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Cuonzo Martin offers fix to awful Missouri State attendance.
All college students, past and present, are familiar with the saying “Cs get degrees.” Minimal effort in the classroom can still earn you that diploma. If up to Missouri State head basketball coach Cuonzo Martin, the focus on coursework would be even less pertinent.
He suggested handing out free grades as a fix for the Bears‘ awful attendance. Students that show up to the majority of home games should be rewarded!
The comment might’ve been made in jest, but Martin is pursuing every avenue in hopes of gaining support. He wants to create an advantage for his team. Atmosphere is crucial.
Cuonzo Martin is begging for support.
Cuonzo Martin told me an idea he had to help get more student basketball attendance at Great Southern Bank Arena, which averaged 1,988 fans per game for MBB and 2,186 fans per game for WBB last season.
“If a student attends 85 percent of the games that season, and they don’t…
— Ryan Collingwood (@rwcollingwood) August 4, 2026
Missouri State averaged less than 2,000 fans per home game last year in Great Southern Bank Arena. Viewers refuse to show up. It’s been a recurring theme in the Cuonzo Martin era.
In 2024, he made a plea to the fanbase.
“You can’t be the team you need to be if (fans aren’t) in the building. That’s probably a 20-point game in a different atmosphere.”
-Cuonzo Martin after a win over Lincoln
Just over 1,300 people showed up to watch that 61-49 victory over a D2 opponent. Since, he’s continued to push for an attendance boost. The latest offer displays his desperation.
He suggested that students who attend 85% of home games in a season be rewarded with free college credits. It provides incentive to come to the arena. I know I’d take full advantage if it was available to me. There is another, more reasonable fix, however.
Winning would undoubtedly improve attendance numbers.
The Bears have struggled.
They have not made an NCAA Tournament since 1999, when they took down Wisconsin and Tennessee on the way to the Sweet 16. They’ve finished .500 or worse eight times over the last 15 campaigns.
Cuonzo Martin was Missouri State’s head coach from 2008-2011, leaving just before that previously mentioned 15-year run. He posted two 20-win seasons in three years, which he buoyed into gigs at Tennessee, Cal, and Missouri.
The Tigers fired him in 2022. He returned to Missouri State in 2024. In two years, his teams have gone 25-41.
Fans have responded with a refusal to support. They will not watch a bad product. Martin is doing all he can to flip the script. His suggestion on free grades will not be approved. On-court success, however, could do the trick.