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Cuonzo Martin has already counted over 30 different restaurants he’s eaten at since he was brought back as Missouri State’s head men’s basketball coach.
Flame, Char and Jim’s Steakhouse sit at the top of his list. The Cauli Fornia Dreamin’ burger at Black Sheep “knocked his socks off” and he’s enjoyed breakfast trips with recruits to Gailey’s. A trip to PaPPo’s, along with a first-time visit to I Love Tacos, is in his near future.
Martin goes to the different local establishments with a purpose; not just to refamiliarize himself with the local cuisine after 13 years away. He and his staff are working on building “genuine” relationships with those around town, including with those at the cleaners, pet food stores and other establishments in the community.
“We want people to feel good about our program,” Martin said. “This is a great product and this is an arena that should be packed every night because this is our team. I think our community has to take ownership of this team. We have to do a great job at putting forth a great effort on the floor.”
Martin, 13 years after helping the Bears sell out Great Southern Bank Arena while winning a conference championship, is making it his mission to rebuild the energy around the program back to where he left it.
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Missouri State Head Basketball Coach Cuonzo Martin on Thursday, June 13, 2024.
Martin is replicating some things he did during his first three-year stint. He’ll add on what he learned during stops at Tennessee, California and Mizzou while leading four different teams to NCAA Tournaments.
Relationship building is also part of who he is. In his two years away from leading a college basketball program, he was in the community trying to lift those in need. He launched a podcast on leadership and topics such as men’s health, fatherhood, education, social issues and race. Martin got back into coaching to help develop young men through the game he…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/cuonzo-martin-wants-build-missouri-080138734.html
Author : Springfield News-Leader
Publish date : 2024-07-01 08:01:38
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