BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Connor Vanover, a 7-5 center from Little Rock, is back in the SEC.
Vanover, who played two seasons at the University of Arkansas after transferring from California, is set to play his sixth and final season at Missouri.
At Oral Roberts last season Vanover averaged 12.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 3.2 blocked shots to help the Golden Eagles to a 30-5 record and an NCAA Tournament selection.
They went 18-0 in the Summit League and won the conference tournament before losing to Duke 74-51 in the NCAA Tournament.
When Coach Paul Mills resigned at Oral Roberts to take the Wichita State job, Vanover decided he'd transfer.
"I graduated, but I still had a year of eligibility left," Vanover, who earned a sports management degree at Oral Roberts, said at SEC Media Days. "I thought if I was to come back and play another college season, it would be at a place for me to keep growing my game.
"Being back in the SEC at Missouri is a great opportunity."
Dennis Gates, in his second season at Missouri after leading the Tigers to the NCAA Tournament, said he followed Vanover's prep and college careers while he served as an assistant at Florida State and coach at Cleveland State.
"Connor's always been on my radar," Gates said. "When we made the transition here, we did try to get him, but he opted for Oral Roberts.
"I truly believe that stop helped him in a tremendous way. He led them to an NCAA Tournament, a conference championship, and full circle here we are.
"He's a tremendous young man, and I'm excited for him to be a part of our institution and our team."
Vanover, who helped Baptist Prep in Little Rock win back-to-back Class 4A state championships in 2016 and 2017 before finishing his high school career at Findlay Prep in Nevada, was among six players to make the All-Summit League first-team. He also was the Summit League Defensive Player of the Year and set Oral Roberts' record with 110 blocked shots.
"That season at Oral Roberts gave me confidence to show what I could do," Vanover said. "Not just to show others, but to show myself as well. Showing what I'm capable of doing."
Vanover averaged 5.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.4 blocked shots and 13.2 minutes in 44 games at Arkansas during the 2020-21 and 2021-21 seasons.
The highlight for Vanover two years ago was in the Razorbacks' second game when he had 19 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocked shots and 2 assists in 17 minutes in a 86-69 victory over Gardner-Webb.
As a redshirt sophom*ore, Vanover had 23 points against Mississippi Valley State and 17 at Auburn, 13 against Mississippi State and 12 at Kentucky and at Missouri. He had six blocked shots against North Texas.
After Vanover averaged 6.3 points, 4.5 rebounds and 16.7 minutes in 29 games as a redshirt sophom*ore, his playing dropped significantly the next season when he averaged 3.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 7.7 minutes in 15 games.
Vanover didn't play in the final 19 games of the 2021-22 season, so the decision to transfer was understandable.
"I have fond memories of my time at Arkansas," Vanover said. "I was on teams that went to back-to-back NCAA Tournament Elite Eights. That was something Arkansas hadn't done in a really, really long time."
Vanover said he appreciated Razorbacks Coach Eric Musselman for allowing him to transfer to Arkansas and be on scholarship.
"Coach Muss is a really good coach," Vanover said. "He helped me improve as a player.
"Transferring is just how it goes sometimes. Transferring happens all the time now. I don't have any hard feelings about Arkansas at all. I really enjoyed my time there, all the things I got to experience.
"Now I'm looking forward to this year."
Vanover is a career 32.1% three-point shooter (98 of 305) and regained his perimeter touch last season. He was 27 of 76 as a freshman at California, 24 of 74 his first season at Arkansas, then slumped to 1 of 13 as a redshirt junior before going 46 of 142 at Oral Roberts.
"Connor is a guy that causes matchup problems because you look at him in height, I look at him just as a basketball player," Gates said. "He's the tallest guard in the country. That's my philosophy.
"Now, at the end of the day I'm going to ask him to not only block shots and score. I'm going to ask him to continue to make unbelievable assists, be a defensive presence, be able to do multiple things. Be an anchor, be a leader.
"He's done a tremendous job from day one. I'm excited about what he's bringing to our program each and every day."
Vanover's new teammates said he's been a good fit at Missouri.
"Defensively, Connor is going to be a paint beast for us, being able to corral everything that's down there around the basket," senior guard Noah Carter said. "He's going to lock down the lane and protect the rim and rebound.
"Offensively, I don't think I've ever seen somebody as tall as him be able to shoot the ball as well as he can. He can handle the ball out on the perimeter and facilitate a little bit. It just goes to show how skilled and how versatile he is."
Missouri shot an SEC-leading 36% on three-pointers last season, hitting 325 of 940.
"Three-pointers are what we do, so Connor fits right in," senior guard Nick Honor said. "I'm impressed every day by how a guy that tall can put the ball in the basket from three-point range. He just extends the defense.
"Then he brings so much experience, being in college for several years."
Vanover said he never expected to play at four colleges.
"I definitely didn't think it would be this way," he said. "When I went to Cal my first year, I thought that was going to be my one stop.
"Then going to Arkansas, coming back to the state where I grew up, I thought that would be the spot for me and where I'd end my college career.
"But basketball can have a bunch of crazy twists and turns that you can't really expect.
"I'm counting it as a blessing that I'm still able to play basketball, a game that I love."
Missouri, which opens the season against the University of Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Monday night, will play Arkansas at Mizzou Arena on Jan. 31 and at Walton Arena on Feb. 24.
"My family is really looking forward to the game at Arkansas," Vanover said. "They're already trying to get as many tickets as they can to go to the game.
"I think it'll be a fun experience to come back to Arkansas and play on the opposite side."
Vanover was listed at 7-3 during his Arkansas playing days, but when he got to Oral Roberts, he was 7-5 on the roster.
"No one has measured me in a while, but Coach Mills officially listed me at 7-5," Vanover said. "It's not outlandish to say I'm 7-5 with my shoes on.
"At a certain point, you're either tall or you're not -- and we all know I'm pretty tall."
Vanover has embraced being 7-5 by wearing No. 75 at Missouri.
"It's nice the NCAA changed the rule and now you can wear whatever number you want," Vanover said. "It lets you be more creative and have some fun."
