Like most Division I coaches in the transfer portal era, Beth Cunningham had the chore of mixing new and old ingredients in the pursuit of a winning flavor.
Teams don’t marinate like they use to, but Missouri State’s third-year coach appears to have assembled a cohesive, defensive-minded group that’s, yet again, among the best in the Missouri Valley Conference.
The Lady Bears (11-4, 3-1 MVC), winners of three straight after Sunday’s 75-37 demolition of Southern Illinois at Great Southern Bank Arena, are playing with the sort of fluidity you’d see in a team that wasn’t widely assembled in the span of a few months.
Missouri State welcomed eight players this past offseason to mesh with six returners who came a bucket-at-the-buzzer short of an NCAA Tournament berth last March.
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From transfers who felt slighted or under-utilized at previous programs to proven returners soured by last season’s finish, Cunningham has been able to employ the chips on their respective shoulders.
“It feels like they’re playing for something every night and had a (bad) taste in their mouth with something to prove, too,” Cunningham said after Sunday’s rout of the Salukis, Missouri State’s seventh win in eight games.
While returners like Lacy Stokes (13.1 points per game, 60 assists), Kyrah Daniels (11.3 ppg, 5.5 rebounds a game), Kaemyn Bekemeier (10.3 ppg) and Paige Rocca (8.1 ppg) picked up where they left off from the 23-win campaign, veteran newcomers like Mizzou transfer Sarah Linthacum (10.9 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Kiley Bess (5.5 ppg) from Indiana State are getting the most of their final year of eligibility. Cady Pauley (5.1 ppg), a transfer from Virginia, is coming off the bench.
“We’ve been really locked in. We’re reading each other well right now, but it’s all flowing from practice,” said Bekemeier, the former Republic guard who had 12 points and 13 rebounds on Sunday. “You can see it in practice when we’re all getting after it.”
Since going 1-2 in an early-season tournament in the Virgin Islands against the likes of national brands Gonzaga, Florida State and Texas Tech at the end of November, the Lady Bears have been flummoxing teams defensively.
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Missouri State has held six of its last eight opponents to 55 or fewer points and forced an average of 18 turnovers during that stretch, its last three games in MVC best conveying the offensively diverse and defensively hard-nosed effort.
Against Belmont (9-7, 4-1 MVC), the Bears were able shorten the court in a 57-55 win over the Bruins. Two days later, the Lady Bears proceeded to run the floor with one of the nation’s highest-scoring teams in Murray Sate (10-4, 4-1), holding the Racers 17 points below their average in a 85-78 win.
On Sunday, Missouri State proceeded to clamp down on one of the worst teams in the Valley and continue its annual dominance against the Salukis, yielding 17 points in the first half.
Linthacum, who was a perfect 7-for-7 from the field on Sunday and filled a major interior void for MSU this season, embraces a defensive identity.
“Our defense has to fuel our wins. We’ve gotten these past few wins because of our defense,” Linthacum said. “We shifted out mindset to focus on our defense no matter what the ball is looking like on the other end. That needs to carry over for this next stretch.”
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Similar effort on the glass helps. The Lady Bears have outrebounded all but one opponent this season and rank 35th in Division I in rebounding margin (7.7).
Currently at the top of a parity-riddled MVC is defending champion Drake (11-4, 5-0), who the Lady Bears entertain on Jan. 24.
Through 15 games, Cunningham, who is 30-0 all-time when she holds teams to fewer than 60 points, likes her team’s resolve since suffering a 69-62 upset at UIC to start the new year.
“Collectively, a really great group. They’ve always been exremely hard-working,” she said. “They want to be coached, they want to get better. I don’t have to motivate them to work every day. It’s enjoyable to coach a team like that. I think we have a group of kids that are hungry.”
Missouri State travels to Evansville (4-11, 0-4 MVC) on Friday
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Ryan Collingwood
Sports Reporter
Ryan Collingwood covers college and high school sports in the Springfield metropolitan area for the Daily Citizen. Have a story idea or gripe? Send an email to rcollingwood@sgfcitizen.org, call or 417-837-3660, or follow Ryan on social media at X.com/rwcollingwood. More by Ryan Collingwood
Kentucky basketball fans have seemed to have finally gotten their wish. After receiving a lot of pushback for not making a change to the starting lineup, more specifically not starting Jaland Lowe since returning from injury, Mark Pope is making a change. According to KSR’s Jack Pilgrim, both Lowe and Jayden Quaintance will start in Kentucky’s game against Missouri. Pilgrim reports the two will replace Collin Chandler and Malachi Moreno as starters against Missouri, which will make the lineup Jaland Lowe, Denzel Aberdeen, Otega Oweh, Mo Dioubate and Jayden Quaintance.
It’s a long-time coming for Kentucky fans, as since Jaland Lowe has been back from injury on Dec. 5, he hasn’t started a single game. Even in the games before he wasn’t included in Kentucky’s starting lineup. That’s seven games played with zero starts to show for it, with fans constantly wondering why Lowe has continued to come into the games following the first media timeout after Kentucky has already fallen behind. He’s not the only one being included in the lineup change, with Quaintance starting as well. Quaintance made his debut against St. John’s and has since been working to get acclimated after spending nine months returning from an injury. Now, he’s getting the start, too. We haven’t seen the two on the floor together since Kentucky’s second-half surge to beat St. John’s on Dec. 20.
The chatter around the starting lineup questions has mainly centered around Lowe, as he is clearly the engine of this team. When he’s not in, Kentucky sturggles to have any flow, or identity for that matter. Now, the Wildcats have the opportunity to start the game off fresh instead of it being like the last game where Kentucky fell behind 9-5 before Lowe came in. Mark Pope hinted on his radio show Monday that this development with Lowe was coming, saying “starting is in his future” while also noting that they’re continuing to ‘nurse’ him along. Before that, though, during Kentucky’s 10-day break between the Bellarmine and Alabama games, Pope discussed the reason why Jaland Lowe had not been starting:
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“We’re trying to limit his contact and exposure so much in practice that, the thinking behind that is like, let’s protect the integrity of the group that we have getting most of the reps in practice to actually be able to go perform on the court, just to give some continuity.” At the time, Pope wasn’t sure if that was the right way to go about it, but it’s something he said they would continue to be thinking about moving forward. “That might not be the right answer. We’re going to kind of explore that as we go. It also gives you a chance to maybe extend his healthy window, which we’re hoping is going to be the entire season, by not being the headline guy at the beginning of a scout.”
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Well, those comments from Pope combined with the pushback from fans has now led to Jaland Lowe finally making his first start as a Kentucky Wildcat. Mark Pope now has real chance for his team to build some momentum with two players on the floor together in Lowe and Quaintance who will hopefully be staying on the floor together and consistently moving forward. This development is going to be what Kentucky fans focus on most against Missouri.
The Missouri Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Jan. 6, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
09-39-47-58-68, Mega Ball: 24
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 3 numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
Midday: 3-4-8
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Midday Wild: 8
Evening: 8-5-7
Evening Wild: 4
Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick 4 numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
Midday: 2-0-4-4
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Midday Wild: 8
Evening: 1-5-2-7
Evening Wild: 4
Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash4Life numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
23-24-32-57-58, Cash Ball: 02
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Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Cash Pop numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
Early Bird: 05
Morning: 10
Matinee: 01
Prime Time: 06
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Night Owl: 05
Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Show Me Cash numbers from Jan. 6 drawing
02-12-26-29-30
Check Show Me Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
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Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize
All Missouri Lottery retailers can redeem prizes up to $600. For prizes over $600, winners have the option to submit their claim by mail or in person at one of Missouri Lottery’s regional offices, by appointment only.
To claim by mail, complete a Missouri Lottery winner claim form, sign your winning ticket, and include a copy of your government-issued photo ID along with a completed IRS Form W-9. Ensure your name, address, telephone number and signature are on the back of your ticket. Claims should be mailed to:
Ticket Redemption
Missouri Lottery
P.O. Box 7777
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Jefferson City, MO 65102-7777
For in-person claims, visit the Missouri Lottery Headquarters in Jefferson City or one of the regional offices in Kansas City, Springfield or St. Louis. Be sure to call ahead to verify hours and check if an appointment is required.
For additional instructions or to download the claim form, visit the Missouri Lottery prize claim page.
When are the Missouri Lottery drawings held?
Powerball: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 10 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Pick 3: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Pick 4: 12:45 p.m. (Midday) and 8:59 p.m. (Evening) daily.
Powerball Double Play: 9:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Missouri editor. You can send feedback using this form.
Damon Wilson II is reportedly set to transfer again after a nine-sack season at Missouri. Ed Zurga / Getty Images
Damon Wilson II, the player at the center of a lawsuit showdown with Georgia over his transfer to Missouri last year, is planning to re-enter the portal, a source briefed on the decision said.
Wilson figures to be a premium target for teams that need an edge rusher: He led Missouri with nine sacks this season, which was tied for third in the SEC. The news of his plans was reported by On3 on Tuesday afternoon. But his decision to enter is more intriguing given his ongoing legal dispute with Georgia over his exit from that program last year.
Wilson spent his first two seasons in Athens. He transferred to Missouri last January. In October, Georgia sued him, seeking $390,000 in damages from Wilson for leaving the team after the program said he signed an agreement to return for the 2025 season. Georgia filed to compel Wilson to arbitration.
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Wilson answered on Dec. 23 by filing a lawsuit against Georgia in Boone County, Mo. Wilson’s attorneys alleged a civil conspiracy by Georgia’s athletic department and collective to “penalize Wilson for his decision to transfer.” The lawsuit also alleged the agreement Wilson signed with Georgia in December 2024 was not a contract.
This was believed to be the first time a player and a school took each other to court over a transfer decision and figures to be closely watched. Wilson leaving Missouri would not end the court proceedings.
Wilson’s legal representatives did not offer immediate comment on Tuesday afternoon.
