Missouri Tigers land new men’s basketball commitment. He’s a 4-star, top-60 forward

Score one for Dennis Gates.

Mizzou men’s basketball landed a commitment from four-star small forward Marcus Allen on Monday, marking the second pledge to the Tigers’ class of 2024.

Allen, a Miami native, is the 52nd-ranked prospect in the country in his class and No. 18 at his position, according to Rivals. He chose Missouri over an offer from Arkansas in the SEC and another from his hometown Hurricanes.

Rivals (No. 52), 247Sports (55), ESPN (60) and On3 (38) all rank Allen as a top-60 recruit.

Allen, who is listed at 6 foot 7, 210 pounds, also had Michigan, Ohio State and Stanford in his list of six finalists.

He is the Tigers’ top-ranked recruit since Michael Porter Jr. and Jontay Porter in 2017.

The Miami Norland High School player took an official visit to Columbia in September 2022. He is the second commit to Missouri and Gates’ 2024 class after Antonio Barrett, a four-star prospect at point guard.

Allen’s commitment kicks off a potentially memorable week of recruiting for both MU football and men’s basketball.

Basketball is slated to learn the future landing spot of 6-10 center Peyton Marshall on Friday. He’s the 83rd-ranked player in his class, previously decommitted from Auburn and has taken a visit to Mizzou.

Missouri football coach Eli Drinkwitz is set to learn the destination of four-star wide receiver Jeremiah McClellan on Sunday and five-star edge Williams Nwaneri next Monday.

Nwaneri is the first No. 1-overall football player to come from the KC-metro area. On3 has him ranked No. 1 in the class of 2024.

The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.