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SEC Basketball: Ranking all 14 head coaches heading into 2023-24 season

By Caleb Hall

Mar 22, 2023; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Eric Musselman during practice at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 22, 2023; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks head coach Eric Musselman during practice at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports /
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SEC Basketball Missouri Tigers head coach Dennis Gates Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
SEC Basketball Missouri Tigers head coach Dennis Gates Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 8 Dennis Gates, Missouri Tigers

Dennis Gates took over the Missouri Tigers last season and it may have been the playbook for how to turn a team around in the offseason. Gates had been an assistant in college basketball since the early 2000s with jobs at Florida State, Cal, Nevada, and Northern Illinois.

Until he got the head coaching job at Cleveland State where to led to the round of 64 in year 2 and went 39-19 on his last two seasons there. Missouri then hired him last season where he used the transfer portal to retool the entire team and lead them to a 25-10 (11-7) record. Where they finished tied for 4th in the SEC and made it to the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.

Gates showed that he could turn an entire team around that had only won 12 games the year before and lead them to 25 total wins, a top 4 conference finish, and win an NCAA tournament game. Missouri looks to be on the rise in the SEC, while Gates is also a rising coach. He did what coaches like Kenny Payne wished they could do in year 1.

Gates continues to rise the ranks and the only reason he isn’t higher is just based on the fact he is in his first year coaching at a power 5 program. If he can keep up his success that he established last season he will only continue to become a more recognizable coach in the world of college basketball.

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