Conference USA has announced its league schedule for the upcoming 2025-26 men’s and women’s basketball seasons, the league office announced Friday (July 11).
The Missouri State men will open its inaugural season in CUSA with its first-ever game against fellow CUSA newcomer Delaware on Monday, Dec. 29 in Newark, Del.
The Bears will then play 10 conference games in the month of January, including its first CUSA home game at Great Southern Bank Arena on Friday, Jan. 2 against UTEP.
The Bears also host New Mexico State (Jan. 4), FIU (Jan. 10), Sam Houston (Jan. 28) and Jacksonville State (Jan. 31) as part of five January home contests to start 2026.
January also includes a rugged four-game conference road swing over a 10-day period late in the month.
The Bears will have three home games in February, in addition to four road matchups. MoState will host LA Tech on Feb. 12, Delaware (Feb. 14) and Kennesaw State (Feb. 18).
The Bears close out the regular season in early March with home events against Western Kentucky (March 5) and Middle Tennessee (March 7).
The 2026 CUSA Basketball Championship is set for March 10-14 in Huntsville, Ala.
With 12 conference members, the 20-game CUSA slate is not a true home-and-home, round-robin. The Bears will not play at Jacksonville State, and Liberty will not travel to Springfield this season.
MoState’s non-conference slate continues to take shape with the team’s final lineup of early-season games on pace to be released in the coming weeks.
Missouri State’s inaugural season in Conference USA promises to be an exciting one for the Bears, and fans won’t want to miss a minute of the excitement at Great Southern Bank Arena this winter. Season ticket for the upcoming season are on sale now with purchase options available online, by calling (417) 836-7678, or visiting the box office at Great Southern Bank Arena during regular box office hours.
Single-game ticket sales will be announced at a later date.
Coach Cuonzo Martin‘s Bears are poised to break through this winter as Martin begins his second season back at the helm of the Missouri State program. He returns starters Michael Osei-Bonsu and Zaxton King to the fold along with fellow veteran Logan Epes. The Bears welcome 11 newcomers to campus for what is shaping up to be a renaissance campaign for the proud Missouri State men’s program.
Missouri State
2025-26 CUSA Schedule
Mon., Dec. 29 at Delaware*
Fri., Jan. 2 UTEP*
Sun., Jan. 4 New Mexico State*
Wed., Jan. 7 at Kennesaw State*
Sat., Jan. 10 FIU*
Wed., Jan. 14 at Western Kentucky*
Sat., Jan. 17 at Middle Tennessee*
Thu., Jan. 22 at New Mexico State*
Sat., Jan. 24 at UTEP*
Wed., Jan. 28 Sam Houston*
Sat., Jan. 31 Jacksonville State*
Sat., Feb. 7 at Liberty*
Thu., Feb. 12 LA Tech*
Sat., Feb. 14 Delaware*
Wed., Feb. 18 Kennesaw State*
Sat., Feb. 21 at FIU*
Thu., Feb. 26 at LA Tech*
Sat., Feb. 28 at Sam Houston*
Thu., March 5 Western Kentucky*
Sat., March 7 Middle Tennessee*
With the league’s expansion to 12 teams, the Missouri State Lady Bears will face four teams in the league one time during the regular season, while playing a home-and-home series against the remaining seven teams.
Missouri State will tip off its inaugural season in Conference USA with a trip to Miami to face its travel partner FIU on Jan. 4.
The Lady Bears will then face all four of their one-off opponents consecutively, starting with their CUSA home opener against Kennesaw State (Jan. 8) before welcoming Jacksonville State (Jan. 10) to Springfield. MoState will then travel to UTEP (Jan. 15) and New Mexico State (Jan. 17). Missouri State closes out the month of January with home games against Louisiana Tech (Jan. 22) and Sam Houston (Jan. 24) before making a trip to the Mid-Atlantic to face Delaware (Jan. 29) and Liberty (Jan. 31).
February’s slate features five home games for the Lady Bears that include visits from Middle Tennessee (Feb. 5), Western Kentucky (Feb. 7), Liberty (Feb. 19), Delaware (Feb. 21) and FIU (Feb. 28). The only road stint of the month for Missouri State is a two-game stretch at Sam Houston (Feb. 12) and Louisiana Tech (Feb. 14).
MoState closes the regular season on the road with matchups at Western Kentucky (March 5) and Middle Tennessee (March 7).
The 2026 CUSA Basketball Tournament is set for March 10-14 at Propst Arena in Huntsville, Ala. Liberty won the 2025 tournament after sharing the regular-season title with Middle Tennessee.
All game times and television designations will be released at a later date.
Head coach Beth Cunningham and the Lady Bears are coming off a 26-9 season that saw Missouri State win a share of the Missouri Valley Conference regular-season title and make an appearance in the WBIT for the second consecutive year. The 2024-25 season marked Missouri State’s eighth consecutive 20-win season and 10th straight season with a postseason appearance. The Lady Bears return seven players from a season ago, while adding a group of seven newcomers that is comprised of four transfers and three freshmen.
