The Portal Giveth & The Portal Taketh Away

At this point, if you were playing a weird little party game where you’re blindfolded and asked to randomly point at the 2021-22 team poster, it’s all but a certainty that the player (or coach) you’d land on is no longer with Mizzou Hoops.

Tuesday we poured one out for oft-injured freshman post player Yaya Keita, who announced his intention to transfer to @VerbalCommits. Matthew J Harris was a fan.

From Sam’s post on this here website:

Keita was never a player who looked like a star at the next level, but he was a mobile and athletic body with good size and soft hands who was still working on the finer points of being a basketball player. He provided consistent defense, and looked to be rounding back into basketball shape when he landed awkwardly and injuried his non-repaired knee in the road game against Vanderbilt. After that he didn’t play the rest of the season.

It really was a tough break for the kid, and I’m sad to see him go. I hope he heals up nicely and finds a new home. Could he join Javon at SLU, maybe? Close to home? Why not?!?

However, before we move on from Yaya, I’d love to redirect your attention to Joel Lorenzi’s absolutely wonderful story on Keita he published on PowerMizzou in August 2021. I’ve read it several times. It’s a truly great (and heartbreaking at times) story by a supremely talented writer who is going to do great things at the Omaha World-Herald, where he just took a job.

Before the Yaya news came down, we were left wondering who would be the next to go, as Dennis Gates posted his patented bat signal. Would it finally be rumored but yet-to-be-named JUCO HC Kyle Smithpeters? Would it be Connor Turnbull, who just visited this weekend? The Citadel’s Adam Roche? Bellermine’s Dylan Penn? LSU/MU’s Xavier Pinson? (I kid) We all held in our collective breath as WFMHBCDG made us wait for many hours - almost six - before we would learn that it was, in fact, another Tiger (a Clemson Tiger, to be exact), in PG Nick Honor, who’d visited CoMo in the last couple weeks.

Sam wrote up a nice post about him for the site, of course, but I liked this (from Dickie V), his recent All-ACC Academic honors (for the second time), and THIS ⬇️

Welcome, Nick!

For those keeping track:

Might as well stick with the basketball news up top, huh? Especially since the softball game was postponed as Mother Nature has other plans for the midweek game.

Contract details were revealed today for Mizzou’s new assistants (it’s not on MUTigers.com yet).

Charles “CY” Young will be making a cool $300K base salary, with another $300K guaranteed for the next three years as non-salary compensation (wowsers), while David “Dickie” Nutt will earn $160K on a one-year deal.

Young’s deal, according to PowerMizzou, also includes a “possibility of incentives for athletic and academic achievements subject to the approval of the athletic director.” Should he leave Mizzou for another job before his contract is up, he’d owe the school “the pro-rated portion of the remaining base salary on the contract. However, if he leaves for a head coaching job, that payment is nullified.”

For those keeping track of the numbers, this means there is approximately $160K for the remaining yet-to-be-named coach… unless some other funds suddenly appear.

And I’d be remiss to not mention this cute as hell moment at the “St. Louis Come Home Tour” at the STL Music Park. Eli Drinkwitz, Dennis Gates, Robin Pingeton and Desiree Reed-Francois were listed as attendees.

On to the links!

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Yesterday at Rock M

• Nate (the Great) started out the football previews — it’s time for this already?????- with Louisiana Tech. Nate doesn’t like this matchup that much.
• Sam broke the news of Yaya Keita’s transfer.
• Sam broke the news about Clemson transfer Nick Honor’s commitment.
• Sam updated the transfer tracker.
• IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: I recapped Mizzou Softball’s Easter weekend. There were positives! And no, I’m not just being a sunshine pumper!

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More Links:

Football

• There’s a flash sale! According to MUTigers.com:

For the next week, Mizzou fans will have the opportunity to purchase tickets for the primetime home opener matchup starting at $20. Tickets included in the offer are on the east side of the stadium – lower bowl seating in sections 102-106 for $40 and upper bowl seating in sections 305-311 for $20. The sale runs from 8pmTuesday until 11:59pm Monday.

• This is an excellent thread from @NCAAFootballNation247 on the Tigers’ Spring Game. It’s long, so click on it and scroll through for some observations and video. We love to see it.

• Congrats to Cannon York for winning this amazing honor at the ROARS:

• Is this real? If so, HILARIOUS.

• Tyler Badie, answering the TOUGH questions

• Biggest congrats to GP, who will be officially inducted into the College Football HOF on Dec. 6 in Vegas.

Hoops

• Dennis Gates finds himself mentioned in this 247 Sports article by Adam Finkelstein on the recruiting success of six new first year coaches.
• Additionally, On3’s Jamie Shaw named Gates one of her Three early winners of college basketball’s transfer portal season.
• Nick Honor commitment/ Yaya Keita transfer news: Chris Kwiecinski (Columbia Tribune). Dave Matter (St. Louis Post-Dispatch). Gabe DeArmond (PowerMizzou). Anthony Kristensen (Columbia Missourian). Keith Farner (Saturday Down South).
• Gabe DeArmond (PowerMizzou) also covered the contract news, as well as talking with new commit Nick Honor on why he chose Mizzou.
• Women’s Hoops had a good night at the ROARS, and Lauren Hanse snagged the Highlight of the Year- female, as well as the Team Community Service Award. It should be no surprise about the highlight, as Lo’s basket clinched Mizzou’s win over no. 1 South Carolina.

Where did all the Transfers Go? [to be sung to the tune of this song]

• Oh hey, DaJuan! Congrats on your move to New Mexico State!

• Sean Durugordon is visiting BYU, according to this report.

Diamond Sports

• Baseball was back on Tuesday night, facing off against Missouri State, and they won, 6-5. Far too close for my liking, as the Bears actually out-hit the Tigers nine hits to five, weirdly enough. Mizzou was up 5-0 after three (they exploded that inning), but almost gave the damned thing away in the ninth. They stranded a whopping TEN runners on base.
• According to the Missourian’s Tanner Ludwig, much of the Tigers’ offense came from Luke Mann, who went 2-3 with a home run and three RBIs; he’s been awesome in SEC play. Tiger relievers had some BIG trouble, as both Kyle Potthoff, Kyle Brown, and Rock Bridge alum Spencer Nivens had some issues. Ian Lohse came in to (literally) save the game and get out of the jam, striking out the Bears’ most dangerous hitter to save the day.

But a win is a win? Sure….

• Miss the new Tiger Talk with Coach Anderson? You can check it out here!

• Softball appears to have cleaned up at the annual ROARS on Monday night. For those not familiar, it’s the year-end red carpet (or gold carpet) awards ceremony that’s “Part ESPYS, Part Oscars, All Mizzou” that celebrates the accomplishments of Mizzou student athletes over the past year.

• In Chris Blake’s weekly SEC recap, FOUR conference teams pulled off sweeps, unbelievably. It wasn’t Mizzou, guys! They won one!

Other Mizzou Sports

• Swim & Dive also cleaned up at the ROARS, earning six awards on the night. Congrats to the entire team for receiving the Tiger Cup Trophy, as well as Sarah Thompson (Mizzou Made Award- female), Jack DuBois (Letterwinner Club- male & Community Service Award- male), Amy Fedderson (Community Service Award- female), and Alex Moore (For the Love of the Game- male). Read more from the Missourian’s Nick Noll.

According to MUTigers.com, the Tiger Cup “awards points based on academic achievement, community service, career services and workshops, athletic success, athletes supporting athletes, and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) events.”

• The Missourian’s Chad Silvey said MU Men’s Golf is carrying its most successful stretch of season into the SEC Championships where they’ll face 11 top-50 opponents. Play starts today at Sea Island’s golf Club in St. Simons Island.

Over a three-week span from the end of March through the middle of April, the Missouri men’s golf team picked up back-to-back wins at the Hootie at Bulls Bay in South Carolina and the MU Tiger Invitational in Columbia. The 45th-ranked Tigers climbed to their highest ranking of the season while also picking up multiple individual honors.

• Per Kenny Van Doren (Missourian), Tiger Cross Country announced the signing of fifth year Wash U transfer Jacob Ridderhoff on Monday. Jacob is a three-time NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field All-American and an Outdoor Track & Field National Qualifier in 2019.
• Other ROARS winners, according to MUTigers.com: wrestling’s NCAA Champion Keegan O’Toole was recognized as the Norris Stevenson Male Athlete of the Year, while track and field’s Arianna Fisher earned the Debbie Walker Female Athlete of the Year award. Wrestling Head Coach Brian Smith won Coach of the Year (no surprises there).
• Congrats to Martin Prodanov, who broke a Bulgarian record in the 1500M this past weekend. Way to go, Martin!

Mizzou in the Pros (AKA Utah Jazz Corner)

• In Game One of the Western Conference first round on Saturday, Quin Snider’s Jazz squad beat Dallas, 99-93. JC only played 20 minutes (that is way less than normal), and scored 10 points on 4-7 shooting (0-2 from three, 2-2 FT) with 1 REB, 3 TO & 3 PF. He was +0 on the night.

In Game Two, the Jazz were… not victorious, losing to the Mavs 104-110 on Monday night. JC played 23 mins in this one (again, kinda low), and scored 21 points on 8-11 shooting (3-4 from three, 2-2 FT) with 1 REB, 2 AST, 1 TO, & 5 PF. He was +1 on the night.

Next up: The Jazz play Game Three Thursday at 8pm on NBA TV. They’re favored by 6, I think.

• The Salt Lake City Tribune/Salt Lake City Hoops’ Riley Gisseman looked at why Jordan Clarkson’s midrange success will be key to the Utah Jazz’s playoff success, saying the reigning Sixth Man of the Year seemed to unlock something with his 45-point performance against the Sacramento Kings late in the regular season.
• No, it’s not a part of Jordan Clarkson corner, but a Mizzou athlete nonetheless… Michael Sam has signed on as a coach for the Barcelona Dragons as an Assistant DL coach, according to the Missourian’s Kenny Van Doren, where he hopes to instill what he learned from Coach Kool.

“[I want to teach] Coach Kuligowski’s techniques and fundamentals. It’s the little things, and it counts and it works. Just watch my tape, I’m not really doing anything special. Everything I’m doing is what I did in practice. So, it carries on from practice to the field, and it works.”

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