How Mizzou Women's Basketball Newcomers Will Factor Into the 2025-2026 Season

After taking a year away from coaching, Kellie Harper is back on the sidelines, taking over the Missouri women's basketball program. Harper replaces longtime coach Robin Pingeton, who mutually parted ways with the program in March. Left behind was a shell of a Southeastern Conference roster.

Harper is new to the school herself, but the immediate focus after her introduction was to fill out the Tigers' roster. Only five players return from the 2024-2025 Missouri team. Through the limited transfer and late freshman recruiting windows, Harper added eight newcomers — seven transfers and a single freshman.

"Had to happen in a hurry," Harper said about assembling the team.

Plenty of questions remain for Missouri and Harper. Several players made the jump to the SEC after standing out at mid-major schools. Others make lateral, or even downward, moves from power conferences and more successful programs in hopes of increased playing time. Some have barely set foot on a college court if ever. Backgrounds aside, this is the inaugural recruiting class of the Harper era at Missouri and can dictate the program's success for years to come.

"We had to get our returners established, and then we had to go out and address some needs," Harper said. "I've taken over several programs, but this is the first time I've done it with the transfer portal being a big option and a necessity."

Harper emphasized the desire to push the pace in the half-court. That focus is evident through the crop of newcomers and their collective playstyles. So, who are the newest members of the Tigers' roster?

Jordana Reisma

Senior, forward, 6'3

Reisma is the most exciting addition to Harper's inaugural recruiting class. She will be a focus in the front court for the Tigers this season. Last year, Reisma averaged 14.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game as a junior for Cleveland State — all of which are among the top-7 best rates in the conference.

Most notably, Resima holds the crown of the nation's most efficient player, leading the country at a .677 clip from the field. She was named to the All-Horizon League 2nd Team and the Horizon All-Defensive Team for the 2024-2025 season.

Missouri lacks depth at big, and Reisma is the best true frontcourt player on the roster. Returnee Grace Slaughter, who is more of a guard/forward, will assist her alongside third-year forward Hanna Linthacum.

"Anybody can look at our roster and put two and two together and realize that there's not a lot of depth in that center position," Harper said. "Jordana is going to be really critical, because she is going to get a big chunk of minutes playing that [center] position."

Shannon Dowell

Junior, guard, 5'10

As a sophomore at Illinois State, Dowell broke out as one of the best scorers in the Missouri Valley Conference. Primarily operating as an inside-the-arc scorer, she posted an average of 17.6 points per game for the Redbirds. Dowell was named to the All-MVC Second Team before transferring to Missouri this past offseason.

Dowell lacks a consistent outside shot and playmaking capabilities, but makes up for it with tenacious effort on the glass, grabbing 5.2 rebounds a night last season. Offensively, she is most effective with the ball in her hands, scoring efficiently at the basket. Dowell shot .535 from inside the arc. At Missouri's Media Day, she mentioned the offseason emphasis on developing an outside shot.

"She [coach Harper] not only told me what she already thought I was good at, but hoe she coudl grow me and my mindset and make me overall a more dominant basketball player," Dowell said.

Saniah Tyler

Senior, guard, 5'6

Tyler has proven her capibilities of being a double-digit scorer in the SEC in her second season with Kentucky. However, last year as a junior, Tyler slid down the rotation for the Wildcats and her scoring number plummeted. After averaging 10.2 points as a sophomore, she only posted a single 10+ point scoring game a season ago. With a move to Columbia, for her final collegiate season, Tyler will likely return to a feature role in an SEC lineup.

In the 2023-2024 season, Tyler ranked 5th in the conference in made three-pointers. She sank 61 threes on .345 efficiency that season. Despite the decline in production, she improved that rate to .364 as a junior. Tyler's weaknesses are evident when she ventures from the three-point line. On shots inside the arc, Tyler has shot .342 and .286 as a sophomore and junior, respectively.

Tyler and the Tigers will match up with her former team in Missouri's first road game of conference play on Jan. 4 in Lexington, Ky.

Chloe Sotell

Sophomore, guard, 6'0

A former member of high school powerhouse, Montverde Academy, Sotell was a two-time National Champion in the high school ranks. From there, she spent her lone college season with Pepperdine. She took on lead-guard duties for the Waves, averaging 10.6 points and 3 assists while leading her team in scoring and passing.

Sotell is a fearless shot-taker, having launched 195 threes as a freshman — the second most in the West Coast Conference. She made her threes at a .313 clip, which was enough for the 4th-best in the conference. Among the top first-year players in the league, Sotell earned All-WCC Freshman Team honors.

Lisa Thompson

Junior, guard, 5'9

Another guard who brings power conference experience is Thompson, who spent two seasons at Rutgers out of high school. As a freshman, Thompson was 6th on the team in scoring, averaging 6.7 points per game for the Scarlet Knights. Her scoring average dropped 4.7 points as a sophomore.

Jayla Smith

Redshirt-Senior, guard, 6'0

Smith enters her fifth year at the collegiate level, having competed in the Big Ten for Purdue each of the last four seasons. In what was supposed to be her senior season a year ago, Smith suffered an injury in just the second game for the Boilermakers and opted to redshirt, retaining her eligibility and transferring to Missouri.

As a high school standout, Smith was among the Top-50 recruits in the 2021 class. She was named the 2021 Indiana Miss Basketball, the award given to the top player in the state. She followed up a storied high school career as a consistent contributor off the bench for the Boilermakers. As a sophomore, Smith averaged a career-best 7.8 points per game, which was fourth-best on the team.

Sydney Mains

Sophomore, guard, 5'10

Mains offers a limited sample size of playing time in college. She spent her freshman year at Florida Atlantic, appearing in just 3 games for the Owls before going down with a season-ending injury.

Looking back to her high school career and the shortened freshman year, Mains will likely contribute as another three-point specialist. She only got seven shots up in competition for the Owls, all of which were behind the arc. She played under her father, Travis Mains, at Knoxville Catholic High School in Tennessee. Mains won two Class 2A State Championships while scoring 2,325 career points and making 356 three-pointers in high school.

Reka Toman

Freshman, forward, 6'0

Toman is Missouri's latest addition to the current roster and the biggest question mark as the team's lone freshman. The freshman forward from Hungary has experience playing on the world stage. She competed for her country in the 2025 World Cup and previously on the U18 and U16 teams. She scored 10.3 points per game and recorded 4.7 rebounds per contest for Hungary in this year's World Cup.