Dennis Gates Provides Injury Updates on 3 Players

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Following Missouri's blowout win over Prairie View A&M on Monday night, head coach Dennis Gates provided long-awaited injury updates on Trent Pierce, Trent Burns and Annor Boateng. All three of the players have missed all five games of the season so far.

Boateng is set to return in Missouri's next game, when the Tigers host South Dakota on Thursday. The sophomore will play minimal minutes, barring no unexpected setbacks, Gates revealed. Boateng was warming up with the rest of the team ahead of Monday's game.

Both of the Trents will still have a bit to wait before returning to the court, per Gates.

Burns has an important doctor's appointment set for next week that will give a clearer timeline. Burns, who missed most of his freshman season with a foot injury, underwent surgery in September that has prevented him from playing. When he first underwent surgery, the original estimation was that he'd miss one week to a month at the start of the season.

Burns has been cleared to practice with the team, but only in non-contact drills.

Pierce has still not been cleared for practice.

"I'm just waiting on doctors updates," Gates said of Pierce. "Just in terms of how he's feeling."

Pierce, a junior guard, started in 19 games for Missouri last season. He averaged 17 minutes, 6.7 points and 3.2 rebounds per game last season. He was rated as a four-star prospect out of high school.

Boateng started in seven games in his true freshman season, averaging 6.5 minutes, 1.9 points and .6 rebounds per game. His best game of last season came against Mississippi Valley State, where he scored 10 points and grabbed three rebounds. He was rated as a four-star prospect, and the best in the state of Arkansas in the class, out of high school.

The details for Boateng and Pierce's injuries have not been revealed.

Burns was diagnosed in the offseason with a stress reaction in his right foot, a similar injury to the one that caused him to miss last season. The team opted not to have Burns go through surgery last season, but decided it would be the best choice for this year.

"We all decided that surgery was the best option for his uninterrupted contributions this season," Gates said in a. release. "His health is our top priority and we know this will only be a small disruption in a great basketball career. We saw in the spring and summer how much of an impact he can have with our program."