Paul Lusk

     TULSA, Okla. - A late rally by the Missouri State Bears fell short in a 68-63 road loss to Oral Roberts here Wednesday, MSU's first defeat of the 2011-12 campaign.   Down 62-52 with 1:24 remaining, the Bears (4-1) knocked down three three-pointers in the final 39 seconds to make things close down the stretch.  ORU (5-2), however, had 12 free throw attempts in that span, making eight, including a pair of key makes by Warren Niles with 4.7 ticks left after MSU had trimmed its deficit to 66-63 on a trey by Anthony Downing.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - The Missouri Valley Conference has finalized its 2011-12 men's basketball schedule, the league announced Thursday (Sept. 8), completing Missouri State University's slate for the upcoming campaign. The defending MVC regular-season champions and first-year head coach Paul Lusk will open league play on Wednesday, Dec. 28 at Creighton before their conference home opener on New Year's Eve against Drake. Including a pair of October exhibition games, the Bears will host 17 opponents at JQH this winter.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The Missouri State University men's basketball team will host its annual year-end banquet on Monday, April 9 at 6 p.m.  The event will be hosted by the University Plaza Hotel and Conference Center (333 S. John Q. Hammons Parkway) in Springfield. Banquet tickets are available by contacting Brenda Essary in the MSU basketball office at (417) 836-5250. Individual tickets are $30, while table reservations for groups of 10 can be reserved in advance for $300.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State men's basketball head coach Paul Lusk has announced open, walk-on tryouts for the Bears' squad on Friday, Sept. 23 at Hammons Student Center. The workout session will begin at 6:30 a.m. in the Turner Family Practice Facility.  Interested participants must be enrolled at Missouri State University and should come in basketball attire prepared to perform various conditioning, skill, and practice drills. Questions may be directed to Trevyor Fisher in the Missouri State men's basketball office at (417)

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State University men's basketball head coach Paul Lusk announced late Monday that guard Corey Copeland (So., Ft. Smith, Ark.) has requested his release from the program and will not return to the Bears next season. "We're respectful of Corey's desire to continue his education and his basketball career elsewhere," Lusk said. "Corey is a good person, and we wish him all the best. On behalf of our team and our fans, we appreciate all of his contributions to our program during his two seasons at Missouri State.

   SPRINGFIELD -- Missouri State senior forward Jarmar Gulley (G/F, Beaumont, Texas) has suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee and is expected to miss the entire 2012-13 season, according to Bears' head coach Paul Lusk . Gulley's injury was sustained in a summer league game Wednesday (July 11) in Springfield and was diagnosed after an MRI late Thursday. Surgery to repair the tear is expected to be performed next week. "I feel for Jarmar, especially after the great off season he was having," said Lusk.

SPRINGFIELD - Missouri State University Director of Athletics Kyle Moats has announced that the Missouri State men's basketball team will officially raise its 2010-11 Missouri Valley Conference regular-season championship banner during ceremonies at JQH Arena on Saturday, Nov. 19.  The Bears will host Emporia State that night in their first regular-season home game of the new year.  The match-up with Emporia State also completes the non-conference...

   On Saturday night the Missouri State Bears, as part of the Mountain West-Missouri Valley conference challenge series, take on New Mexico at the famed "Pit" in Albuquerque.  But what adds a little more intrigue to the 9 p.m. game is that the Lobos are coached by Steve Alford, who led the Bears to their best-showing-ever in the NCAA Tournament.    The year was 1999, when Alford's then Southwest Missouri State Bears became the Cinderella team of the big show with upsets of Wisconsin and  Tennesee (by 30 points, no less 81-51)

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Although the opportunity to play in the postseason for a third straight season was a possibility for the Missouri State University men's basketball program, Director of Athletics Kyle Moats announced Monday (March 5), the Bears will not participate in the College Basketball Invitational or CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. “Our coaches can immediately begin working with our returning players, focusing on recruiting and concentrating on our academic responsibilities,” Moats explained.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State junior Corbin Thomas has decided to take his basketball career in another direction and will depart MSU after this semester, the Chicago native announced Tuesday (March 13). Bears' head coach Paul Lusk said he supports Thomas' decision to transfer. "Corbin is a quality individual, and we wish him nothing but the best," said Lusk.  Thomas said his decision to leave Missouri State was not an easy one, but feels the change will help him gain a fresh perspective after difficulty adjusting to the pace of Division I play.

SPRINGFIELD - Missouri State men's basketball coach Paul Lusk has received National Letters of Intent from three players for the 2013-14 season he announced Wednesday (Nov. 14), the first day of the early NLI signing period. In Lusk's second Missouri State recruiting class are: Tyler McCullough (6-10, 230, C, Fayetteville, Ark., Fayetteville High), Austin Ruder (6-3, 185, SG, Nixa, Mo., Nixa High), and Devon Thomas (5-11, 170, PG, Baltimore, Md., Kimball Union Academy). “You win championships with good players and good people,” said Lusk.

   SPRINGFIELD -- Missouri State senior forward Jarmar Gulley (G/F, Beaumont, Texas) has suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee and is expected to miss the entire 2012-13 season, according to Bears' head coach Paul Lusk . Gulley's injury was sustained in a summer league game Wednesday (July 11) in Springfield and was diagnosed after an MRI late Thursday. Surgery to repair the tear is expected to be performed next week. "I feel for Jarmar, especially after the great off season he was having," said Lusk.

    O.K...The Missouri Valley basketball scene just got a bit more interesting with the return of Barry Hinson as a head coach in the league.  Hinson, the former coach at Missouri State, is now the new head coach at Southern Illinois.  Not to be confused with Paul Lusk, Missouri State's current head coach, who was a former player at....Southern Illinois.  Got it? The Missouri St. guy is now at Southern Illinois and the Southern Illinois guy is now at Missouri St.    Hinson took over at SIU on Wednesday after the firing of Chris Lowery, a former Saluki teammate of Lusk's who spent eight seasons as head coach at Carbondale.  The 50 year-old Hinson has been at Kansas since being fired by Missouri St. in 2008, serving as the director of basketball operations.  Hinson compiled a 169-117 record in Springfield from 1999-2008, but never led the Bears to the Big Dance as twice his teams had the highest RPI's in NCAA history not to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.  The biggest snub came in the 2005-06 year when MSU went 22-9 with an RPI of 21 and still never got an invite to the dance.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - The Missouri State University men's basketball team will host its annual year-end banquet on Monday, April 9 at 6 p.m.  The event will be hosted by the University Plaza Hotel and Conference Center (333 S. John Q. Hammons Parkway) in Springfield. Banquet tickets are available by contacting Brenda Essary in the MSU basketball office at (417) 836-5250. Individual tickets are $30, while table reservations for groups of 10 can be reserved in advance for $300.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - For the first time in the history of the program, the Missouri State men's basketball team will take a summer international trip when the Bears embark on a seven-day foreign tour of Costa Rica, Aug. 7-13.  The trip will combine practice and a series of exhibition games with a unique cultural experience for the student-athletes.  And, thanks to a generous donor, the trip expenses will be completely covered with private funds....

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State junior Corbin Thomas has decided to take his basketball career in another direction and will depart MSU after this semester, the Chicago native announced Tuesday (March 13). Bears' head coach Paul Lusk said he supports Thomas' decision to transfer. "Corbin is a quality individual, and we wish him nothing but the best," said Lusk.  Thomas said his decision to leave Missouri State was not an easy one, but feels the change will help him gain a fresh perspective after difficulty adjusting to the pace of Division I play.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State University men's basketball head coach Paul Lusk announced late Monday that guard Corey Copeland (So., Ft. Smith, Ark.) has requested his release from the program and will not return to the Bears next season. "We're respectful of Corey's desire to continue his education and his basketball career elsewhere," Lusk said. "Corey is a good person, and we wish him all the best. On behalf of our team and our fans, we appreciate all of his contributions to our program during his two seasons at Missouri State.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Although the opportunity to play in the postseason for a third straight season was a possibility for the Missouri State University men's basketball program, Director of Athletics Kyle Moats announced Monday (March 5), the Bears will not participate in the College Basketball Invitational or CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament. “Our coaches can immediately begin working with our returning players, focusing on recruiting and concentrating on our academic responsibilities,” Moats explained.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - Missouri State closes out its 2011-12 home slate Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. when the Bears host Indiana State on Senior Night at JQH Arena. Bears fans will pay tribute to the club's four seniors during pregame ceremonies.  Kyle Weems (F, Topeka, Kan.), Caleb Patterson (C, Ames, Okla.), Isaiah Rhine (C, Versailles, Mo.) and Michael Bizoukas (G, Munster, Ind.) will all be playing their final regular-season game on The Q hardwood, each with his own special place in the program's history.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. - With just three conference games remaining, third-place Missouri State (16-11, 9-6 MVC) takes a three-game winning streak to No. 24 Wichita State Wednesday at 7:05 p.m., as the Bears look to continue playing their hot hand at Koch Arena. MSU is 8-4 on the road this season, including a 5-2 mark in Missouri Valley Conference games. The Bears, who are 6-19 all-time against Top 25 foes, recorded their first-ever road win over a ranked opponent on Dec. 28 when they topped No. 19 Creighton by a 77-65 count in Omaha.