Springfield Standard

Missouri State University's men's basketball team is set for its first road game of the 2025-26 season, facing UT Arlington on Saturday, November 15, at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. Both teams enter the matchup with a 2-1 record.

The Bears hold a slight edge in the all-time series against the Mavericks, leading 6-5. Missouri State has struggled historically when playing in Arlington, winning only once in five attempts. The last meeting between these teams at UT Arlington was nearly four decades ago, with Missouri State securing an 80-69 victory in January 1986.

In their most recent encounter on November 19, 2024, Missouri State defeated UT Arlington 78-68 at Great Southern Bank Arena. Zaxton King led the Bears with 18 points during that game.

The Bears have seen strong individual performances early this season. Michael Osei-Bonsu recorded double-doubles in two games, including a career-high 14 rebounds against Missouri Southern and another double-double against Arkansas State. Darrion Sutton also posted a double-double versus Northwestern Oklahoma State and leads the team with five steals this season.

Freshman point guard Trey Williams Jr. has scored in double figures each game so far and is averaging nearly 12 points per contest—ranking him among the top Division I freshmen nationally.

Missouri State set a new club record for points scored in the paint during their win over Northwestern Oklahoma State earlier this month and are currently averaging almost 49 points per game inside.

Keith Palek ranks sixth in Conference USA for scoring and is among the top active NCAA players by career points. Darrion Sutton stands fifth in CUSA for rebounds per game and ranks within the top sixty nationally for total rebounds and defensive boards.

Junior Kobi Williams has maintained an efficient assist-to-turnover ratio this season, ranking fourth within Conference USA.

KenPom analytics currently place Missouri State fourth nationally for free throw rate—a metric reflecting how often teams reach the foul line compared to field goal attempts—with only Richmond, Buffalo, and Colorado ahead of them. The Bears are shooting just over seventy percent from the free throw line so far this year.

Head coach Cuonzo Martin returned to Missouri State after being named head coach on March 27, 2024. Martin previously led Missouri State from 2008 to 2011—including guiding them to their only regular-season championship run—and brings experience from coaching positions at Tennessee, California, and Missouri as well as postseason appearances across multiple tournaments. In his coaching career spanning sixteen seasons at Division I level programs, Martin holds a record of 275 wins and has coached fifty-nine college graduates.

Missouri State's next home game will be against UT Rio Grande Valley on November 22.