Basketball Preview 2022-23

MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY

THE STANDARD BASKETBALL PREVIEW 2022-23

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Lillian Durr editor-in-chief

Casey Loving editor

Makayla Malachowski editor

Jenna Murray editor

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Makayla Strickland editor

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Nicole Walker sports reporter

O’Shayla Muldrow sports reporter

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Professional staff

Jack Dimond faculty adviser

NCAA tournament in her first season at Missouri State? Will Men’s head coach Dana Ford’s new roster have the ability to get over their Arch Madness hump?

Over the last two weeks, my staff and I created this preview for you all to enjoy and formulate predictions for the 2022-23 season.

Some things you can expect to see within these pages are team previews (pages 6 and 12), staff predictions for MVC rankings (page 9), a look at the new leadership for the Lady Bears (page 5) and much more basketball content that we worked hard to produce!

ON THE COVER

Pictured, senior guards Donovan Clay and Sydney Wilson during the 2021-22 season.

Oh, it’s the most wonderful time of the year, Time for basketball, the most fun and unpredictable months out of the year! There has been a great deal of change since the end of the 2021-22 season, including new Lady Bears head coach Beth Cunningham, 14 new Bears on the men’s team, and the transfer of Isiaih Mosely to Mizzou after his withdrawal from the NBA draft.

Can Cunningham lead the Lady Bears back to the

By the time you’re reading this, the season will be in full swing and regularly scheduled Missouri State Basketball content will start flowing from us so keep your eyes on the website at the-standard.org/sports, as well as on my Twitter at @m_strickland28 or as the sporks desk as a whole at @Standard_Sports.

- Makayla Strickland, Sports Editor

BASKETBALL PREVIEW

is published by The Standard, Missouri State University’s student-produced newspaper. The university has not approved and is not responsible for its content, which is produced and edited by the students on The Standard staff.

Back for more Three Bears return to play under Ford

MAKAYLA STRICKLAND Sports Editor D@m_strickland28

Between the end of the 2021-22 season and September, there were massive chang es to the 22-23 roster, including the gradu ation of forward Gaige Prim and the trans fer of guard Isiaih Mosley to the University of Missouri. Mosley’s transfer came in June after his withdrawal from the NBA draft.

The men’s team returns seniors Donovan Clay and Dawson Carper along with guard Raphe Ayres, a redshirt sophomore. Last season, the team had Clay and Carper in volved, but Ayres saw little action due to his early season election to redshirt.

Clay transferred last season from Val paraiso. During the season, he started all 34 games averaging 8.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game.

Carper made his decision to stay at Mis souri State based on the location and the relationships he has made as a Bear. Last season, Carper was averaging 6.2 minutes, 1.6 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.

“I really like the program,” Carper said. “I feel like it was just still a good fit for me to stay.”

Ayres is in a position to play more min utes with this revamped roster and is eager

to see what this year has in store.

“I just want to be everything I can be for this team. However that might come about, I’m excited to do that,” Ayres said. “Once I’m put in that position to succeed and help the team as much as possible, I’ll continue to grow in that role, and I think the sky’s the limit.”

The Bears total number of newcomer additions for the 2022-23 season is 14, six of which are freshmen.

With the majority of the roster being new, the returner Bears have had to adjust and create new relationships with their team mates.

“Honestly, we are all pretty close now,” Carper said. “We were here all June and July. We hung out all the time.”

Ayres expressed his excitement about mentoring the freshmen players.

“Pretty much the whole team is new,” Ayres said. “But for the freshman, seeing them begin their progression and how quick ly people grow and change just with a short amount of time in college is a pretty special thing.”

The Bears got some floor time on Nov. 5 during their exhibition game against New man University, winning 78-58. Their first regular season match will be on Nov. 9 in Great Southern Bank Arena at 7 p.m. against Missouri Science and Technology Univer sity.

Redshirt sophomore guard Raphe Ayres plays defense against a Newman play er during the Bears exhibition game on Nov. 5 at Great Southern Bank Arena

File photos/THE STANDARD

Senior Donovan Clay shoots over his defender to score during a Spring 2022 game. The Missouri State Bears won 83-67 against the Bradley Braves.

Lady Bear leaders

MAKAYLA STRICKLAND Sports Editor

D@m_strickland28

Leadership can be displayed in many different ways.

For instance, last season, former Lady Bears Abby Hipp and Jasmine Franklin both suffered season-ending knee injuries. This took their leadership position from the floor to the bench. Former Lady Bear Brice Calip also helped lead the team with Hipp and Franklin and is now playing professionally overseas for the Switzerland Helios.

Who can fans expect to lead the Lady Bears now? Leading them to better themselves is new head coach Beth Cunningham, who has over 20 years of Division I coaching experience as well as WNBA playing time under her belt.

“I can’t believe it’s been seven, eight months (since arriving at Mis-

souri State), which seems crazy to think of it like that,” Cunningham said. “In some ways, it feels like it was yesterday since my introductory press conference.”

Cunningham said a good word to describe the team would be “evolving.” During the 30 practices before the season starts, injuries tend to arise, forcing the coaching staff to be flexible and create lineups that otherwise would not have existed.

Senior guard Sydney Wilson is currently injured but is expected to be healthy by the first game. Cunningham is expecting Wilson and senior guard Aniya Thomas to lead the team on and off the court due to their experience.

“Everyone is on the younger side,” Wilson said. “I’m excited because they’ll get to grow as a person and I get to watch them develop.”

This season, there are five returners, four transfers and three freshmen. Wilson said that all three of the fresh-

man players add something essential to the team but Jade Masogayo was a young leader in the making.

“Very lengthy, athletic and crazy,” Wilson said of Masogayo.

Masogayo averaged 13.5 points and 9.7 rebounds per game during high school and was named her district’s Defensive Player of the Year in her junior and senior years.

Through working with the team, Wilson said she has no doubt that the Lady Bears will make another appearance in the NCAA tournament.

“I want all of my younger kids to experience that because not a lot of people do,” Wilson said.

The Lady Bears won their exhibition match on Nov. 2 against Missouri University of Science and Technology, 58-44. Regular season play began on Nov. 7 at 6 p.m. in Great Southern Bank Arena. Admission to all Lady Bears games at Great Southern Bank Arena is free to students with a Bear Pass I.D.

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Senior guard Sydney Wilson beats her defender to the basket during a game at Great Southern Bank Arena.

Photo from MSU Creative Services

Lady Bears ranked sixth in preseason MVC Poll, looking to finish higher

NICOLE WALKER Sports Reporter

D@NicoleDanaeWal1

The Missouri State Lady Bears are back and under a new coaching staff with new faces and a few returners on the team. This season will have a different look, but the goal to win a national championship remains.

Beth Cunningham was named the Lady Bears new head coach in March. Since her introduction, Missouri State has brought in multiple transfers and three freshmen com mits.

Some of the new faces include junior guard Capria Brown, sophomore forward Kennedy Taylor, graduate transfer Aniya Thomas and sophomore forward Indya Green, who is a Springfield native.

The Lady Bears were picked to finish sixth in the MVC Preseason Poll, Cunningham is confident in the team this year despite their ranking and the players are not letting that affect them going into the season.

“I think with them placing us sixth in the MVC poll, we should have a chip on our shoulder,” sophomore guard Isabelle Delar ue said. “It’s a chance for us to prove them wrong and we can finish higher than that and do better than that this year.”

“There aren’t a lot of things you can guar antee, but I guarantee we will be better by the end of the year than we are by the begin ning,” said Cunningham.

Delarue is one of just five returners from last year’s squad. The other returners include sophomore guard Taylor Woodhouse, senior forward Ifunanya Nwachukwu, junior guard Paige Rocca and veteran senior guard Sydney Wilson.

Wilson is the longest tenured player for Missouri State, and with this being her last season with the Lady Bears, she says she’s feeling good headed into the season.

“We have a lot of new people, and every one’s younger. I’m excited because they’ll get to grow and I get to watch them develop.” said Wilson.

The Lady Bears will opened their season at home against in-state rivals Mizzou on Nov. 7 at 6:00 p.m. at Great Southern Bank Arena. Missouri State will play two more home games before they head off to Las Ve gas for a two-game invitational on Nov. 25 and 26.

The Lady Bears’ first conference game

File photo/THE STANDARD

Ifunanya Nwachukwu grabs and shoots a rebound for another two points during the second half of the game in Febru ary 2022. The Lady Bears won 66-57 against the UNI Panthers.

will be on Dec. 29 at Indiana State. Missou ri State will also have some of their games streaming on ESPN3/ESPN+ this season.

If the Lady Bears qualify for the MVC Tournament, the games will be held in Mo line, Illinois. If successful, Missouri State

will be inserted into the NCAA tournament in March.

Women’s 2022-23 Basketball Schedule

Nov. 15 Vs. Saint Louis 6 p.m.

Nov. 17 Vs. Oklahoma State 6 p.m.

Nov. 25 Vs. UTSA (Neutral) 3:15 p.m.

Nov. 26 Vs. Middle Tennessee (Neutral) 3:15 p.m.

Dec. 4 @ Toledo 12 p.m.

Dec. 9 @ TCU 6 p.m.

Dec. 17 Vs. UT Martin 1 p.m.

Dec. 21 Vs. Little Rock 1 p.m.

Dec. 29 @ Indiana State (MVC) 3 p.m.

Dec. 31 @ Evansville (MVC) 1 p.m.

Jan. 5 Vs. Illinois State (MVC) 6 p.m.

Jan. 7 Vs. Bradley (MVC) 1 p.m.

Jan. 11 Vs. Southern Illinois (MVC) 6 p.m.

Jan. 14 @ Valparaiso (MVC) 1 p.m.

Jan. 20 @ Belmont (MVC) 6:30 p.m.

Jan. 22 @ Murray State (MVC) 2 p.m.

Jan. 26 Vs. UNI (MVC) 6 p.m.

Jan. 28 Vs. Drake (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 1 @ Southern Illinois (MVC) 6 p.m.

Feb. 4 Vs. UIC (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 10 @ Bradley (MVC) 7 p.m.

Feb. 12 @ Illinois State (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 17 Vs. Murray State (MVC) 6 p.m.

Feb. 19 Vs. Belmont (MVC) 2 p.m.

Feb. 23 Vs. Evansville (MVC) 6 p.m.

Feb. 25 Vs. Indiana State (MVC) 1 p.m.

Mar. 2 @ Drake (MVC) 6 p.m.

Mar. 4 @ UNI (MVC) 2 p.m.

March 9-12 MVC Tournament (Moline, Illinois) TBA

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NEW BEAR, SAME GOALS

JADE MORROW

Sports Reporter D@JadeMorrow15

The Missouri State Women’s Basketball team prepared for the new season with a near ly entirely new group of players and a new coaching staff. New head coach Beth Cunning ham has seen and has been pleased by the amount of new growth day to day.

Cunningham has been able to establish a strong bond with the team consisting of both newcomers and returners while being new to the team herself. She and the team have been able to accomplish a lot in a short period of time.

Last year, the Lady Bears fell short for the MVC Championship, but still made an appear ance in the NCAA against Florida State and Ohio State. The team, as of October 18th, were ranked 6th in the MVC preseason poll.

With where the Lady Bears were ranked, Cunningham has seen a broad glimpse of the team over the past few months, from freshman players, transfers and returners that does not correlate with the MVC preseason poll results.

“Regardless of what people think and how the chips may fall, I always go in just trying to be the best that we can possibly be,” Cunning ham said. All preseason polls are what people think about you right now and to be honest, I don’t think people know much about us,”

From the months of conditioning gaining closer to the beginning of the season, Cunning ham has seen how the team has been able to adapt with each other and with the new setting revolving around being a Lady Bear.

Cunningham truly wants to be able to do whatever it may be to make her team feel com fortable individually and as a team, during conditioning and games.

“I’ve been really pleased with how they’ve been able to pick it up, we’ll certainly have to adjust and adapt as games go,” Cunningham said. “We’ll still be trying to figure out our identity from game to game as we’re evolving. I’m not hesitant to be creative and do some other things. Whatever we need to do to put our kids in the best situation possible is what we’ll do.”

From the outcome of the MVC preseason poll, junior guard Paige Rocca doesn’t think their preseason ranking defines who they are as a team and as individuals on the paint and believes that the unexpected is to come.

“You can’t really blame anybody for that,” Rocca said. “We have a new coaching staff, half of our team is new, but I think we’re going to surprise a lot of people. “We have a lot of confidence in ourselves and I think it’s going to be a good year.”

The team, including senior guard Sydney Wilson, might have been unpleased with the

initial outcome of the preseason poll, but her and the team have intentions on taking that result and incorporating it into their perfor mance on the court to change voters vote.

“It adds more fuel to the fire,” Wilson said. “They’re going to doubt us, so we’re going to prove them wrong. We’re just going to go into every single game and kick a**.”

The Lady Bears and Cunningham have all been able to use all the time they have togeth er, on and off the court, to get used to the change for the better, resulting in the current relation ship the overall team has been able to construct and bring into the upcoming season.

“I think they’re confident, I don’t want their confidence to be shaken when things don’t go perfectly, individually or as a team,” Cunning ham said. “I’m anxious to play, but if I feel like I’m prepared, I’m not nervous.”

The Lady Bears played their first game of the season against the University of Missouri at home on Monday, Nov. 7 at 6:00 p.m.

LADY BEARS GET NEW LOOK FOR

O’SHAYLA MULDROW Sports Reporter D@muldrow_o

2022-23 SEASON

The Lady Bears received new jerseys this year, and the players have already shown their gratitude towards their new attire.

“It makes me feel really welcomed, I love the new jerseys,” said junior transfer from Day ton, Capria Brown.” It’s definitely different from when I was at Dayton, but these are real ly nice, and I love them.”

Sophomore guard Isabelle Delarue said, “It means a lot, I mean, I think these are our best jerseys, they are really comfortable and soft, and I always liked the white uniforms, so now I’m super excited to wear these.”

If the Lady Bears had to choose what to wear at the Great Southern Bank Arena, under the bright lights the new white jersey would make a grand appearance every game day.

“I actually love these,” said senior guard Sydney Wilson. “The material is not heavy and makes you feel good. When you feel good, you play good.”

Senior and transfer guard Aniya Thomas said, “I mean it’s good, I feel good, look good, play good, and that’s all that matters.”

Sophomore forward Indya Green said, “They feel nice, compared to the other ones. These are probably the best ones; they are very airy.”

-Sydney Wilson Senior Guard

Taylor Woodhouse, a sophomore, said that getting new jerseys was a good thing for the team. Watch the Lady Bears in their new threads this season!

Senior guard Sydney Wilson shoots for three while the Lady Bears bench celebrates behind her.

The 2022-2023 Lady Bears basketball team smiles for the team photo during their 2022 Media Day.

“The material is not heavy and makes you feel good. When you feel good, you play good.”

Photo from MSU Creative Services

Valley Student Writers: Men’s Preseason Poll, All-Conference teams and of the Year

• Makayla Strickland, Sports Editor, The Standard, @m_ strickland28

• Jonathan Michel, CoEditor, The Bradley Scout @jondog237

• Matt Lucas, CoEditor, The Bradley Scout, @Matt_ Lucas3

• Mason Klemm, Co Editor The Bradley Scout. @nosam_ klemm

• Scotty Prerost, Sports Editor, The Illinois State Vidette, @Scotty_Prerost

• Reid Watkins, The Illinois State Vidette, @RWatkinsSports

• David Warrington, Sports Editor, The Northern Iowan, @ DWarr1314 • A.J. Wuest, Sports Editor, Belmont Vision, @ Atlantafan25

Fresh faces enter the Bear Cave

JADE MORROW Sports Reporter D@JadeMorrow15

Missouri State University’s Men’s Basketball team is welcoming six freshmen to the team. With the team having new members, head coach Dana Ford is looking forward to the season and what they can bring to the court.

The team has six newcomers; Kanon Gipson, Damien Mayo Jr., Jonathan Dunn, Tommy Pin egar, David Hill and N.J. Benson along with re turners and transfers. The team has put in a lot of work towards practice over the past few months.

Ford has seen a few pleasant surprises. One surprise is the competitiveness and the impact of winning from freshman guard, Damien Mayo.

Along with Mayo, transfer sophomore guard from the University of Oklahoma Alston Mason has shown Ford that he has good playmaking abilities transitioning to Missouri State.

Ford goes further in-depth on how the team overall has made some improvements and adjust ments along the pre-season, though there are a few disappointments in some areas from Ford’s point of view.

“We’re not a very physical team at the moment, not a very tough team.” Ford said. “I would not

say from a defensive rebounding standpoint we look like a Valley team yet, but we’re going to get there.”

Granted with the new faces, to Ford, it is a different off-season than the previous. There’s a lot more teaching to be done and more options for the team to do, and he is very pleased with the amount of leadership that has been casted from both returners and transfers.

Along with the returners, transfers have been able to be a helping hand towards the freshman and guide them in order for all of them to have the taste of the Valley.

Transfer sophomore guard Alston Mason im mediately saw that the team wants to win and get over the bumps in the road. After some time, he’s seen huge growth in the team’s chemistry on and off the court and believes that he and the team will be able to win together.

“We’ve come so far from when we first came in to now understanding how to play together, understanding where each other are on the floor,” Mason said. “I feel like we’ve established a lot more cohesiveness to win more games. We’re still working on it, but we’re at a good point to where we understand who we are and where we’re trying to get to.”

Returners, such as sophomore guard Raphe Ayres, view the freshmen’s first year as a journey

to see who you are as an individual. They’re able to give the freshmen advice, support them, and try to lead them in the right direction while also letting them figure out who they are and become the best version of themselves.

“For the freshmen, seeing them start their progression and how quickly they grow and change with the short amount of time in college I think is a very special thing,” Ayres said. “I think that we have a good group of freshmen and trans fers too that have caught on and are doing a good job of learning how it goes here.”

From the returners to the transfers to the fresh men, each individual is looking forward to this season, as well as Ford. He trusts his staff in the midst of the game and knows that trust and prov ing winners is what they have in their office.

There are mistakes that will need fixing, but he sees that the team understands what it takes to get to where they want to be during and by the end of the season.

“Our guys want to win, they understand what it takes to win,” Ford said. “They’ve got to believe, they’ve got to want to be a part of it and you’ve got to be selling a good product and we feel like we are. This group is a fun group to coach, it really is.”

The Bears will have their first game at home against Missouri S&T on Nov. 9 at 7 p.m.

Freshman guards Kanon Gipson and David Hill gather for a timeout during the Nov. 5 scrimmage against New man.

Photo by Patrick Walden Q@patsvisionary

Men’s Basketball in a transfer-heavy rebuild

MAKAYLA STRICKLAND Sports Editor D@m_strickland28

Last year, the Missouri State Men’s basketball finished their season 23-11 and finished second in the Missouri Valley Con ference. Regular season play was ended during Arch Madness by Drake University for the second year in a row, this time by 1 point.

This season, the Bears will return with only three familiar faces and one starter: Donovan Clay, Dawson Carper and Raphe Ayres, who elected to redshirt last year.

Clay was a starting guard/forward for the Bears last year, starting all 34 games in his first year on the team. He also av eraged 8.4 points and 6.1 rebounds per game, getting himself named to the Missouri Valley Conference All-Defensive team.

The starting five have yet to be elected for the season, but head coach Dana Ford says he has a few combinations of ideas.

Some new players that Ford could implement into the start ing rotation include senior guard Matthew Lee, sophomore guard Alston Mason or any of the 14 fresh faces the crowd will see this year.

“This team has a lot of bodies,” Ford said. “Hopefully we

are going to utilize those in playing in a different way than we have in the last couple of years.”

Lee started 25 of 30 games last season for the St. Peter’s Peacocks, the Cinderella story of a team who made it to the Elite Eight of the 2022 NCAA March Madness tournament. He averaged 6.8 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.

“(Lee) is just a winner,” Ford said. “He makes big shots and you can tell he’s been a part of a program that has won.”

Mason is a transfer from the University of Oklahoma who had 18 in-game appearances for the Sooners. In his time at Oklahoma, he only averaged 1.4 points, 0.4 rebounds and 0.2 assists, but Ford said he has “been surprised with the playmak ing ability for others.”

“Everyone that has come in wants to win,” Mason said. “The biggest thing to figure out is how to win together.”

In Ford’s four years as head coach, he described this year’s team as more balanced and similar to his first-year team. “Those other teams have been offensively dominated by two guys,” Ford said. “Anyone on our roster could lead us in scoring.”

Though the roster is loaded with talent, Ford expressed some concerns about the physicality of the team.

“I would not say from a defensive and rebounding standpoint that we are a Valley team yet,” Ford said. “But, we are going to get there.”

Within the last year, the MVC has added three new teams. These teams include the University of Illinois-Chicago Flames, Belmont University Bruins and the Murray State University Racers.

On Nov. 30, the Bears will travel to UIC for the first time. In a press release from September, UIC head men’s basketball coach Luke Yaklich said, “We are incredibly excited about our inaugural season in the Missouri Valley Conference and look forward to competing against the toughest teams in the country.”

The Bears and Bruins will meet for the first time on Jan. 7, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. Belmont has won 77 games since the 2019-20 season which ranks them fifth nationally in wins. The four other teams include Gonzaga, Kansas, Houston and Baylor.

At the end of January, the Racers and Bears will have their first meeting in Murray, Kentucky on the 28th. This meeting could have deeper meanings to the Racers and one Bear, Mat thew Lee. Lee helped lead his former team to a win over Mur ray State in the NCAA tournament this year.

The Bears’ season began with an exhibition match on Nov. 5 against Newman University. Regular season play will begin at 7 p.m. on Nov. 9 against Missouri Science and Technology University at Great Southern Bank Arena.

Donovan Clay scans the court for an open teammate during Arch Madness 2022. Missouri State Bears won 67-58 against the Valparaiso Beacons.

File photo/THE STANDARD

Men’s 2022-23 Basketball Schedule

Nov. 9 Vs. Missouri S&T 7 p.m.

Nov. 16 @Brigham Young 8 p.m.

Nov. 19 Vs. Middle Tennessee 2 p.m.

Nov. 25 Vs. UNC Wilmington (Neutral) 1 p.m.

Nov. 26 Vs. TBA TBA

Nov. 30 @UIC (MVC) 7 p.m.

Dec. 3 Vs. Bradley (MVC) 7 p.m.

Dec. 7 @ St. Mary’s 9 p.m.

Dec. 10 Vs. Purdue Fort Wayne 7 p.m.

Dec. 16 @ Oral Roberts 7 p.m.

Dec. 18 Vs. Central Michigan 5 p.m.

Dec. 22 Vs. Sam Houston 7 p.m.

Dec. 28 @ Northern Iowa (MVC) 7 p.m.

Jan. 1 Vs. Drake (MVC) 2 p.m.

Jan. 4 Vs. Evansville (MVC) 7 p.m.

Jan. 7 @ Belmont (MVC) 4 p.m.

Jan. 11 @ Illinois State (MVC) 7 p.m.

Jan. 15 Vs. Indiana State (MVC) 2 p.m.

Jan. 18 @ Drake (MVC) 7 p.m.

Jan. 21 Vs. Southern Illinois (MVC) 3 p.m.

Jan. 24 Vs. UIC (MVC) 7 p.m.

Jan. 28 @ Murray State (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 1 Vs. Valparaiso (MVC) 7 p.m.

Feb. 5 @Southern Illinois (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 8 Vs. Belmont (MVC) 6 p.m.

Feb. 12 @ Evansville (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 15 @ Bradley (MVC) 1 p.m.

Feb. 18 Vs. Northern Iowa (MVC) 3 p.m.

Feb. 21 Vs. Murray State (MVC) 6 p.m.

Feb. 26 @ Indiana State (MVC) 12 p.m. March 2-5 MVC Tournament (St. Louis, Missouri) TBA

Basketball Bears in the community

O’SHAYLA MULDROW Sports Reporter D@muldrow_o

Being involved in the community reflects who Missouri State University’s players are on and off the court. Leadership and skill growth impact the entire team by giving the players room to rise to the occasion and assist others. To put this ideas into action, every week during this summer the MSU men’s basketball team performed community service acts.

Head coach Dana Ford said that he tells his players they need to have appreciation for what they get to do every day and that’s for everyone.

The players spoke on how community service helped them become the players they tend to be this upcoming season, while acknowledging how Coach Dana Ford emphasize the importance of It all.

“Community service has helped me become more of a man, like develop more into a person instead of just like doing it just to say I did it,” said sophomore guard Alston Mason.” Coach Ford has talked about understanding why you are doing something and what you’re doing it for. And that just kind of made me look at stuff a lot different.”

“I really appreciate coach and his ability to actually get us out to those type of things, “sophomore guard/forward James Graham III said, “(Coach Ford) really preaches to us being a better person, being a better man off the court, so being out in the community is something I pride myself on.”

With the heavy presence in the community from the men’s team. The players have children that work closely with them and speak to them on a regular basis. If the children come to a game the players plan to invite them back, they will have them back to their locker room beforehand.

“We do a lot of summer camps, majority of the kids that support our team would come here over the summer and most of the guys are in town for workouts,” said junior guard Raphe Ayres. “We’ll be camp counselors and we can put a smile on the kids face and try to be the best role model that we can be for them.”

The community service projects that the men’s basketball team participated in included reading to students at the Greenwood Laboratory School. Working with the organization Good Dads, and participating in Bears, Badges & kids, canned food drives.

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Redshirt sophomore Raphe Ayres joins his new teammates on the bench during the Bears exhibition match on Nov. 5 at Great Southern Bank Arena.

Photo by Patrick Walden Q@patsvisionary

HOMETOWN HEROES

NICOLE WALKER Sports Reporter

@NicoleDanaeWal1

Missouri State University’s Men’s basketball and the Lady Bears will have a different look going into the 2022-2023 season. A majority of both teams’ rosters have either transferred or graduated, but there are still some familiar faces that have stuck around. The Lady Bears have five returners and the men’s team has three; both teams also have five local players.

Sophomore forward Indya Green is from Springfield and played high school basketball at Kickapoo High School. Several locals expected Green to commit to Missouri State for her freshman year, but she never received a call to play for the Lady Bears. Green went off to play at Moberly Area Community College and averaged 18.9 points per game and 11.4 rebounds in 32 games.

Head coach Beth Cunningham had a lot of praise for the sophomore, stating, “She’s somebody that can come in and fill a void for us. She has the ability to put the ball in the basket and

the ability to rebound, and I think her versatility too will really help us.”

Freshman Khloe Moad is also a Missouri native, coming from Ash Grove. The 6’2 forward was named a McDonald’s All-American, averaging 16.3 ppg, 8.5 rpg and led her team to a 20-8 record during her senior year.

Other Missouri natives on the men’s basketball team include freshmen Tommy Pinegar, Kanon Gipson and Jonathan Dunn. Pinegar, a 6‘2 guard, was a sharpshooter at Greenwood High School on Missouri State’s campus. The guard made 322 threes and ranked seventh in three, pointers in state history.

Gipson comes from Rogersville, MO, and averaged 16.9 ppg, 5.3 assists, and 3.1 steals during his time at Logan-Rogersville High School. Dunn is a 6‘7 forward who also comes from Logan-Rogersville and was named the Big 8 East Player of the Year as a senior, averaging 23 ppg and 4.7 rebounds.

These hometown heroes had a large amount of success at their previous schools, and are looking to make an impact for the Bears this season.

Graphic by Lillian Durr Q@moment.of.wondurr