BILOXI, Miss. – After earning one of their highest rankings in the national polls in over a decade, the No. 15 Ole Miss men's basketball team looks to keep building momentum through their non-conference schedule as they take on Southern Miss in the Mississippi Coast Coliseum down in Biloxi, Miss. on Saturday, December 14 at 3 p.m. on SEC Network+.
TEAM FACTS
No. 19/15 Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 8-1, 0-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 2nd Season at Ole Miss (28-13) • 265-111 career record (13th Season)
Southern Miss Golden Eagles (Record: 4-5, 0-0 SBC)
Head Coach: Jay Ladner • 6th Season at Southern Miss (69-94) • 145-182 career record (11th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network+
Play-by-Play: Jake Hromada
Color: Kermit Davis
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes
SERIES HISTORY VS. SOUTHERN MISS
This will be the 26th meeting between the Rebels and the Golden Eagles, with Ole Miss entering the game leading the all-time series 19-6. While playing on a neutral court, the Rebels have won six of eight games in total, including a 2-1 advantage when playing in Biloxi. Ole Miss holds a 6-4 lead over the last 10 matchups, including last year's game in the Mississippi Coast Coliseum where the Rebels defeated Southern Miss 89-72.
LAST MEETING: December 23, 2023 (W, 89-72, Biloxi, Miss.)
• Ole Miss took an early lead and never looked back, up 17 at the half behind hot shooting.
• Matthew Murrell (Ole Miss): 26 points, four 3PFG made, three rebounds, five assists, one steal.
• Jaylen Murray (Ole Miss): 21 points, five 3PFG made, one assist, three steals.
• Victor Hart (Southern Miss): 13 points, 11 rebounds, two steals.
SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES
Southern Miss brings a record of 4-5 to Biloxi, picking up wins over Bowling Green, Loyola New Orleans, Milwaukee, and Alabama State. Their losses have come at the hands of UAB, South Dakota State, Montana State, Abilene Christian, and most recently, Tulane.
Denijay Harris leads the Golden Eagles in scoring and rebounding, averaging 14.7 points and 9.1 boards per game. He has recorded three double-doubles on the year, highlighted by a 20-20 game against Alabama State on December 5.
A strength of Southern Miss has been the ability to block shots on the defensive end, highlighted by Harris who owns a team-best 14 on the season. As a team, the Golden Eagles average 4.8 blocks per game, the 48th-best mark in all of college basketball.
In his sixth season at Southern Miss, head coach Jay Ladner has amassed a record of 69-94 with the Golden Eagles, including a win percentage of over 60 percent during the past three years and a Sun Belt Conference title during their first season in 2022-23. Prior to his time with Southern Miss, Ladner spent five years at Southeastern Louisiana, winning 76 games. He got his first head coaching opportunity at the college ranks at Jones County Junior College, where he went 17-8 during his first season before winning the NJCAA National Championship in 2014.
"POLL" POSITION
In the latest top-25 polls released this past Monday, Ole Miss ranks No. 15 in the USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 19 in the AP Poll. Their spot at 15th in the nation is the highest ranking in a national poll since the Rebels were No. 14 in the AP Poll on January 4, 2010, and the highest position in the Coaches Poll since they sat in 15th on January 21 in 2008.
AP FLOUR, SUGAR, SALT, BUTTER, AND WATER
Ole Miss has dominated the turnover battle this year, currently leading all of college basketball in turnovers per game (8.0) and ranking second in turnover margin (+8.0). The Rebels are forcing twice as many turnovers than they commit, with an average of 16.0 per contest which ranks 25th in the NCAA. Ole Miss' assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.00 also ranks among the nation's best at third, led by Jaylen Murray with a season ratio of 4.8. They've been a force on the defensive end with an average of 9.8 steals per game (No. 26 in NCAA), paced by Matthew Murrell and Sean Pedulla, who each rank among the top-40 in steals per game nationally.
EASY TO HANDLE - A DIME BY THE DOZEN
Recording an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.35 in his first season with Ole Miss, senior Jaylen Murray has taken his point guard play to an even higher level, beginning the 2024-25 year with 43 assists to just nine turnovers. His assist-to-turnover ratio of 4.8 ranks sixth in the nation. "Juju" has registered five or more assists in six games for the Rebels this season and ranks third in the SEC with 4.8 assists per game.
During his time at Ole Miss, Murray is averaging 4.15 assists per game, the fifth best career average in program history.
Career Assists Average
1. 7.09, Sean Tuohy (830 assists, 117 games, 1979-82)
2. 4.89, Bob Mahoney (329 assists, 74 games, 1973-75)
3. 4.43, Rod Barnes (456 assists, 103 games, 1985-88)
4. 4.36, Dave Shepherd (218 assists, 50 games, 1974-75)
5. 4.15, Jaylen Murray (170 assists, 41 games, 2023-pres.)
6. 3.96, Jarvis Summers (530 assists, 134 games, 2012-15)
7. 3.93, Chris Warren (452 assists, 115 games, 2008-11)
8. 3.60, Henry Jackson (378 assists, 105 games, 1976-79)
9. 3.53, Todd Abernethy (431 assists, 122 games, 2004-07)
10. 3.52, Deandre Burnett (225 assists, 64 games, 2016-18)
"HE A FREE THROW"
Through the first nine games, Jaylen Murray has gone 24-25 from the free throw line for a percentage of 96.0, sixth-best in all of college basketball. Entering the game with Purdue, Murray had not missed a shot from the charity stripe, and was one of six players in all of college basketball to remain perfect. The Bronx native also connected on his first two free throws during the Purdue game to extend his consecutive made shots at 32 dating back to the 2023-24 season, tying Murray with Stefan Moody for the second-longest streak in school history, trailing only David Rhodes' 37 during 1972.
LET'S PLAY DEFENSE
A staple of success for head coach Chris Beard has always been his team's defensive play, and it's been evident on this year's Ole Miss roster to start the season. With a turnover margin of +8.0 through nine games, the Rebels rank second in all of college basketball, forcing 16.0 per game (No. 25 in the NCAA) while committing just 8.0 to lead the NCAA.
Ole Miss ranks among the top teams in the nation in steals per game at 9.8, the 26th-best clip in college basketball, helping lead to a scoring margin of +17.3 which ranks 26th in the nation. Matthew Murrell currently averages 2.4 steals per game, ranking 31st in the NCAA, while Sean Pedulla averages 2.3 and ranks 35th in the country.
A "DO-IT-ALL" SCHOOL
Ole Miss is one of three schools in the nation that currently hold a spot in the AP Top 25 in football, men's basketball, and women's basketball, joined by Iowa State and Tennessee. On the gridiron, the Rebels rank No. 16 while men's hoops ranks No. 19 and the women No. 22.
HOOP IN THE 'SIP
On November's signing day, Chris Beard and staff added two top recruits to Athletic Financial Aid Agreements in Tylis Jordan and Patton Pinkins. The pair gives Ole Miss a consensus top-25 recruiting class for 2025, ranked No. 12 in the nation by Rivals, No. 16 by On3, and No. 25 by 247Sports.
Tylis Jordan, PF, 6-9, 210, Wheeler, Louisville, Ga.
Jordan is a consensus top-100 recruit for the class of 2025, owning a national ranking as high as No. 27 in the country by On3 and No. 28 by Rivals. Listed as a power forward, the 6'9" Louisville, Ga. native is an incredibly skilled big man who can easily play with the ball in his hands.
He has the ability to stretch the floor with his shooting and is able to knock down threes. One of the top-ranked players in his class in the always-talented state of Georgia, Jordan averaged a double-double last season at Shiloh as a junior with 21.3 points and 10.3 rebounds per game, and is currently playing his senior season at Wheeler.
Patton Pinkins, SG, 6-5, 170, Frenship, Wolfforth, Texas
Another top-100 recruit, Pinkins is ranked as high as No. 74 in his class nationally by ESPN and No. 78 by Rivals. A 6'5" shooting guard from Wolfforth, Texas, he currently plays at Frenship High School, where he's described as an efficient player with a shooting percentage of over 60 percent from the field and over 40 percent from three.
Pinkins, the son of current Ole Miss assistant coach Al Pinkins, possess a high basketball IQ with strong passing ability. His ability as an on-ball defender pairs well with his prowess at scoring the basketball at all three levels.
20-MINUTE LOCKDOWN
In the second half against Lindenwood on December 7, the Ole Miss defense held the Lions to just 20 points. It was the lowest point total for an opponent in any half since the Rebels held South Carolina to 20 in the first half on January 17 during the 2022-23 season, and the fewest in the second half since holding Mississippi Valley State to 20 on November 26 three seasons ago.
PROGRAM POINT PRESIDENTS
Seniors Matthew Murrell and Jaemyn Brakefield have each surpassed the 1,000-point mark during their careers here in Oxford, and continue to climb the program leaderboard. Here's a snapshot of where they lie among the career points list at Ole Miss:
...
11. Gerald Glass - 1,564
12. Don Kessinger - 1,553
13. Matthew Murrell - 1,532
14. Terence Davis - 1,512
...
34. Jack Marshall - 1,137
35. Joe Ayers - 1,130
36. Jaemyn Brakefield - 1,111
37. Fred Cox - 1,105
IT STILL MEANS MORE
The gauntlet of the SEC got even tougher this season with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas to the conference for the 2024-25 academic year. With nine teams currently owning a spot in the AP Top 25, including Ole Miss, the schedule for the Rebels is littered with big games, especially at home in the SJB Pavilion. Between January 22 and February 4, Ole Miss will host No. 17 Texas A&M, No. 2 Auburn, Texas, and No. 5 Kentucky.
NETWORKING
The 2024-25 NET Rankings made their debut on Monday, December 2 and Ole Miss has since climbed their way to No. 29. Since the ranking's first iteration at the conclusion of the 2018-19 season, their ranking of 24th on December 4 was the highest-ever NET Ranking for the Ole Miss program.
As of December 11, the entire SEC is ranked among the top 100, with 12 of the 16 programs sitting inside the top 50, seven in the top 25, and five in the top 10.
RECORD BOOK WRECKER
Senior guard Matthew Murrell enters his fifth season with Ole Miss and continues to put his name up and down the program record book. The Memphis native currently ranks 13th in school history in career points with 1,532, and fifth in both three-point shots made (227), and three-point attempts (645). A consistent member of the lineup for each of his seasons, Murrell recently entered the top-10 in both career minutes and games played. He currently sits in eighth with 3,701 minutes, just behind Keith Carter with 3,719, and has played in 128 games, tying him for ninth with Emmanuel Wade and just behind Sebastian Saiz with 129.
Murrell has his eyes set on entering the top-10 career lists in two other categories as well, on the verge in: Career field goal attempts (Murrell at 1,257, 10th is Carlos Clark at 1,297), and career steals (Murrell at 138, 10th is Rahim Lockhart at 148).
EYES ON OXFORD
Ole Miss earned plenty of preseason recognition on the national stage leading into the 2024-25 season. Starting with the national polls, the Rebels were ranked in the preseason AP poll for just the second time in program history at No. 24, and earned a preseason ranking in the Coaches poll for the first time ever at No. 25. Ole Miss currently ranks No. 19 in the latest AP Poll and No. 15 in the Coaches Poll.
Other outlets that had Ole Miss in preseason rankings include: "ESPN's 'Way-Too-Early' Top 25" as high as No. 20, the "Field of 68" at No. 22, John Fanta's preseason top-25 at No. 24, Jon Rothstein's preseason rankings at No. 27, and a spot in the offseason bracketology by ESPN's Joe Lunardi, peaking at a No. 7 seed.
