Jalen Hampton commits to Missouri State basketball, Cuonzo Martin

For the second time, Jalen Hampton has committed to Missouri State men's basketball and it appears he will suit up for the Bears this time.

Hampton announced his commitment on Instagram on Thursday afternoon. The 39th-ranked juco transfer by JucoRecruiting.com has two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Hampton initially committed to Missouri State in 2021 under Dana Ford but decided to follow associate head coach Corey Gipson when he was hired as head coach at Northwestern State. After Gipson left to become head coach at Austin Peay, his alma mater, after one year, Hampton opted to transfer to South Plains College, a Texas junior college program.

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There, the 6-foot-7 forward from University City High in St. Louis averaged 13.1 points and 9.1 rebounds for the program that gave Missouri State Gaige Prim, one of the best post players in the school's history. Hampton was 61.8% from the field and only took 19 shots from deep.

He was an immediate contributor as a freshman at Northwestern State for Gipson by starting 25 games, averaging 10.2 points on 65.1% shooting with 9.1 boards.

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Hampton played one year at Branson's Link Year Prep after four seasons at University City High in St. Louis. He was a first-team all-state performer as a senior averaging 19 points and almost seven rebounds per game.

Hampton becomes the 10th player to commit to Cuonzo Martin since he was hired as Missouri State's head coach. He's one of five players with two years of eligibility remaining. Martin has at least one scholarship to use before the 2024-25 season.

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Jalen Hampton commits to Missouri State basketball, Cuonzo Martin