After a tough loss in the first round of the NCAA Tournament this past season, head coach Dennis Gates is doing everything in his power to make sure it doesn't happen again. Gates is working his magic on the recruiting trail for the Tigers as he already has one 5-star recruit, Jason Crowe Jr., and he has just officially landed his second.
Toni Bryant, a 5-star forward out of Zephyrhills, Florida, officially made his commitment to the Tigers after an official visit this past weekend in Columbia. Bryant chose the Tigers over huge blue blood programs like Arizona, UNC, Florida State, NC State, and Border War rival Kansas.
The power forward is ranked the No. 21 player in the Class of 2026, the No. 5 player at his position, adn the No. 3 player in the state of Florida according to 247Sports.
NEWS: 2026 Top-20 recruit Toni Bryant has committed to Missouri, source told @Rivals.
— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) September 8, 2025
The 6-10 power forward chose the Tigers over North Carolina, NC State, Arizona, and others. https://t.co/xJUZoiiUqm pic.twitter.com/wBfngeosgd
Bryant has a great athletic ability and is beginning to show that he can be a two-way player on the court. Coming in at 6-foot-10, he certainly will help add height to Missouri's roster and, with a good vertical, will be a difference maker in the rebounding game.
Even with another 5-star player already committed, Bryant is the third highest-ranked recruit in Missouri basketball history, coming behind Michael Porter Jr. and fellow Class of 2026 recruit Crowe Jr. This is the first time the Tigers have had two 5-star recruits in a recruiting class since 2017.
With these two commits, this gives Missouri the second-best recruiting class in the country behind Florida State, a school Bryant was being recruited by. However, he chose to show out in the black and gold for his college career. This is a big win for Gates as a head coach, and with more commitments on the horizon, he is planning on having a lot of success in the future.