Return of Stone, Pierce Makes a True Difference for Mizzou in Florida Win

Even if it wasn't the prettiest team performance, it's very clear that Jayden Stone and Trent Pierce are game-changing players for the Missouri Tigers. Stone was crucial in opening the game for the Tigers, while Pierce made some key shots down the stretch of the game. The Tigers had shot-making that they haven't had since the pair was unavailable at the same time and because of it, the Tigers took down No. 22 Florida 76-74.

The addition of Stone and Pierce back into the lineup gave the Tigers some shot-making, both from the perimeter and in the interior, that they didn't have in recent weeks. The size they bring to the table while doing that was also on display.

"Having Trent Pierce, having Jayden Stone back gives us the type of shot making, but also the type of defense when it comes down to length, IQ, but also rebounding that we need," Missouri head coach Dennis Gates said following the win.

Pierce and Stone made enough of an impact for Florida head coach Todd Golden to notice. The pairing created a whole new level of shot-making and length to blend into the offense that Golden and the Gators may not have been ready for, starting with Stone.

Stone finished his first game back with nine points and six rebounds on 3-for-8 shooting. He also added a steal and two assists to that stat line.

"They are two of their better players, from my perspective," Florida head coach Todd Golden said. "I don't want to speak for Dennis or their program, but Jayden Stone obviously had gotten off to a great start this year against buy-game competition, but was (a) really efficient scorer on the ball early."

Golden remembered Pierce's outing against the Gators on the road last season, where he finished with seven points and six rebounds. This time around, Pierce dropped 10 points and five rebounds on 3-for-5 shooting.

Jan 3, 2026; Columbia, Missouri, USA; Missouri Tigers forward Trent Pierce (11) celebrates during the second half against the Florida Gators at Mizzou Arena. | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

"Trent's a good player. He was a really good player last year, here at our place," Golden said. "So getting those guys back, really, really, you can imagine, it seemed pretty valuable to Missouri, and they affected the game tonight,"

The Tigers had more than enough time to get Stone and Pierce healthy following the conclusion of their non-conference schedule. It allowed Stone to be ready to go by his original injury timeline and Pierce to have ample practices and live reps so he'd be ready for his first outing.

Even if the duo was still getting their footing under them late in the game, Pierce was able to play 19 minutes and Stone pushed out 28 minutes. The two certainly weren't lacking in conditioning or confidence, despite not playing in quite some time.

"Being able to have the amount of days off that we had was very instrumental to these guys, Trent (Pierce) and Jayden Stone to get more reps, whether it was through scrimmaging, whether it's through drills, and what they bring is confidence on both sides," Gates said. "Forget the stats, they bring confidence on both sides of the court. And when you're out there playing basketball, you cannot play with anything but confidence, and you got to live with the results."

The return of Stone and Pierce also made the lives of their teammates easier. For Missouri's floor commander, Anthony Robinson II, he was able to get into driving lanes much easier, allowing him to either score at the rim or kick it out to the two shooters.

"Having Trent and Stone out there really helped space the floor," Robinson said. "Ultimately, I had easier drives and people wasn't in the gap as much."

Missouri will get the chance to earn another big win in SEC play on the road against the Kentucky Wildcats at 6 p.m. Wednesday.

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