Missouri Basketball: 2023-24 season preview and outlook for the Tigers
By Justin Wiles
A year ago, I’m not sure there were really any expectations for first-year Head Coach Dennis Gates and Missouri Basketball. Gates was taking over a team that was heading in the wrong direction. Under the previous regime, the recruiting wasn’t great, the offense was often stagnant, there wasn’t much to show for player improvement, and wins were becoming harder to find. There wasn’t much to cheer for. A coaching change was inevitable.
With only a couple of players returning, Dennis Gates had the tough task of rebuilding the roster in his vision. He hit the transfer portal hard, bringing in some players that he had coached before and others that he hoped would complement his style of play. Missouri fans hoped that Gates could improve the team, but expectations weren’t necessarily high.
Fast forward to today. I don’t think that any of the Missouri faithful could have predicted just how improved the Tigers would be. In just one year, Dennis Gates turned around a struggling basketball team and reignited a fanbase that was looking for something to cheer for. Missouri went from the basement of the SEC to one of the better, most exciting, teams in the conference finishing with a 25-11 overall record, winning 13 more games than they did in the prior season.
The SEC hasn’t always been the deepest basketball conference, but for Missouri to finish fourth, with an 11-7 record, in a conference that sent 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament was already a much better season than what was expected. For the first time in over a decade, Missouri made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, defeating Utah State in the First Round before getting bounced by Princeton.
Seemingly overnight Dennis Gates improved Missouri basketball, in large part to the transfers that he brought in but also to the huge leap made by Kobe Brown. Now heading into his second season leading the Tigers, Gates is again looking towards the transfer portal to fill out his roster. Unlike his first year, expectations are high for the Tigers. Can lightning strike twice in Columbia? Will Dennis Gates be able to build on the success from his first year? Can Missouri prove that they belong among the heavy hitters in not only the SEC but in all of college basketball?