{"id":77920,"date":"2026-01-05T01:35:09","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T01:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/77920\/"},"modified":"2026-01-05T01:35:09","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T01:35:09","slug":"scranton-bears-look-like-a-different-team-as-they-roar-to-3-0-start-in-conference-usa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/77920\/","title":{"rendered":"Scranton: Bears look like a different team as they roar to 3-0 start in Conference USA"},"content":{"rendered":"

OPINION|<\/p>\n

For those folks like myself, who have witnessed more college basketball seasons than we might care to admit, we understand that what happens before Christmas usually is a distant memory by the end of the marathon in March.<\/p>\n

Missouri State\u2019s basketball team is a prime example of how early results don\u2019t always predict future returns. But even those familiar with the Book of Job would have declared patience a true virtue after watching those early-season struggles.<\/p>\n

But here we are in the new year, and the Bears are quite enjoying their new home in Conference USA. They\u2019re making shots, getting defensive stops and playing with confidence \u2014 ingredients that have been lacking for a long while around the program.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Missouri State, picked dead last in the 12-team CUSA preseason poll, beat third-slotted New Mexico State \u2014 a team with eye-popping talent \u2014 89-82 in a rollicking affair Sunday in front of 2,075 fans inside Great Southern Bank Arena. It was easily the biggest victory in the Cuonzo Martin Era Part II.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s five wins in a row for the Bears, who are 9-5 overall and 3-0 in CUSA. Kobi Williams went off for 32 points, making seven of nine 3-pointers and nine of 10 free throws. Keith Palek III scored 15 of his 16 points in the second half to keep Missouri State afloat as a 12-point halftime lead melted away.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like how we\u2019re coming together,\u201d said senior forward Antwan Burnett, a key figure in the Bears\u2019 resurgence after the transfer \u2014 with strength to play inside and quick feet and a soft jumper to excel on the perimeter \u2014 missed most of the non-league slate with a pulled hamstring.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe stayed together through adversity,\u201d added Burnett. \u201cThey went on a run and we lost the lead, but we didn\u2019t break.\u201d<\/p>\n

This game tested the Bears\u2019 mettle after they led 53-41 at halftime. The Aggies, who resembled a taller version of those talented Southern Illinois teams from back in the Missouri Valley Conference days, went in front 67-66 midway through the second half.<\/p>\n

Missouri State\u2019s 3-pointers quit falling, and Michael Osei-Bonsu was in foul trouble. New Mexico\u2019s State 6-foot-10 jumping jack Julius Mims was dunking like it was a contest. The Bears looked lost \u2014 and looked on their way to a tough loss.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But they didn\u2019t buckle. Palek seized the day, scoring 13 straight points for his team \u2014 including a three-point play to put Missouri State back in front 69-67. The final nine minutes were like a wild ride, with some chippiness between the combatants tossed in for good measure.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But the Bears never surrendered the lead again.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust a big performance from Keith in the second half. He just took the game over,\u201d Burnett said. \u201cWe believed in him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coach Cuonzo Martin said Palek was asked to do \u201ca little bit of everything\u201d in the second half.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith Mike being in foul trouble, Keith had to bring it up, post up, pop. A lot of different things, and he embraces those challenges,\u201d Martin said.<\/p>\n

Kobi Williams, finishing one shy of the school record of nine 3-pointers in a game, found his way to the foul line to deliver seven made free throws in the second half. And Burnett helped deliver the dagger with his 3-pointer with 2:10 remaining, extending the lead to 83-76.<\/p>\n

Freshman guard Trey Willaims said Burnett \u201cis like the missing piece of what we\u2019ve been needing. We probably needed another player who plays with good toughness, is gonna get rebounds, is gonna get on the ground and is gonna guard. It felt like we were missing that, the first part of the season, and we\u2019ve found that with him.\u201d<\/p>\n

It cannot be overstated how much Burnett\u2019s addition has meant.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd he\u2019s probably still 10 pounds overweight,\u201d Martin said. \u201cWhen he was injured he couldn\u2019t (do conditioning) because of his hamstring. What you see with him is grit and toughness. Imagine what you\u2019ll see in two weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n

The other big part of the equation has been shot-making. Kobi Williams, a junior transfer from Truman State, shot 20 percent (8 of 40) through his first six Division I games. He\u2019s 56 percent from long range (23 of 41) over the last seven games.<\/p>\n

Trey Williams, an acclaimed recruit, also has found his stroke. There is no substitute for making shots \u2014 and when the shots stopped falling in the second half, the toughness pulled the Bears through.<\/p>\n

Martin said he enjoyed watching his players embrace the big moments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat part is fun. You don\u2019t get these opportunities all the time and it\u2019s phenomenal to be a part of it,\u201d Martin said. \u201cIt\u2019s a real adrenaline rush. It\u2019s like a rollercoaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Are the Bears\u2019 legit CUSA contenders? It\u2019s too early to declare that. But keep playing like they did this weekend \u2014 a sound 79-55 beatdown of UTEP on Jan. 2 kicked it off \u2014 and things are going to be interesting again.<\/p>\n

Fans might even be tempted to start showing up again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cConfidence is the biggest thing,\u201d Trey Williams said. \u201cYou might not be the most talented team, but if you\u2019re the most confident team, you have a chance to win any night.\u201d<\/p>\n

Martin, asked if he thinks CUSA coaches might start to perceive his team as better than advertised, smiled.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople know me. Whatever happens or doesn\u2019t happen, it\u2019ll be a street fight,\u201d Martin said. \u201cWe\u2019ll be fine. I don\u2019t really care about all that other stuff, what they think about us. We still have to perform.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next up is a trip to Kennesaw State on Jan. 7 with the next home game on Jan. 10 against Florida International.<\/p>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tLyndal Scranton\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Lyndal Scranton is a Springfield native who has covered sports in the Ozarks for more than 35 years, witnessing nearly every big sports moment in the region during the last 50 years. The Missouri Sports Hall of Famer, Springfield Area Sports Hall of Famer and live-fire cooking enthusiast also serves as PR Director for Lucas Oil Speedway in Wheatland, Missouri and is co-host of the Tailgate Guys BBQ Podcast. Contact him at Lscranton755@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter @LyndalScranton. More by Lyndal Scranton<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"OPINION| For those folks like myself, who have witnessed more college basketball seasons than we might care to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":44289,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[12010,12011,178,180,179,12013],"class_list":{"0":"post-77920","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-scranton","8":"tag-conference-usa","9":"tag-missouri-state","10":"tag-scranton","11":"tag-scranton-headlines","12":"tag-scranton-news","13":"tag-topsports1"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77920","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77920"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77920\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44289"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77920"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77920"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77920"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}