Sorry for the delay on getting this out there.. I made it on Word and meant to post it that day but couldnt get to it and then forgot. You know how it is.

Barry Hinson, who failed to take Missouri State to the NCAA tournament in nine seasons, was fired last week.

Hinson had anticipated the move, which came two days after a 63-58 loss to Illinois State in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley tournament. In a release, the school said it had "reached an understanding that the program needs to go in a different direction."

Hinson was 169-117 and produced four NIT berths. His contract calls for a cancellation payment of $150,000, and the contracts for his assistants expire on June 30.

Rowe said a search for a new coach will begin immediately. He said the university will enhance the compensation package to be more competitive in the conference.

Hinson had consecutive 22-win seasons in 2005-06 and 2006-07, with top-40 RPI ratings both seasons, but Missouri State was not selected to play in the NCAA tournament. Those snubs may have cost Hinson his job.

Hinson did not attend a news conference to announce his firing and said he was a victim of economics-attendance was down this season for home games. He previously was coach for two seasons at Oral Roberts, and has a career record of 205-140.

School president Dr. Michael Nietzel attended the news conference, and said it was time for a change.

"This year, we didn't meet some of our expectations," Nietzel said. "A lot of factors go into evaluating a season, but we had hoped for and expected better results."

- Jay (KevinLoveFan)