Mizzou’s Class of 2026 will have to wait a little longer for its first member.

Missouri basketball missed out on a commitment from four-star small forward JJ Andrews, a top target for the Tigers in their next recruiting class who opted to stay in his home state and play for Arkansas and head coach John Calipari.

Andrews, who is from Little Rock and rates as the top prospect in his class in the state of Arkansas, chose the Razorbacks over Missouri and LSU during a live commitment ceremony Thursday afternoon at Little Rock Christian Academy.

Andrews, listed at 6 foot 6, 220 pounds, is the first player to commit to Arkansas’ Class of 2026. Mizzou, like most of the teams in the SEC, still has no players committed in its next high school class. According to the recruiting service 247Sports’ composite rankings, Andrews is the No. 37-ranked player in his class and the No. 15 small forward.

Signing day is still a long way away for players in the Class of 2026, with the early national signing period for college basketball typically held in November.

The Tigers reportedly were one of the frontrunners to land Andrews, but it was a tall task given his connections to his home state. Andrews is a legacy Arkansas prospect, as his father, Shawn Andrews, played along the offensive line for the Razorbacks and was a first-round NFL Draft pick and two-time Pro Bowler.

Andrews was the Arkansas Gatorade Player of the Year in 2025. In the previous two years, current Mizzou wing Annor Boateng — who also hails from Little Rock and was the top recruit out of Arkansas in the 2024 cycle — won the same accolade.

The wing has won two state titles with Little Rock Christian and was part of the Brad Beal Elite team that won the 2024 EYBL Peach Jam.

Mizzou is expected to lose Mark Mitchell and wing Jacob Crews at the end of the 2025-26 season to eligibility. Incoming transfers Shawn Phillips Jr., Jevon Porter and Jayden Stone each are expected to be one-and-done transfers with a single year of eligibility.

With the likelihood of at least five outgoing players after next season, that means the Tigers are likely to be active at recruiting the Class of 2026.

Mizzou added two players in the 2025 recruiting cycle with point guard Aaron Rowe and forward Nicholas Randall coming on board this upcoming summer, after adding five players in the year prior. Three members of MU’s Class of 2024 — Boateng, Trent Burns and T.O. Barrett — remain on the roster, while Marcus Allen and Peyton Marshall have transferred out of the program.

In the immediate future, Mizzou’s attention will turn to five-star prospect Toni Bryant, a 6-9 power forward out of Tampa, Florida, and four-star guard Aidan Chronister, a 6-7 wing out of Wichita, Kansas.

According to a 247Sports report, Bryant has a visit scheduled with Missouri on Sept. 6, which is the same day Missouri football reignites its rivalry on the gridiron with Kansas. Chronister will visit during MU’s homecoming game against UMass on Sept. 20, according to multiple reports.