ranking 29th and 35th, respectively.
• Michael Osei-Bonsu (Jr., Bolingbrook, Ill.) is coming off his second double-double of the season with game-highs 15 points and 11 rebounds in Wednesday's win over Lincoln. It also marked the first time he has led the Bears in scoring this season. KenPom rates Osei-Bonsu 50th among all Division I players in offensive rebound percentage (14.6), while he ranks 37th nationally (2nd in MVC) in offensive rebounds per game (3.27). He also ranks 58th nationally (2nd in MVC) in total rebounds per game (8.3).. 
• The defensive-minded Bears are averaging 9.4 steals per game which ranks 33rd nationally and 1st in the Missouri Valley, including 6 games with 10 or more steals. Likewise, MSU's 15.18 total takeaways per contest ranks 48th nationally and 2nd in the Missouri Valley Conference with at least 10 forced turnovers in every game. 
• Dez White (So., Jefferson City, Mo.) ranks 39th nationally in free throw percentage (.906), which is 3rd in the MVC. He is also No. 3 in The Valley in scoring average (17.6) with double-figure points in 11 of his last 12 games.  
• MoState has also out-rebounded 9 of its last 10 foes and 75-of-113 (.664) opponents under Cuonzo Martin.
• Junior standout Vincent Brady II (Indianapolis, Ind.) needs 1 three-pointer to reach 100 for his collegiate career (72 games). He is averaging 13.0 points per game over the last three games.
• The 49 points allowed in Wednesday's win over Lincoln marked the fewest points allowed by the Bears since surrendering just 35 points to Murray State in the opening-round of the MVC Tournament on March 7, 2024.
• Jalen Hampton (Jr., St. Louis) ranks 58th nationally and 2nd in the MVC in rebounds per game (8.3), while his 3 double-doubles is also No. 2 in The Valley. He heisted a career-best 4 steals in Wednesday's game vs. Lincoln.

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 270-203 (.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 67-46 (.593) in his fourth season (and second stint) at Missouri State University. Martin is 1-0 in his career against UCSB (while at Cal).
• Martin also boasts 56 college graduates during his career with stints at MoState, Tennessee (2011-14), California (2014-17) and Missouri (2017-22).
• A native of East St. Louis, Ill., Martin was a star player at Purdue from 1991-95 for coach Gene Keady and then played four years professionally. He was on the coaching staff at Purdue for eight years under Keady and Matt Painter before accepting his first head coaching position at MSU on March 26, 2008.
• 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.

The Series

• This is the first-ever meeting between the Bears and Gauchos