Game 26 - Missouri State Bears (8-17, 1-13 MVC) vs.  Evansville Purple Aces (9-16, 6-8 MVC)
Date and Time	Wednesday, February 12, 2025 | 7:02 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	Red Panda Halftime Performance | Promo Calendar
Fan Info	Digital Program | Gates Open at 6:00 p.m.
Radio	KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Art Hains, Corey Riggs, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live | The Varsity Network App
Television	ESPN+ (Casey Roehl, Don West) | Watch
Series	Missouri State leads 45-37 | Last Meeting:  UE 57, MSU 40 (12/29/24) | Box Score
Live Stats	StatBroadcast
Game Notes	Missouri State | Evansville | MVC Weekly 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	Next Game: Sunday, Feb. 16 at UIC, 2:00 p.m. Next Home Game: Saturday, Feb. 22 vs. Illinois State, 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 returns to Great Southern Bank Arena on Wednesday looking to avenge a December loss to Evansville with a 7 p.m. rematch at Great Southern Bank Arena. MoState has won six of the last seven meetings in the series vs. UE and 10 of the last 12. Wednesday's game will also feature a special halftime performance from Red Panda, who has appeared on America's Got Talent and is known as "the best halftime act in basketball." 
• Jalen Hampton (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) is coming off a season-high 20 points at Belmont in which he was 9-for-9 from the field -- the second-best single-game shooting effort in school history behind Lou Shepherd's 10-for-10 game against NW Missouri in 1967. It also marked Hampton's first game leading the Bears in scoring. In two games last week, Hampton was a league-best 14-of-16 (.875) from the field. He needs 5 rebounds for 400 in his career (57 games). 
• Missouri State ranks 69th nationally (6th in MVC) in 3-point FG percentage (.365) and needs 17 threes to reach 200 for the eighth time in nine seasons. 
• Over the last 7 games, the Bears are shooting 51.6 percent from the field and holding opponents to a combined 45.9 percent. MoState is also making 40.9 percent from three in that span.
• Dez White (So., Jefferson City, Mo.) is averaging a team-best 15.1 points per game at home this season. He currently ranks 3rd in the MVC in 3-pt pct. (.383); 4th in 3-pointers per game (2.67); 4th in FT percentage (.841); 6th in minutes (34:28); and 7th in scoring (15.0) average.
• Missouri State has forced 13.36 turnovers per game this season which ranks 2nd in the MVC (behind Drake's 14.08). The Bears have also recorded 10 or more takeaways in 22-of-25 games this winter (four games in a row), while averaging 7.6 steals per game (2nd-best in the MVC) for the campaign.
• Wesley Oba (Sr., Manchester, England) needs 2 rebounds for 350 in his career and 14 points for 350 (71 games).
• Michael Osei-Bonsu (Jr., Bolingbrook, Ill.) leads the MVC in offensive rebounds per game (3.00). He also ranks 2nd in The Valley in total rebounds (181), 3rd in total rebounds per game (7.2) and 3rd in double-doubles (4).
• Zaxton King (Fr., Lawrence, Kan.) has 47 threes this season which ranks 4th all-time among MSU freshman shooters, while his 244 points ranks 12th among MSU freshmen. He is 9 points behind Chuck Williams (1967-68) for 11th and 23 points behind Isiaih Mosley (2019-20) to break into the program's all-time top 10. 
• Missouri State has matched or out-rebounded 15-of-25 opponents this year, including a +10 rebounding margin at Belmont on Saturday. The Bears were +6 in their previous matchup against Evansville in December.
• Vincent Brady II (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind.) needs 1 steal for 100 in his career (86 games).

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 272-215 (.559) 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 69-58 (.543) in his fourth season (and second stint) at Missouri State University. Martin is 5-3 all-time against Evansville (all at MoState).
• 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

• The series between the Bears and Aces is a rich one that dates back to March 13, 1959 when Evansville beat MSU in the championship game of the NCAA Division II Tournament. MSU now leads the series, 45-37, with Missouri State posting a 25-11 record at home (11-4 at GSB Arena), a 16-24 ledger in Evansville and 4-2 mark at neutral sites.   
• Earlier this season in Evansville (12/29/24), Michael Osei-Bonsu registered his third double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds on his birthday, but the Bears fell to Evansville, 57-40, in the Valley opener. The Bears also got 12 points from Dez White, including three treys. Evansville was led by Cameron Haffner's 13 points, while Joshua Hughes tacked on 11 points and 9 rebounds. The Bears trailed by three at the half and quickly knotted the score on a 3-pointer from Zaxton King coming out of the break. With less than 12 minutes to go, a double-technical sparked a 6-0 outburst from the home side to extend Evansville's lead to double digits for the first time, 40-30, but the Aces ended the game on a 17-4 run, including three triples, to put things out of reach for the Bears. The Bears shot .259 (14-of-54) from the field, their lowest since 2015. | Box Score
• Last season in Springfield (11/29/23), Chance Moore scored a career-high 28 points and knocked down five 3-pointers to help lift Missouri State to a 90-78 win. Moore also snagged 8 rebounds and went 7-for-7 at the line to lead four MoState players in double figures. The Bears also got 20 points from Matthew Lee, while Donovan Clay scored 19, and N.J. Benson tallied 16 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Lee also dished out 8 assists. Evansville was led by Chuck Bailey's 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting, while Ben Humrichous added 14 points behind a pair of 3-pointers for the visitors.