The Missouri Tigers went 20-13 and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year last season. (Photo: Cedric Williams)
BIRMINGHAM, AL — Despite having assembled one of its best ever offseason transfer and high school recruiting classes, the University of Missouri men’s basketball team was picked to finish eighth in the Southeastern Conference standings this season, in a preseason poll released by the league on Monday.
A select group of league and national media members voted in the poll and are predicting the Tigers will finish in the middle of the pack of the 16-team SEC this season.
Additionally, no members of the Missouri team were named to the All-SEC first-, second-, or third-teams.
Highly-touted newcomers Bryson Tiller and Jason Crowe, Jr., will be feature players for the Missouri Tigers basketball team this season. (Image courtesy: Mizzou Athletics)
Unsurprisingly, voters picked Florida to win the SEC for the second straight year. The Gators, who were also a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament last year, bring back four starters and also added a number of top transfers, which has many believing Florida might be the best team in the entire country, heading into the season.
Texas was picked to finish second, with Arkansas, Tennessee, and Alabama rounding out the top five. Vanderbilt and Kentucky landed the sixth and seventh spots, ahead of Mizzou, with Texas A&M and Auburn coming in just behind for spots No. 9 and 10.
SEC PRESEASON MEDIA POLL
| Rank | Team |
| 1. | Florida |
| 2. | Texas |
| 3. | Arkansas |
| 4. | Tennessee |
| 5. | Alabama |
| 6. | Vanderbilt |
| 7. | Kentucky |
| 8. | MIZZOU |
| 9. | Texas A&M |
| 10. | Auburn |
| 11. | Georgia |
| 12. | Oklahoma |
| 13. | Ole Miss |
| 14. | LSU |
| 15. | Mississippi State |
| 16. | South Carolina |
Mizzou will open its season on Tuesday, November 3, with a home game at Mizzou Arena against Cleveland State. Before that, the Tigers will play a pair of road exhibition games — October 23 at Kansas State and October 29 at UNLV.
St. Louis area Mizzou fans will get their chance to see the Tigers in person and in town, when they take on SLU on Friday, November 6, in a game at Enterprise Center.
2026-27 MISSOURI TIGERS MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
| Date | Time | At | Opponent | Location | TV | Radio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 23, 2026 (Friday) | TBD | Away | Kansas State (exhibition) | Manhattan, KS | ||
| October 29, 2026 (Thursday) | 9 pm | Away | UNLV (exhibition) | Las Vegas, NV |  | |
| November 3, 2026 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Home | Cleveland State | Mizzou Arena |  |  |
| November 6, 2026 (Friday) | 6 pm | Neutral | Saint Louis | St. Louis, Mo. (Enterprise Center) |  | |
| November 9, 2026 (Monday) | 7 pm | Home | SIU-Edwardsville | Mizzou Arena | | |
| November 15, 2026 (Sunday) | 1:30 pm | Neutral | Marquette | Chicago, IL |  | |
| November 18, 2026 (Wednesday) | 8 pm | Home | Alcorn State | Mizzou Arena |  | |
| November 20, 2026 (Friday) | 7 pm | Home | Le Moyne | Mizzou Arena | | |
| November 24, 2026 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Home | Evansville | Mizzou Arena | | |
| November 27, 2026 (Friday) | 3 pm | Home | Arkansas-Pine Bluff | Mizzou Arena | | |
| December 1, 2026 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Home | Pittsburgh | Mizzou Arena | | |
| December 6, 2026 (Sunday) | 4 pm | Neutral | Kansas | Kansas City, MO |  | |
| December 12, 2026 (Saturday) | 6 pm | Neutral | Nebraska | Kansas City, MO | | |
| December 18, 2026 (Friday) | 6 pm | Away | Indiana | Bloomington, IN |  | |
| December 20, 2026 (Sunday) | 6:30 pm | Neutral | Illinois | St. Louis, Mo. (Enterprise Center) |  | |
| December 22, 2026 (Tuesday) | 7 pm | Home | Chicago State | Mizzou Arena | | |
| January 2, 2027 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Away | Arkansas* | Fayetteville, AR |  | |
| January 5, 2027 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Home | Texas A&M* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| January 9, 2027 (Saturday) | 3 pm | Home | Kentucky* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| January 13, 2027 (Wednesday) | 6 pm | Away | Tennessee* | Knoxville, TN | | |
| January 16, 2027 (Saturday) | 12 pm | Home | South Carolina* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| January 19, 2027 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Oklahoma* | Norman, OK | | |
| January 23, 2027 (Saturday) | 7 pm | Away | Vanderbilt* | Nashville, TN | | |
| January 26, 2027 (Tuesday) | 8 pm | Home | Alabama* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| January 30, 2027 (Saturday) | 5 pm | Home | Ole Miss* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| February 3, 2027 (Wednesday) | 7 pm | Away | Mississippi State* | Starkville, MS | | |
| February 6, 2027 (Saturday) | 12 pm | Home | Tennessee* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| February 13, 2027 (Saturday) | 11 am | Away | Florida* | Gainesville, FL | | |
| February 16, 2027 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Home | Oklahoma* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| February 20, 2027 (Saturday) | 11 am | Away | Auburn* | Auburn, AL | | |
| February 23, 2027 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Home | Arkansas* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| February 27, 2027 (Saturday) | 5 pm | Away | Georgia* | Athens, GA | | |
| March 2, 2027 (Tuesday) | 6 pm | Away | Texas* | Austin, TX | | |
| March 6, 2027 (Saturday) | 1 pm | Home | LSU* | Mizzou Arena | | |
| March 10-14, 2027 | TBD | Neutral | SEC Tournament | Nashville, TN | | |
* – denotes Southeastern Conference game