SEC Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2024-25 season

11. Missouri Tigers

It’s hard to rank Missouri much higher after what transpired last season. The Tigers failed to win a single conference game and were wildly inconsistent on both defense and offense. All the magic that Dennis Gates had in his first season, was completely used up by last year. 

Most of the team from last year is gone, but Tamar Bates (13.5 ppg) returns to add some stability to the starting lineup. The additions of Tony Perkins (14.0 ppg) and Mark Mitchell (11.6 ppg, 6.0 rpg) will provide some much-needed experience to the team as both played multiple seasons at high major programs. Perkins played four years at Iowa and Mitchell played two years at Duke. Dennis Gates also reached into the mid-major ranks to find some volume scorers. Jacob Crews (19.1 ppg) was a 41.4 percent three-point shooter last year at UT-Martin, and Marquis Warrick (19.9 ppg) scored more than 2,000 points over his four years at Northern Kentucky. 

The defense will need to improve a great deal if the Tigers want to compete in the SEC. Last year Missouri gave up over 76 points per game and was one of the worst rebounding teams in the country. Luckily for Missouri Caleb Grill returns this season. Last year Grill (5.8 rpg) was the Tigers' top defender and rebounder before missing most of the season to injury. The addition of Josh Gray out of the portal gives the Tigers a true big man to anchor the defense.

It’s easy to see that all of the offseason additions have improved Missouri. Along with the solid transfer class, Dennis Gates and the Tigers signed the No. 5 recruiting class in the nation. Luckily for Missouri, it won’t have to rely on the freshman to play a huge role this season which should allow them time to develop. 

Missouri should once again be competitive. The roster is far too experienced and talented to go without a single conference win for a second straight year. The Tigers might surprise some with a solid offense, but that won’t matter if the defense doesn’t get drastically better from the jump this season. The middle of the SEC is wide open and as long as everything comes together Missouri will be a tough team to beat.