SPRINGFIELD — Junior swingman Chris Kendrix and redshirt junior guard Austin Ruder are both leaving the Missouri State men’s basketball team.
Both players were averaging just more than 13 minutes per game, but combined for only eight starts this season.
Ruder started his career at MSU with a bang. He earned Valley all-freshman honors after hitting 72 three-point shots – the third most in conference history for a freshman, and a school record for a freshman. But in 2015-16 he injured his hip, and was granted a medical hardship for that season. He averaged 4.9 points in 29 games with the Bears this year.
Kendrix got off to a similarly promising start to his time at MSU. He’s the Bears’ 15th most prolific freshman scorer, and in his sophomore season he grabbed a spot on the Valley’s most-improved list after coming in 14th in scoring that year league-wide. But he saw his playing time diminish this season, missing three games and getting just one start while averaging 5.5 points per game.
Ruder (Nixa, Mo.) and Kendrix (Willard, Mo.) were the only two players from the Ozarks on the roster, and each came to the Bears after prolific high school careers. They were each all-state selections their senior season, and Ruder was named COC Large Player of the Year his senior season.
