Missouri’s Pierce led Tigers through every cycle, bringing the storm with him

Missouri Tigers junior men’s basketball player Trent Pierce has had 19 games to make a splash this season.

After nine games, he was a starter. Over the final 10, he has emerged as an integral piece of Mizzou’s puzzle, making waves with his lethal 3-point shooting and ability to fill different roles.

Pierce’s hip injury kept him out of all 13 games of nonconference play, putting the three-year veteran in a tricky spot. He made his season debut in Mizzou’s Southeastern Conference opener against reigning national champion and incoming No. 1 seed Florida.

Missouri pulled out a 76-74 win over the Gators, with Pierce’s 10 points in the second half pushing the Tigers over Florida. In his return, he got out to a slow start but eventually cast a storm over the Gators. He opened his scoring this season with an open 3 from NBA range to put Mizzou up over Florida 56-46 with 12:40 left in the game — forcing Florida to use a timeout.

Pierce let out a thunderous roar facing the student section in celebration, pounding his heart with his fist as the crowd fed off the waves Pierce created.

With 2:05 left and a one-point lead for the Tigers, Pierce sprinted the curve of the arc and splashed another 3 from the same spot off a pass from senior Mark Mitchell.

“Trent Pierce did a hell of a job for his first outing of this year,” Mizzou coach Dennis Gates said after the win.

Junior Anthony Robinson II added later in the press conference, “With everyone being healthy, you saw the potential of what we could do. With just having everybody out there, I think we made a little noise tonight. But we’re not satisfied with that.”

Pierce agreed immediately with a nod, “Like he said. We’re not satisfied.”

While Pierce’s body adjusted and got back into game shape post-injury, he steadily worked his way into the starting lineup over the course of nine games.

“Trent specifically impacts our team so much that we rank 36 in efficiency in the country since his return and 26 since Trent’s return as a starter,” Gates said before the Tigers’ season finale against Arkansas.

“So think about his change as getting healthy, but now think about the change of our team once he becomes a starter.”

Like the ocean, Pierce can be a silent yet strong force. His perimeter shooting anchors the team as he lingers in forgotten corners, punishing his opponent for losing him. On the surface, Pierce looks calm and steady, but underneath is a wave waiting to pull you under.

When the 3s aren’t dropping for the 6-foot-10 junior, he uses his height to rush the rim, pull down offensive rebounds and splash second chance points in the paint.

The tides turned for the Tigers after their first significant road win, a down-to-the-wire 86-85 victory over Texas A&M. Pierce made a splash in College Station, Texas, when he scored a season-high 23 points — just one short of his career-high — on 10-of-15 shooting from the field. He also tallied nine rebounds to set another season-high that has held true since the meeting Feb. 11.

Against the Aggies, Pierce found his flow as he flooded gaps and crashed the boards for offensive rebounds that he converted into easy scores inside. If he couldn’t find a way in, he would drain deep shots from the outside and make it rain on Texas A&M.

Though Pierce is now able to surge past defenses and ice out opponents, he first had to build up his current through physical and mental refinement.

“He hadn’t seen a shot he didn’t like, and that’s what I love most about him,” Gates said after Pierce’s first start of the season against Mississippi State on Jan. 31. “Because his freshman year, he was second guessing himself.

“And now, you look at the mental growth, the fortitude that he has, the resilience that he has. It’s a connection with his teammates, but also a connection with the growth and the process of freshman to sophomore, sophomore to junior year.”

His connection with his teammates didn’t start when he stepped on the court for the first time in January. Pierce had a goal heading into this season as a returner to help lead the squad.

“I want to be a leader on this team,” Pierce said on media day in October. “I’ve been here three years, so I want to help instill those values to the culture.”

He went on to say a leader needs two key things to be effective, “One is voice,” Pierce said. “I’ve always been naturally introverted, so growing and just being louder and talking more on the court.

“Two, you got to be able to show it. You know, do the same things that you’re telling other guys to do.”

With Pierce leading from the sidelines throughout nonconference play, he had a lot to show his teammates when he got back on the court.

“Before I came back, I was just debating like ‘What’s my impact going to look like?’ I’m out — however long I was out — I’m not going to be able to help this team,” Pierce said after Mizzou fell to Kentucky in the SEC Tournament. … “The biggest thing for me was just helping out, you know, cause I was on the bench right, so just telling guys what I see from the sidelines. Encouraging them was another huge thing, and making my way back just made it more comfortable for me.

“I was already used to being a little more vocal, (so) just getting out there on the court and continuing to do that. Being louder, vocal, helping my guys out — just the little things.”

After five games back, Pierce was named the third captain. He was in good company, joining fellow three-year returner Robinson and a close friend in Mitchell, who transferred ahead of the 2024-25 season.

“Trent was going to be a captain regardless,” Gates said ahead of the Georgia matchup, “but I didn’t want to put him in a situation where his voice was overused in nonconference play when he wasn’t out there.

“I wanted him to focus on his growth, his mental, his emotional development, while this injury was pulling him away from the team. So when you have that, you see kids naturally do things and he naturally still led — even without the title. I didn’t have to say ‘You’re a captain’ for him to initiate team building opportunities, for him to invite guys to his apartment, dinner, meals, whatever it is, together.”

Pierce continued to reach out to his teammates after he rejoined them on the court. Specifically, Pierce reached out to Robinson, who had fallen into a slump midseason.

“Ant’s good. I had dinner with him sometime last week,” Pierce said after the Mississippi State matchup in January. “We didn’t even talk basketball. I just wanted him to get back to himself outside of basketball. Because he started isolating himself a little bit, so I pulled him out and you could see the change the next day in the locker room and all that.

“I know for me, it’s just been getting him out and getting him back to himself.”

While Pierce cycled through different stages during the season — from injured, to returning, then named captain and starting — his leadership has been flowing since Day 1.

The Tigers will continue to lean on Pierce’s leadership, in addition to others, as they head into the NCAA Tournament as a No. 10 seed.

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