Ole Miss Rebels
SEC (19-14, 9-9)
At the beginning of the season, it looked like Mississippi was well on its way to a tournament bid. Naturally, the long season wears on and eventually the Rebels came back to Earth after starting 8-2. The Rebels are a solid team who experienced success last year behind the play of Marshall Henderson. He is a star on a middle-of-the-pack SEC squad.
Big Wins: 12/14 Middle Tennessee State (72-63), 1/15 LSU (88-74), 2/8 Missouri (91-88)
Bad Losses: 1/11 at Mississippi State (72-76), 2/11 at Alabama (64-67), 3/1 at Texas A&M (60-71)
Coach: Andy Kennedy (8 seasons at Ole Miss)
Why They Can Surprise:
This team can score points. Scoring was never their problem in the SEC. They were fourth in the conference at 75 points per game. Henderson is a big reason why. He is a top-50 scorer nationally (19 points per game), and he can shoot and drive to the bucket. He gets to the line more than any other player on the team. Defensively, he leads the Rebels in steals. Without him, this team does not win nearly as many games. Last season, he showed why he was so fun to watch in the tournament. He will be the reason they make any sort of run in the postseason. Not to be overlooked are the other distance shooters on this team. They take a lot of 3-pointers, but they hit eight per game. Teams that can shoot generally have success in a tournament format. Ole Miss has an opportunity to win a few games with their ability to hit threes.
Why They Can Disappoint:
Other than their three-point shooting prowess, Ole Miss is dreadful at shooting. Their midrange game leaves a lot to be desired. They are among the worst in the country at finding the basket. It is an interesting contrast considering they score 75 points per game (keep in mind they shoot a lot of 3-pointers and they get to the foul line a lot). The Rebels do not play the greatest defense in the world either. They tend to leave the perimeter open for their opponents, and they allow 73 points per game. Their bigs seem to get outmatched on the glass time and time again. They generally lose rebounding battles – considering they miss a bunch of shots that can end up costing them – and get outworked on the block. This team is also playing its worst basketball of the season heading into tournament play. They lost six of their last eight regular season games. It is difficult to sustain success when you have not recently been experiencing any.
Probable Starters:
Jarvis Summers, Junior, Guard, 17.3 ppg, 3.8 apg
Marshall Henderson, Senior, Guard, 19.0 ppg, 2.0 apg
Martavious Newby, Sophomore, Guard, 3.2 ppg, 1.0 apg, 3.2 rpg
Anthony Perez, Sophomore, Forward, 7.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg
Sebastian Saiz, Freshman, Forward, 5.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg
Key Roleplayers:
Dwight Coleby, Freshman, Center, 2.3 ppg, 1.8 rpg
Demarco Cox, Senior, Center, 4.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg
Aaron Jones, Junior, Forward, 6,0 ppg, 6.6 rpg
Ladarius White, Junior, Guard, 7.1 ppg, 2.0 apg
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 75.2 (68th in nation, 4th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 72.9 (251, 14)
Field-Goal Percentage: 41.6 (297, 14)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.2 (103, 11)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.9 (42, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 34.6 (157, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 69.7 (178, 6)
Rebound Margin: -2.5 (272, 11)
Assists Per Game: 12.6 (176, 7)
Turnovers Per Game: 11.3 (78, 4)
Recent Postseason Appearances:
2013 NCAA Second Round win over Wisconsin
2013 NCAA Third Round loss to LaSalle
2012 NIT First round loss to Illinois State
2011 NIT First Round loss to California
2010 NIT First Round win over Troy
2010 NIT Second Round win over Memphis
2010 NIT Quarterfinal win over Texas Tech
2010 NIT Semifinal loss to Dayton
2008 NIT First Round win over UC Santa Barbara
2008 NIT Second Round win over Nebraska
2008 NIT Quarterfinal win over Virginia Tech
2008 NIT Semifinal loss to Ohio State
2007 NIT First Round win over Appalachian State
2007 NIT Second Round loss to Clemson
2002 NCAA Round of 64 loss to UCLA
*all team stats through 3/9
See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules
