Missouri’s incoming freshmen already transforming basketball program

Missouri needed a fresh start.

Perhaps more than any team in the country and any team in program history, the Tigers desperately needed to turn the page after a 9-23 season and last-place finish in the 14-team Southeastern Conference.

The mounting losses last season, including a program-record 13-game losing streak in conference play, understandably led to mounting frustration.

“It was depressing at times,” forward Ryan Rosburg, the Tigers’ only senior, said when asked about last season. “Every aspect of your life, it seemed like in the back of your mind was how the season went and how it finished.”

The arrival of four freshmen in June served as a turning point and, in some ways, marked the official end to a disappointing 2014-15 season — one MU men’s basketball coach Kim Anderson would prefer remain dead and buried, never to be brought up.

“We always say we’re moving on to bigger and better things this season, but, of course, we’re still angry about last season,” freshman forward Kevin Puryear said. “We still have a chip on our shoulder about last season.

“I think the biggest thing for us freshmen is we want to help the guys from last year who had to endure that — we don’t want to them to endure that again. We’re really fighting for each other and playing for each other on the court.”

To that end, Puryear, point guard Terrence Phillips, shooting guard K.J. Walton and three-point specialist Cullen VanLeer brought a surge of energy and fill glaring holes from last season’s roster.

They brought new life and renewed optimism as Anderson’s second season as head coach at his alma mater dawns.

Missouri lacked leadership last season. Nobody served as a rallying beacon to bring the Tigers together in times of trouble, and the result was a fractured team that played, at times, lifeless and selfish.

The offense was particularly abysmal.

Missouri never shot better than 51.0 percent or scored more than 79 points in any game.

The Tigers only had seven games with more assists than turnovers.

Ball-handling in general and, specifically, an inability to break down defenses with dribble penetration — getting to the rim for layups or easy dump-offs to teammates — was a consistent problem.

Enter Phillips, a pass-first creative force and, perhaps more importantly, a charismatic leader. He’s been a galvanizing figure from the moment he arrived in Columbia and really, through his tireless cheerleading for the Tigers on social media, even before it.

“The freshmen are energy guys,” Anderson said. “It starts with Terrence. Terrence is obviously an enthusiastic guy.”

Phillips, a graduate of Oak Hill Academy in Virginia and a Los Angeles native, is a floor burn waiting to happen, an active defender in the press or passing lanes and fearless with the ball in his hands.

He makes things happen for teammates, and the Tigers have already adopted his positive outlook and team-first approach.

Missouri remains undersized, and the Tigers were often bullied in the paint last season.

Puryear — the reigning DiRenna Award winner after leading Blue Springs South to a state title last season — might not possess ideal size in the post at only 6 feet 7, but he brings a tenacity on the boards.

Wofford coach Mike Young certainly was impressed after watching Puryear drop in 20 points with five rebounds in his college debut Friday, an 83-74 MU win.

“We had some high school film on him, but just not enough film,” Young said. “He’s a little bit bigger and a little wider than we thought it was. … That’s a pretty good kick-start to a career for that young man.”

Puryear also has a work ethic that resonates with teammates, who said he cajoles them to go harder on a near-daily basis in practice.

Missouri also needed to get more athletic at both ends of the floor.

Walton arrived at MU with a reputation as a potential lockdown perimeter defender. He’s also shown more ability to slash to the rim and shoot from long range than anticipated.

Walton is the only Rivals four-star recruit among the incoming freshmen.

Anderson said Walton improved by working relentlessly in the gym during the summer along with the other three freshmen and several returning players.

“He has taken good shots and, more importantly, he has done a good job getting himself in a position for one of our guards to get him the ball and get good shots,” Anderson said.

Walton brings with him a bump in basketball IQ at both ends of the floor. He should help the Tigers — who shot 56.0 percent from the field and scored 83 points against Wofford, marks that topped any game last season — be more efficient.

Midway through the second half against Wofford, VanLeer spotted up in the right corner, where he received a pass from sophomore Tramaine Isabell.

The crowd went breathlessly silent as VanLeer made a three-pointer that pumped Missouri’s lead back to double figures.

He provides much-needed perimeter scoring punch for a squad that shot 31.4 percent from long range in conference games last season.

“I can come in and knock down shots. That’s what they recruited me to do, so that’s what I’m going to do for them,” said VanLeer, who scored more than 2,000 points in his career at Pacific (Mo.) High.

He’s the quietest player among the new freshmen, but collectively that group’s impact already has been loud in program-changing way.

“When you watch us play now, I think it looks completely different and it feels different too, knowing that guys want to make that extra pass and guys are just as happy if they make that assist or that hockey assist, whatever it is,” Rosburg said. “They’re happy for their teammates for making the shot just because they set it up. It’s more a team-oriented feel.”

This story was originally published November 14, 2015 at 4:30 PM with the headline "Missouri’s incoming freshmen already transforming basketball program."