New Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin excited to add Jeremiah Tilmon, expects him to be eligible

New Missouri basketball coach Cuonzo Martin doesn’t anticipate any eligibility issues for East St. Louis (Ill.) center Jeremiah Tilmon, which is big news for the Tigers.

Assessing Mizzou’s roster after the signing of Michael Porter Jr. along with guards C.J. Roberts and Blake Harris, the two most glaring needs appeared to be depth at shooting guard and in the post.

The Tigers addressed the first need, landing Kassius Robertson as a graduate-student transfer from Canisius. He’s a career 40-percent three-point shooter, who averaged 15.1 points per game during the last two seasons.

Mizzou then added Tilmon on Monday, when the school announced he’d signed a financial-aid agreement.

“He’s a talented basketball player and a wonderful young man,” Martin said Thursday at a caravan stop in Kansas City. “He has good size, at 6-(foot)-10 and 235 pounds, and that’s something we felt like we needed. But he also has the ability to run the floor and to block shots, so we’re very excited to have him on board.”

Asked if there were any concerns about Tilmon’s eligibility moving forward, Martin said, “No, not as far as I’m concerned.”

Tilmon signed with Illinois in November, but asked for and received a release from the program after former coach John Groce was fired in March.

Based on his relationship with Michael Porter Jr. and the fact he’s from the same hometown as Martin, speculation in recruiting circles was that Tilmon would wind up at Mizzou.

It took a few months as Tilmon worked to finish the spring semester, but he is now in the fold for the Tigers.

Martin reiterated his belief Tilmon will be eligible to suit up next season when asked if there was any concern about his grades or college-entrance exam: “Not as far as I’m concerned, so I’m OK.”

Tilmon averaged 15.3 points with 11.0 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game last season for East St. Louis High.

This story was originally published May 18, 2017 at 8:46 PM with the headline "New Mizzou coach Cuonzo Martin excited to add Jeremiah Tilmon, expects him to be eligible."