Skip To Main Content
Skip To Main Content

Missouri State

King vs Valpo

Bears Wrap Basketball Road Swing Wednesday at Valpo

February 17, 2025

By: MSU Athletics Communications
Game 28 - Missouri State Bears (9-18, 2-14 MVC) at Valparaiso Beacons (11-16, 4-12 MVC)
Date and Time Wednesday, February 19, 2025  | 7:02 p.m. (Central)
Location Athletics Recreation Center (ARC) (5,000) | Valparaiso, Indiana
Tickets ValpoAthletics.com | (219) 464-5233
Radio KWTO (FM 93.3 / AM 560) (Corey Riggs, Mike Keltner) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live |
The Varsity Network App
Television ESPN+ (Todd Ickow, Jamie Stangel) | Watch
Series Missouri State leads 28-11 |  Last Meeting:  Valpo 73, MSU 72 (1/1/25) | Box Score
Follow Along Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Valpo | 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 Saturday, Feb. 22 vs. Illinois State (7:00 p.m.), Senior Day | TICKETS

The Ten Count
  • Missouri State concludes a two-game road trip on Wednesday evening when the Bears travel to Valparaiso for a key Valley showdown against the Beacons (7 p.m., ESPN+). MoState is looking for its third February win while Valpo (9-6) is chasing its 10th home victory of the season, despite dropping four of its last five at the ARC.
  • Missouri State's defense posted elite numbers in last week's games, leading all Valley clubs in steals per game (8.4) and turnovers forced (14.5) for the week, while ranking 2nd in the MVC in scoring defense (58.5) and 3rd in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.222). Over the last month (9 games), the Bears are holding their opponents under 45 percent from the field (.448) and under 35 percent (.344) from beyond the arc while forcing 12.4 turnovers per game.
  • Michael Osei-Bonsu (Jr., Bolingbrook, Ill.) was MoState's top performer last week, averaging 18.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 3.0 blocks per game in a home win over Evansville and five-point loss at UIC. He has scored in double figures in 6 of the last 8 games and ranks 56th nationally in offensive rebounding percentage (13.8), according to KenPom.
  • Dez White (So., Jefferson City, Mo.) has logged 374 points this season and needs 8 points to break into MSU single-season top 100 scorers. He ranks 4th in the MVC FT% (.833), 3-point% (.373) and threes per game (2.54).
  • MoState has forced 13.44 turnovers per game this season which ranks 2nd in the MVC (behind Drake's 14.00). The Bears have also recorded 10 or more takeaways in 24-of-27 games this winter (6 games in a row), while averaging 7.6 steals (2nd in the MVC) with 7 games of 10 or more steals (11 at UIC on Sunday).
  • In Sunday's game at UIC, Zaxton King (Fr., Lawrence, Kan.) became just the 4th MSU freshman to make 50 three-pointers in a season. His 257 points this season ranks 11th on the school's freshman scoring list, just 10 points behind Isiaih Mosley (2019-20) for a spot in the top 10. 
  • Vincent Brady II (Jr., Indianapolis, Ind.) needs 42 points to reach 1,000 for his career (88 games)  and 2 double-figure scoring games for 50. His 5 steals last week were the 2nd-most in The Valley in that span.
  • Over the last month (9 games), the Bears are shooting .509 as a team, including .386 from three.
  • Over his last 5 appearances, Jalen Hampton (Jr., St. Louis, Mo.) is shooting 24-of-29 (.828) from the field while averaging 10.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game.
  • Chase Martin (Sr., Columbia, Mo.) needs 16 points to reach 200 for his career (54 games), while Logan Epes (Jr., Garland, Texas) is 12 points from 100 for his career (45 games). Martin is coming off a 9-point outing at UIC.
The Series
  • MoState leads the all-time series with Valpo, 28-11, including an 11-6 ledger in Springfield (5-4 at Great Southern Bank Arena), 13-4 record at Valpo, and 4-1 mark at neutral sites. 
  • Earlier this season in Springfield (1/1/25), Missouri State made 13 consecutive field goals during a key stretch in the second half, but came up short in crunch time in a heart-breaking 73-72 New-Year's Day loss to visiting Valparaiso. Vincent Brady II paced MoState with 19 points on 8-of-9 field goals and 3 steals, while Michael Osei-Bonsu added 15 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Valparaiso had four players score in double figures, including a game-high 22 points from Cooper Schwieger, while Tyler Schmidt and All Wright scored 14 apiece. After falling behind 46-38 with 15:54 to go, the Bears began chipping away, turning to Brady and Osei-Bonsu to start a run of 13 consecutive made shots over the span of the next 11 minutes, 32 seconds. But late in the game and down by two, Dez White missed a potential game-winning three, but the offensive rebound found its way to Zaxton King who was fouled on a three. King split his first two free throws but missed the decisive third attempt to let the Beacons off the hook. Box Score
  • Last season at the ARC (1/27/24), Alston Mason tallied 22 points, and Donovan Clay added 18 more in his return to his previous school to lift Missouri State to an 81-70 road win. The Bears also got help from Cesare Edwards, who notched his first career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Benson added 11 points and 9 rebounds. The Bears held Valpo to 35.5 percent from the field and used a 26-5 run to early in the second half to gain an 18-point advantage with just over eight minutes to play. Darius DeAveiro led Valpo with 20 points, while Jahari Williamson scored 19. 
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 has a 273-216 (.558) 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 70-59 (.543) in his fourth season (and second stint) at Missouri State University. Martin is 0-2 all-time against Valpo (at Missouri State).
  • 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).
Print Friendly Version

Sponsors