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
Georgia Bulldogs sophomore pass rusher Damon Wilson is the top ranked available player in the transfer portal according to 247Sports.Wilson recently visited the Missouri Tigers.
Wilson could join former Georgia edge rusher Darris Smith at Missouri. Smith missed the 2024 season after suffering a knee injury.
The talented linebacker is coming off a career-best season. Georgia has seen a lot of elite front seven players enter the 2025 NFL draft, so Wilson’s likely departure is a tough loss for UGA.
Of course, Wilson is projected to commit to the Ohio State Buckeyes, per On3. The former five-star recruit saw significant playing time in 2024 behind Mykel Williams and Jalon Walker (who are both headed to the NFL). In 2024, Wilson and recorded 22 tackles, three sacks, and forced two fumbles.
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Georgia’s pass rush will look a lot different in 2025. The Bulldogs are likely to dip in the transfer portal for an edge rusher and/or a defensive lineman.Yes, UGA signed a pair of five-stars in defensive end Elijah Griffin and outside linebacker Isaiah Gibson, but Georgia is losing seven rotational edge rushers or defensive linemen to the NFL draft.
Fourteen Georgia Bulldogs including quarterback Carson Beck have entered the transfer portal since it opened in early December.
CARBONDALE, Ill. (AP) — Jarrett Hensley scored 30 points and Drew Steffe added seven points in the overtime as Southern Illinois knocked off Missouri State 88-78 on Saturday night.
Hensley added six rebounds for the Salukis (6-11, 1-5 Missouri Valley Conference). Steffe shot 5 of 9 from the field, including 3 for 6 from 3-point range, and went 3 for 4 from the line to add 16 points. Ali Abdou Dibba shot 5 of 14 from the field and 3 of 4 from the free-throw line to finish with 13 points. The Salukis ended a five-game skid with the victory.
Vincent Brady II finished with 24 points for the Bears (7-10, 0-6). Zaxton King added 23 points for Missouri State. Chase Martin had nine points.
Martin hit a 3-pointer with 22 seconds left in regulation to force overtime tied at 72.
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Southern Illinois turned a four-point second-half lead into a 13-point advantage with a 9-0 run to make it a 63-50 lead with 5:21 left in the half. Dibba scored 13 second-half points in the win.
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COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Mark Mitchell scored 19 points, Missouri did not allow a point in the final two minutes, and the Tigers defeated Vanderbilt 75-66 on Saturday.
Missouri led all the way but an 8-0 run by Vanderbilt got the Commodores within 61-60 with 5 1/2 minutes to left in the game. The Tigers did not surrender the lead and a layup by Caleb Grill gave them a 68-63 lead with 2 1/2 minutes remaining. At 2:11, Vanderbilt’s Jason Edwards made three free throws to make it 68-66 but the Commodores did not score again.
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Grill made three free throws of his own to make it 71-66 with 1:52 left and Mitchell’s three-point play at 1:20 made it an eight-point game. He made one of two free throws with 29 seconds left to wrap up the scoring.
Anthony Robinson II had 15 points and eight assists for Missouri (13-3, 2-1 SEC). Grill scored 13 points and Josh Gray grabbed 11 rebounds.
Edwards led Vanderbilt (13-3, 1-2) with 20 points. MJ Collins had 13 points, Chris Manon scored 10 and Devin McGlockton had 10 rebounds.
Missouri hit four 3-pointers in the first 3 1/2 minutes to take a 14-2 lead. After Vanderbilt closed to within 17-12, Mitchell scored seven of his 11 first-half points and the Tigers also had a 10-0 run to push their lead to 39-22 with under five minutes remaining in the half. Vanderbilt scored the last seven points of the half, cutting Missouri’s led to 41-32 at the break.
Missouri’s win continued a trend in which the home team has a 15-2 record. Overall, Missouri leads Vanderbilt 10-8.
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Missouri plays at No. 8 Florida on Tuesday and Vanderbilt hosts South Carolina on Wednesday.
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