Who is a Missourian supposed to root for in NCAA Tournament?

The state of Missouri once again has zero basketball teams in this year’s March Madness, so you may be at a loss for who to root for.  If you are a true Missouri basketball junkie, then there are several teams, or at least several players, you can cheer for over the next few weeks.  Although there are no Missouri teams, there are several Missouri star high school players in the NCAA basketball tournament this year playing with teams from the top to the bottom of the rankings.

Kansas Jayhawks

Let’s start at the top with the 1 seed in the Midwest, the Kansas Jayhawks.  I know there are many of you

who would never root for the dreaded Jayhawks, but at least two of their best players hail from Missouri high schools.  Ochai Agbaji is one of the best players in the country and was just named the Big 12 tournament’s most outstanding player after also being named the conference player of the year. The 6’5” guard may play for Kansas but graduated from Oak Park High School in the Kansas City area.  He was named the Greater Kansas City Basketball Coaches Association player of the year during his senior season in 2017-18 and was named All State in both his junior and senior seasons. 

He lost out on the Missouri Mr. Show Me Basketball in his senior year to Courtney Ramey of Webster Groves, who you will read about later.  And if you can’t bring yourself to support for Agbaji at Kansas, you will likely have the chance to cheer for him in the NBA next year.

Also on the KU roster is Dajuan Harris, Jr., a sophomore guard from Columbia Rock Bridge. He helped the Bruins win the state title in 2019, going 25-3 that season and earning All-State honors.  He played alongside Isiaih Mosley, who is now playing at Missouri State.  Rock Bridge defeated CBC out of St. Louis for the title that year which had Caleb Love on their roster, who is now playing for North Carolina.

Purdue Boilermakers

The last name of Chase Martin should give you a good idea of his basketball pedigree.  His father is Cuonzo Martin, the former basketball coach at Mizzou.  Like his dad, Chase decided to play at Purdue, where the Boilermakers had a fantastic season and are seeded 3^rd in the East Regional. In High School, Chase helped lead the basketball powerhouse, Tolton High School. 

Martin isn’t seeing much playing time at Purdue this season because the team is stacked and is likely be used as a reserve in the tournament.

Texas Longhorns

The Texas Longhorns are the number 6 seed in the East Regional and feature a pair of Missouri prep hoops superstars.  Courtney Ramey, the 2018 Missouri Mr. Show Me Basketball, is the starting point guard for the Longhorns.  He has been the floor general all season for Texas, playing more than 30 minutes per game and averaging 9.5 points and 3.5 rebounds per game. 

The 6’3” senior is one of the most heralded high school players in Missouri history, leading the Webster Groves Statesmen to two state titles.

Also on the roster is Christian Bishop, the 6’7” forward from Lee’s Summit West.  He transferred to Texas after three years at Creighton. Bishop is averaging 6.8 points per game along with 5.6 rebounds.  Bishop was an All-State player in 2018, which was arguably one of the most talented senior classes in Missouri history. 

So if you are looking for a team to root for that will feature a lot of floor time from Missouri natives, Texas might be your choice this year.

North Carolina

Caleb Love was high school phenom coming out of CBC High School in the St. Louis suburbs.  He was Mr. Show Me State Basketball in 2020 after wowing fans at gyms across the state.  He has started nearly every game for the perennial college basketball powerhouse, North Carolina.  During this sophomore year for the Tar Heels, he averaged more than 15 points a game.  Although the Heels had an “off” year, they are still a number 8 seed in the East Regional. 

The 6’4” guard also on the Gatorade Player of the Year in Missouri and made an immediate impact in college, being named to the ACC All-Freshman team last year. 

Creighton

Ryan Kalkbrenner was the big man from the small school in St. Louis.  The 7’1” center was a four-star recruit coming out of Trinity Catholic High and picked Creighton over offers from much higher profile universities.  The two-time All-State player made an immediate impact for the Blue Jay as a Freshman in 2020 and average 6 points.  During his sophomore campaign, he averaged 13 points and nearly 7 rebounds per game as the team went 22-11.

Richmond

The 12-seed Richmond Spiders have a pair of Missouri prep hoops stars on their roster.  Jacob Gilyard is three-time All-State selection at The Barstow School in Kansas City and even named the Class 3 Player of the Year in 2017.  The 5’9” guard was a star for the Spiders from day one and continued his track record of success over the years at Richmond.  He led the nation in steals as a senior and named to the Second Team All Atlantic 10. He then announced he would return for a fifth year and led the team to a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Fellow Kansas City hoop star Liam Weaver joined Gilyard at Richmond this year.  Weaver is a 6’2” guard from powerhouse Pembroke Hill where he was a Class 4 All-Stater in 2021 and McDonald’s All-American nominee.

New Mexico State

High school legend Mario McKinney first took his talents to Mizzou but ended up with New Mexico State University in 2021.  He was awarded the top player in Missouri during his senior season at Vashon High by numerous recruiting sites.  McKinney played sparingly at the University of Missouri his freshman season and transferred to a junior college during his sophomore campaign.  He has played in every game for the Aggies this season averaging 4 points per game.   New Mexico State is the 12 seed in the West Regional and takes on 5 seed U Conn in the first round.

Texas Southern

Little known 16 seed Texas Southern University boasts 6’7” Yahuza Rasas from St. Louis.  Rasas played at St. Mary’s High School, then attended Mineral Area College before heading to Texas.  During his three years at Texas Southern the forward has averaged nearly 7 points per game.  The Tigers have a play-in game in the Midwest Regional, and if they win will play Kansas. So, watch quickly.