The SEC is known for being the most talent-rich league in all of college basketball these days, landing plenty of top-50 prospects out of high school. The collective talent showed in a historic sense this past season, with a record-14 teams out of 16 making the NCAA Tournament.
The Missouri Tigers were one of them, thanks to a bunch of seniors guards including Tamar Bates and Caleb Grill. The program has had to utilize the transfer portal compared to the high school pipeline, as 5-star commits are rare for the program, with Michael Porter Jr. being the last commit nearly a decade ago.
However, Coach Dennis Gates has been more aggressive in pursuing high school targets, getting in the mix with several top-tier prospects. And in the past week, he secured a major commitment from one of the best players to ever commit to the Tigers out of high school.
NEWS: 5⭐️ Jason Crowe Jr. has committed to Missouri, source told @Rivals. He’s the program’s second-highest ranked recruit ever — only behind Michael Porter Jr.
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) July 18, 2025
The 6-3 guard and top-10 player chose the Tigers over Kentucky, USC, others.
Monumental pickup for Dennis Gates.… pic.twitter.com/PZu2jqwsd3
Jason Crowe Jr. is a 6’3 ball-handler who is a consensus top-10 overall player in the 2026 recruiting class. He’s an explosive scoring guard who can shoot at a high clip and will be an early contender for a top pick in the 2027 NBA Draft.
Crowe didn’t have a list of options throughout his recruitment but reportedly, the Kentucky Wildcats were viewed as a prime contender for his services. In the end, Crowe picked another SEC program in Missouri for his college destination. Regardless of who is on the Tigers’ roster a year from now, look for Crowe to be a focal point of that roster and one of the best players in the SEC.
The recruiting arms race in the SEC continues, with even Missouri landing five-star talents. Who is next in the conference to land a star player? We’ll see in the coming weeks who the next star commit is in the league.