The 2024 MVC Preseason Poll is now available. See where Missouri State basketball landed, picks from all MVC players

The last time Cuonzo Martin was Missouri State’s basketball coach, he threw his hands up in the air in celebration of the Bears winning their first Missouri Valley Conference title.

Thirteen years later, when Martin returns to the Bears’ bench, expectations are much lower as his program plays its final season in the Valley.

The Valley released its preseason poll on Wednesday, with voters selecting Missouri State to finish 11th before moving on to Conference USA for the 2025-26 season.

Martin’s first MSU squad since leaving the program to become Tennessee’s coach after the 2010-11 season features 15 new players and is mostly a secret. The same can be said for much of the league, with five new head coaches on the bench and most of the rosters from a year ago having been ravaged by the transfer portal.

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Bradley, who returns the most star power, was the overwhelming choice to win the league. Quarterback Duke Deen was named the league’s preseason player of the year.

Missouri State is coming off a 17-16 season that ended in the Arch Madness quarterfinals. A few days later, the school fired Dana Ford and hired Martin at the end of the month. Since leaving Springfield, Martin has not coached for the past two seasons, following stops at Tennessee, California and Mizzou.

His 2024-25 Bears roster is expected to include Delaware State transfer Wesley Oba, Barton Community College transfer Mozae Downing-Rivers, Austin Peay transfer Dez White and IUPUI transfer Vincent Brady II.

Missouri State opens the season Nov. 4 at Butler. It plays one game in Valley before Christmas, when it hosts Indiana State on Dec. 7, then resumes league play on Dec. 29 in Evansville.

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2024 MVC Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll

Here are the poll results with points and votes for first place in brackets:

1. Bradley 597 (46)

2. Northern Iowa 527 (2)

3. Stan Murray 473 (1)

4. Illinois 397

5. Dragon 388

6. Belmont 373

7. Southern Illinois 337

8. Indiana State 207

9. Evansville 199

10. Valparaiso 173

11. Missouri State 116

12. UIC 110

2024-25 MVC Preseason Teams

First team

• Duke Deen, Bradley (Preseason Player of the Year)

• Titan Anderson in Northern Iowa

• Darius Hannah, Bradley

• Johnny Kinziger, Illinois

• Cooper Schwieger in Valparaiso

• JaCobi Wood, Murray State

Second team

• Trey Campbell in Northern Iowa

• Nick Ellington, Murray State

• Jacob Hutson, northern Iowa

• Zek Montgomery, Bradley

• Malachi Poindexter, Illinois

Third team

• Kennard Davis Jr., southern Illinois

• Ali Dibba, southern Illinois

• Cam Manyawu, Drake

• Filip Skobalj, UIC

• Bennett Stirtz, Drake

This article originally appeared on the Springfield News-Leader: MVC preseason poll, all MVC picks: Missouri Basketball No. 12 Valley