8. Missouri State

Preseason poll: 10th

According to the Missouri Valley Conference pollsters, the Bears should finish last in the conference this season. This might be a little harsh on a team that finished in a tie for 7th last season (8-10). Sure, the Bears appear to be at a disadvantage with first-year head coach Cuonzo Martin at the helm. But in reality, this man isn't just some random choice or a favorite alum. Martin served as an assistant coach at Purdue for eight seasons, learning from and playing for coaching legend Gene Keady.

Outside of promising new coach, the Bears have another external factor in their favor - a new arena. John Q. Hammons, a hotel developer in the area, has made significant contributions to the school (similar to influence David Markin has had at Bradley) - his most recent being a $30 million donation to build JQH Arena. The arena seats 11,000, which will allow for more than 2,000 additional fans to watch Bears' games. This sort of intangible will likely give Missouri State an even bigger advantage at home.

As for on the court, forward Chris Cooks (6'4" Sr.) is arguably the best player on the team. As a junior, Cooks averaged 8.6 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. These stats are likely to both jump up significantly as the front court has been cleared out due to graduation. Dale Lamberth and Deven Mitchell combined for more than 11 RPG helped the Bears finish in the upper half of the MVC in rebounding.

This area will be a key for Missouri State to be successful - who can step in and grab 4-6 rebounds per game? The most likely candidates are forward Ryan Jehle (6'6" So.) and center Wade Knapp (6'8" Sr.). Neither averaged more than 10 minutes per game last season, so they will be tested in their increased roles.

If the Bears can take care of the glass, they should feel pretty confident with their back court players. The Laurie brothers, guards Shane (6'2" Sr.) and Spencer (6'1" Sr.), finally are completing their eligibility this season. They fall into that category of MVC players that seem to be around forever, like Anthony Tolliver of Creighton and Sam Singh of Bradley. Both can score in bunches if necessary. Couple these two with guard Justin Fuehrmeyer (6'0" Jr.), who had the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the Valley last year (+2.16). Clearly guard play should be a strength for Missouri State, one of the most important aspects of any successful team in the MVC.

Maybe the Bears lack a lot of experience going into this season, but they do have some positives going into the year that will help the team stay away from the basement of the Valley.