From UM Media Relations:
STARKVILLE, Miss. – One of the most-played rivalries in the history of college basketball continues on Saturday, January 7, when the Ole Miss men's basketball team hits the road to take on Mississippi State in Humphrey Coliseum at 1 p.m. on CBS.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (8-6, 0-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Kermit Davis • 5th Season at Ole Miss (72-67) • 541-330 career record (28th Season)
Mississippi State Bulldogs (11-3, 0-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Jans • 1st Season at Mississippi State (11-3) • 154-47 career record (7th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: CBS
Play-by-Play: Brad Nessler
Color: Bill Raftery
Color: Jay Wright
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
One of the fiercest rivalries in all of college basketball, this will be the 267th meeting between Ole Miss and Mississippi State, a matchup that sits just outside the top-10 for most games played in a series in NCAA Division I history. While the Bulldogs own the overall series 147-119, the Rebels hold a slight advantage in the last 20 matchups, 12 games to eight. However, the in-state rivals have split the series at one game apiece in the last five seasons.
The two teams first met back in 1914, playing four straight days from February 25th to the 28th, with all four games going to Mississippi State. Ole Miss wouldn't win their first game in the series until their 10th matchup on February 24, 1917, with a 29-15 victory in Oxford, Miss. The Rebels lead the series at home by 41 games, 86-45, but are down 97-28 when playing in Starkville.
Countless classics have played in this series, such as a 75-64 victory for the Rebels on January 19, 1980 to set a then-Tad Pad record in attendance at 9,318 (ended as fifth-largest crowd all-time), and Ole Miss' second-ever and most recent four-overtime game on January 24, 1990 when State topped the Rebs 104-102.
Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis, a graduate from Mississippi State and former student-athlete on the basketball team, is 4-4 against his alma mater at the helm for the Rebels. His father, Kermit Davis Sr., was the head coach for the Bulldogs for seven seasons from 1970 to 1977, collecting 91 wins during his tenure.
LAST MEETING: January 22, 2022 (L, 60-78, Starkville, Miss., Humphrey Coliseum)
• It was a close first half that saw eight lead changes and five ties, but the Bulldogs would lead by one at the half, 42-41.
• After tying the game at 44 on a three pointer from Luis Rodriguez, Ole Miss was unable to regain the lead the remainder of the game.
• Three Rebels scored in double figures (Matthew Murrell, 14; Jaemyn Brakefield, 13; Nysier Brooks, 12).
• The game's leading scorer was Mississippi State's Iverson Molinar, who posted 20 points, as all five of the Bulldog's starters scored 10 or more points.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Opening the season with 11-straight victories highlighted by wins over Marquette, Utah, and Minnesota, the Bulldogs have been ranked as high as 15th in both the AP and coaches polls this season, and are currently receiving votes in each. Mississippi State enters Saturday's contest losing their last three games, falling to Drake 58-52 before dropping their first two tough SEC games to Alabama and Tennessee just as Ole Miss has. In comparing the similar conference openers between the two programs, Ole Miss fell to Tennessee by six at home while Mississippi State lost by 34 in Knoxville. Against Alabama, the Bulldogs dropped their game by 11 at home while the Rebels fell in Tuscaloosa by 22.
Senior forward Tolu Smith leads the Bulldogs offensively, averaging 14.4 points per game and a team-best 8.0 rebounds per game. The All-SEC First Team Preseason selection has scored in double figures in 10 of State's 14 games so far, with a season-high 26 against Akron on Nov. 11. Three of his games scoring under 10 points this year have come in each of the last three contests, which all resulted in losses for the Bulldogs.
AN OLE MISS WIN WOULD...
...give Kermit Davis a winning record in Starkville, Miss.
...give the Rebels a win in the first of two regular-season matchups with the Bulldogs for the sixth consecutive season, and eighth time in the past 10 years.
ANOTHER ONE
With an average of 13.1 offensive rebounds per game, the Rebels have been among the best in the country in earning second chances on the glass, currently ranking 25th in the nation. The team is led by senior transfer Myles Burns with 35 offensive rebounds (2.5 per game, 7th in the SEC).
Ole Miss also ranks in the top-100 in total rebounds per game (61st in NCAAA, 6th in SEC) at an average of 38.4. Last game the Rebels out-rebounded the conference's leading rebounding team at 46.5 per game in Alabama (SEC-best +9.1 rebounding margin), with a game total of 48 rebounds to the Tide's 39.
TAKING THE FREE ONES
Junior Matthew Murrell is shooting an impressive 88.1% (37-42) from the free throw line to begin the season, which is tops in the SEC and ranks 42nd in the country. As it stands, his current percentage would tie him for the fifth-best free throw percentage in a single season at Ole Miss.
Ole Miss Men's Basketball - Free Throw Percentage in a Season
1. Chris Warren, 2011: 92.8%
2. Stefan Moody, 2015: 90.3%
3. David Rhodes, 1972: 90.1%
4. Marshall Henderson, 2013: 88.3%
5. Deandre Burnett, 2017: 88.1%
WHEN IT COUNTS
Ole Miss has been especially strong in the second half this season, shooting 46.5 percent overall in the back half while outscoring opponents 522-464 (37.3 points per second half, +4.1 scoring margin). Additionally, the Rebels have put up a +3.6 rebounding margin in the second half this season, while junior Matthew Murrell is averaging 8.4 points per second half this season. At the ESPN Events Invitational, Ole Miss shot a blistering 55 percent overall, led by 14.3 points per second half by Amaree Abram, who was also 5-of-6 from three and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the back half.
BLOCK PARTY
The Ole Miss defense currently ranks 79th in the country and seventh in the SEC with 64.9 points allowed per game, only letting their opponents top 70 points twice this year. A major part of their defensive identity has been enforcing the paint, as the Rebels rank 28th in the country and fifth in the SEC in blocks per game (5.0). They are led down low by senior transfers Theo Akwuba (18 total blocks, 1.3 per game) and Jayveous McKinnis (16 total blocks, 1.2 per game).
In their last game for the Rebels, Akwuba and McKinnis combined for seven blocks at No. 7 Alabama, with Akwuba's four bringing his collegiate career total to 200. He and McKinnis (248 career blocks) are the only two teammates in college basketball with over 200 swats in their careers, and each rank among the top-10 in active career leaders.
DEEP POCKETS
The Rebels' depth has been on full display to begin the season, as the Ole Miss bench has accounted for over a third of the team's scoring through their first 14 games (38.4%, 369 of 961 points). The Rebs have topped their opponents in bench points in 10 of 14 contests, and are outscoring their foes' benches by 136 on the year (369 to 233). Their 26.4 points per game off the bench rank fourth in the SEC.
CAN'T BRAKE HIS COMPOSURE
In Ole Miss' game against No. 7 Tennessee, Jaemyn Brakefield shot a perfect 4-4 from three-point range, setting a season-high with 18 points in the process. The junior from Jackson, Miss. became just the eighth Rebel in program history to remain perfect from deep in a game with a minimum of four attempts. The last to do so was Devontae Shuler on Dec. 10, 2020 against Jackson State when he went 5-5.
RENAISSANCE MAN
Senior transfer Myles Burns has made an immediate impact for the Rebels on both ends of the floor with a unique talent blend as a defensive force and a go-getter on the offensive glass. Burns ranks 34th in the NCAA with an average of 2.2 steals per game, while also ranking seventh in the conference at 2.5 offensive boards per game.
Prior to Ole Miss, Burns had an extraordinary career at Loyola New Orleans, where he was a four-time NAIA All-American and three-time SSAC Defensive Player of the Year. With the Wolf Pack, Burns played in 120 career games with 111 starts, while setting career averages of 15.3 points (1,852), 8.8 rebounds (1,069), 3.0 steals (358), 2.5 assists (298) and 1.0 blocks (116). In Loyola's record book, Burns ranks No. 1 in steals (358), No. 2 all-time in points (1,852), No. 2 in rebounds (1,069), No. 4 in blocks (116) and No. 7 in assists (298), with his 358 steals resting 163 more than any other player in Loyola history.
Burns helped lead Loyola to the 2022 NAIA National Championship title, the first in school history since 1945, as the tournament MVP at 19.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.2 steals with four double-doubles in six tournament games.
Burns is no stranger to dominating these two distinct statistical categories, as his 151 offensive rebounds and 152 steals in 2021-22 had no rival in all of college basketball, with the nearest Division I comparison being defending national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky, who had 179 offensive rebounds and 60 steals last season. Furthermore, Burns' 152 steals last season earned him the 2022 Marques Haynes Award, which is given annually to the player with the most steals in all of college basketball, regardless of division.
BEST OF THE BEST
Ole Miss' four senior transfers are among some of the best returning big men in all of college basketball. Jayveous McKinnis stands as one of the best returners in the nation this year, currently fourth in total rebounds (1,056), fifth in total blocks (248), sixth in career double-doubles (38), ninth in rebounds per game (9.0), 10th in blocks per game (2.1) and 21st in field goal shooting (.611). McKinnis is one of just six active players in all of college basketball with 1,000 career rebounds alongside South Alabama's Kevin Samuel (1,178), North Carolina's Armando Bacot (1,156), Nicholls' Manny Littles (1,070), Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe (1,046), and Lipscomb's Ahsan Asadullah (1,019). He is also just one of five, alongside Samuel, Bacot, Asadullah, and Tshiebwe with 1,000 career points (1,135) and 1,000 career rebounds.
Ole Miss is one of three schools with multiple top-25 rebounders on the active career list alongside Texas Tech and Virginia. McKinnis (1,056) and Josh Mballa(825; No. 21) combine for 1,881 career rebounds, the second-most among teammates behind Texas Tech's 1,894 from Kevin Obanor (976) and Fardaws Almaq (918).
Ole Miss also ranks highly on the career blocks list with two top-10 entries. McKinnis ranks fifth at 248 swats, while Theo Akwuba is 10th at 200. Ole Miss stands as one of just two schools with multiple top-25 active blockers alongside Gardner-Webb, but the Rebels are the only school with two within the top-10. The Rebel trio of McKinnis (38, No. 5), Mballa (29, No. 14) and Akwuba (17) combine for 84 career double-doubles, with McKinnis and Mballa owning the second-most by a pair of teammates at 67 behind Texas Tech's Almaq (41) and Obanor (36) at 77.
* Note: Myles Burns' 1,069 career rebounds while at NAIA Loyola New Orleans do not transfer over to the NCAA records lists, but he would rank second in the nation at 1,160 if they did and give Ole Miss a combined 4,398 boards between Burns (1,160), McKinnis (1,056), Mballa (825), Akwuba (683) and Robert Allen (674). Burns' combined career total of 1,948 points would also rank No. 18 among all NCAA divisions.
AIN'T WASTING TIME NO MORE
With eight new faces for Ole Miss this season, the Rebel newcomers are already seeing serious minutes, and contributing in all major stat categories.
Newcomer Splits:
Minutes: 52.8% (1,479 of 2,800)
Scoring: 47.5% (456 of 961)
Rebounding: 52.4% (282 of 538)
Assists: 47.7% (83 of 174)
Steals: 58.1% (64 of 110)
Blocks: 81.4% (57 of 70)
Newcomer Scoring:
vs. Alcorn State: 29 of 73 (39.7%)
vs. Florida Atlantic: 36 of 80 (45.0%)
vs. Chattanooga: 33 of 70 (47.1%)
vs. UT Martin: 35 of 72 (48.6%)
vs. Stanford: 48 of 72 (66.7%)
vs. Siena: 37 of 74 (50.0%)
vs. Stanford: 39 of 55 (70.1%)
at Memphis: 32 of 57 (56.1%)
vs. Valparaiso: 27 of 98 (27.6%)
vs. UCF: 38 of 61 (62.3%)
vs. Temple: 24 of 63 (38.1%)
vs. North Alabama: 26 of 65 (40.0%)
vs. Tennessee: 27 of 59 (45.8%)
vs. Alabama: 25 of 62 (40.3%)
DYNAMIC DUO
Matthew Murrell and sophomore Daeshun Ruffin were a potent combo when on the court together last season, giving Ole Miss two of the SEC's top returning guards for 2022-23. Last year, the duo combined for 24.7 PPG, 5.1 APG, 3.1 SPG, shot a combined .408 from the field and .343 from 3PT.
So far this season the two rank first and second on the team in scoring average, and have combined for 24.6 PPG, 5.3 APG, and 2.0 SPG in their seven games together.
GUESS WHO'S BACK?
After missing the final month of the season last year and first seven games of the 2022-23 season, Daeshun Ruffin returned to action on Dec. 3 against Memphis, coming off the bench and playing 14 minutes. Tearing his ACL at No. 25 LSU on Feb. 1 last season following an incredible effort to help the Rebels earn their second AP Top-25 win of the year, Ruffin's return this season was delayed due to a minor bone bruise. In seven games since his return he ranks second on the team with 10.0 points per game and leads the team with 3.3 assists per contest while averaging 18.7 minutes. His 21.4 points per 40 minutes lead the Rebels so far this season.
Last year against LSU, Ruffin led Ole Miss with 19 points, three assists and two steals alongside a 6-of-11 line from the field, a 2-of-4 clip from three and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line in 20 minutes of action. Ruffin had been electric since returning to the team following an eight-game absence due to a broken right hand suffered in last year's season opener against New Orleans. On the season, Ruffin averaged a team-high 2.3 steals per game and led the Rebels with a 52-of-69 (.754) clip from the charity stripe, to go along with 12.6 points, 3.4 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game. In SEC season he was just as impressive against some of the best in the nation, ranking at the time of his injury second in the conference in SEC-only action in steals (2.7/game), ninth in free throw shooting (.833) and 10th in assists (3.9/game).
Ruffin was named SEC Freshman of the Week on Jan. 31 – the first such honor by a Rebel since Jarvis Summers on Dec. 5, 2011. His honor came courtesy of an excellent three-game stretch from Jan. 24-29, during which he averaged 16.0 points, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals with a 19-of-24 (.792) mark from the free throw line – at one point hitting 14 in a row during those three games. Included in there is a career-high 21 points vs. Florida on Jan. 24, with 15 of those points coming in the second half. In just 14 career games played, Ruffin had scored in double-digits in 10, scored 15 or more in six contests, and had multiple steals in nine games. Ruffin was on pace to break Elston Turner's 1978 record for steals by a freshman of 47, but ended his season at 32 swipes. Ruffin came to Ole Miss following a superb high school career at Callaway High School in Jackson, Miss., joining as the first McDonald's All-American signee in program history.
YEAR FIVE FOR COACH DAVIS
Kermit Davis enters his fifth season at the helm of Ole Miss basketball. Over his first four seasons, Davis has led the Rebels to a pair of postseason appearances, going to the NCAA Tournament in 2019 and the NIT in 2021 (2020 postseason was cancelled due to COVID-19). With 72 victories as head coach of the Rebels, Davis is one of only four coaches in Ole Miss history to rack up at least 50 wins over their first three seasons. A nine-time conference coach of the year, Davis has 475 career Division I wins over 25 seasons, including stints at Middle Tennessee, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 28 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 541 wins.
DAVIS ERA TRENDS TO WATCH
• 58-23 when leading at half
• 6-0 when scoring 90+, 30-4 when scoring 80+, 56-22 when scoring 70+
• 51-21 when winning the rebounding battle
• 33-5 when at 50 percent shooting or better
• 20-8 when shooting 40 percent or better from three
• 69-38 when keeping opponents below 50 percent shooting, 39-7 when below 40 percent
EXPERIENCE FROM THE PORTAL
Ole Miss went into the portal looking for experienced big men, and came away with four of the most well-seasoned options available. Those four senior transfers -- F Theo Akwuba, F Myles Burns, F Josh Mballa and F Jayveous McKinnis -- hold an incredible combined career stat lines across their respective careers prior to Ole Miss:
Combined Career Stats (NAIA included for Burns):
• 479 games played
• 371 games started
• 4,953 points
• 3,724 rebounds
• 659 steals (389 from Burns alone)
• 647 blocks
| OLE MISS (8-6, 0-2 SEC) at MISSISSIPPI STATE (11-3, 0-2 SEC) Saturday, Jan. 7 • 1 p.m. CT • Starkville, Miss. Humphrey Coliseum (10,575) 
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| Watch • Live Stats • Listen Ole Miss Game Notes • Mississippi St. Game Notes • SEC Game Notes |
STARKVILLE, Miss. – One of the most-played rivalries in the history of college basketball continues on Saturday, January 7, when the Ole Miss men's basketball team hits the road to take on Mississippi State in Humphrey Coliseum at 1 p.m. on CBS.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (8-6, 0-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Kermit Davis • 5th Season at Ole Miss (72-67) • 541-330 career record (28th Season)
Mississippi State Bulldogs (11-3, 0-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Jans • 1st Season at Mississippi State (11-3) • 154-47 career record (7th Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: CBS
Play-by-Play: Brad Nessler
Color: Bill Raftery
Color: Jay Wright
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes
SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
One of the fiercest rivalries in all of college basketball, this will be the 267th meeting between Ole Miss and Mississippi State, a matchup that sits just outside the top-10 for most games played in a series in NCAA Division I history. While the Bulldogs own the overall series 147-119, the Rebels hold a slight advantage in the last 20 matchups, 12 games to eight. However, the in-state rivals have split the series at one game apiece in the last five seasons.
The two teams first met back in 1914, playing four straight days from February 25th to the 28th, with all four games going to Mississippi State. Ole Miss wouldn't win their first game in the series until their 10th matchup on February 24, 1917, with a 29-15 victory in Oxford, Miss. The Rebels lead the series at home by 41 games, 86-45, but are down 97-28 when playing in Starkville.
Countless classics have played in this series, such as a 75-64 victory for the Rebels on January 19, 1980 to set a then-Tad Pad record in attendance at 9,318 (ended as fifth-largest crowd all-time), and Ole Miss' second-ever and most recent four-overtime game on January 24, 1990 when State topped the Rebs 104-102.
Ole Miss head coach Kermit Davis, a graduate from Mississippi State and former student-athlete on the basketball team, is 4-4 against his alma mater at the helm for the Rebels. His father, Kermit Davis Sr., was the head coach for the Bulldogs for seven seasons from 1970 to 1977, collecting 91 wins during his tenure.
LAST MEETING: January 22, 2022 (L, 60-78, Starkville, Miss., Humphrey Coliseum)
• It was a close first half that saw eight lead changes and five ties, but the Bulldogs would lead by one at the half, 42-41.
• After tying the game at 44 on a three pointer from Luis Rodriguez, Ole Miss was unable to regain the lead the remainder of the game.
• Three Rebels scored in double figures (Matthew Murrell, 14; Jaemyn Brakefield, 13; Nysier Brooks, 12).
• The game's leading scorer was Mississippi State's Iverson Molinar, who posted 20 points, as all five of the Bulldog's starters scored 10 or more points.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Opening the season with 11-straight victories highlighted by wins over Marquette, Utah, and Minnesota, the Bulldogs have been ranked as high as 15th in both the AP and coaches polls this season, and are currently receiving votes in each. Mississippi State enters Saturday's contest losing their last three games, falling to Drake 58-52 before dropping their first two tough SEC games to Alabama and Tennessee just as Ole Miss has. In comparing the similar conference openers between the two programs, Ole Miss fell to Tennessee by six at home while Mississippi State lost by 34 in Knoxville. Against Alabama, the Bulldogs dropped their game by 11 at home while the Rebels fell in Tuscaloosa by 22.
Senior forward Tolu Smith leads the Bulldogs offensively, averaging 14.4 points per game and a team-best 8.0 rebounds per game. The All-SEC First Team Preseason selection has scored in double figures in 10 of State's 14 games so far, with a season-high 26 against Akron on Nov. 11. Three of his games scoring under 10 points this year have come in each of the last three contests, which all resulted in losses for the Bulldogs.
AN OLE MISS WIN WOULD...
...give Kermit Davis a winning record in Starkville, Miss.
...give the Rebels a win in the first of two regular-season matchups with the Bulldogs for the sixth consecutive season, and eighth time in the past 10 years.
ANOTHER ONE
With an average of 13.1 offensive rebounds per game, the Rebels have been among the best in the country in earning second chances on the glass, currently ranking 25th in the nation. The team is led by senior transfer Myles Burns with 35 offensive rebounds (2.5 per game, 7th in the SEC).
Ole Miss also ranks in the top-100 in total rebounds per game (61st in NCAAA, 6th in SEC) at an average of 38.4. Last game the Rebels out-rebounded the conference's leading rebounding team at 46.5 per game in Alabama (SEC-best +9.1 rebounding margin), with a game total of 48 rebounds to the Tide's 39.
TAKING THE FREE ONES
Junior Matthew Murrell is shooting an impressive 88.1% (37-42) from the free throw line to begin the season, which is tops in the SEC and ranks 42nd in the country. As it stands, his current percentage would tie him for the fifth-best free throw percentage in a single season at Ole Miss.
Ole Miss Men's Basketball - Free Throw Percentage in a Season
1. Chris Warren, 2011: 92.8%
2. Stefan Moody, 2015: 90.3%
3. David Rhodes, 1972: 90.1%
4. Marshall Henderson, 2013: 88.3%
5. Deandre Burnett, 2017: 88.1%
WHEN IT COUNTS
Ole Miss has been especially strong in the second half this season, shooting 46.5 percent overall in the back half while outscoring opponents 522-464 (37.3 points per second half, +4.1 scoring margin). Additionally, the Rebels have put up a +3.6 rebounding margin in the second half this season, while junior Matthew Murrell is averaging 8.4 points per second half this season. At the ESPN Events Invitational, Ole Miss shot a blistering 55 percent overall, led by 14.3 points per second half by Amaree Abram, who was also 5-of-6 from three and a perfect 6-of-6 from the free throw line in the back half.
BLOCK PARTY
The Ole Miss defense currently ranks 79th in the country and seventh in the SEC with 64.9 points allowed per game, only letting their opponents top 70 points twice this year. A major part of their defensive identity has been enforcing the paint, as the Rebels rank 28th in the country and fifth in the SEC in blocks per game (5.0). They are led down low by senior transfers Theo Akwuba (18 total blocks, 1.3 per game) and Jayveous McKinnis (16 total blocks, 1.2 per game).
In their last game for the Rebels, Akwuba and McKinnis combined for seven blocks at No. 7 Alabama, with Akwuba's four bringing his collegiate career total to 200. He and McKinnis (248 career blocks) are the only two teammates in college basketball with over 200 swats in their careers, and each rank among the top-10 in active career leaders.
DEEP POCKETS
The Rebels' depth has been on full display to begin the season, as the Ole Miss bench has accounted for over a third of the team's scoring through their first 14 games (38.4%, 369 of 961 points). The Rebs have topped their opponents in bench points in 10 of 14 contests, and are outscoring their foes' benches by 136 on the year (369 to 233). Their 26.4 points per game off the bench rank fourth in the SEC.
CAN'T BRAKE HIS COMPOSURE
In Ole Miss' game against No. 7 Tennessee, Jaemyn Brakefield shot a perfect 4-4 from three-point range, setting a season-high with 18 points in the process. The junior from Jackson, Miss. became just the eighth Rebel in program history to remain perfect from deep in a game with a minimum of four attempts. The last to do so was Devontae Shuler on Dec. 10, 2020 against Jackson State when he went 5-5.
RENAISSANCE MAN
Senior transfer Myles Burns has made an immediate impact for the Rebels on both ends of the floor with a unique talent blend as a defensive force and a go-getter on the offensive glass. Burns ranks 34th in the NCAA with an average of 2.2 steals per game, while also ranking seventh in the conference at 2.5 offensive boards per game.
Prior to Ole Miss, Burns had an extraordinary career at Loyola New Orleans, where he was a four-time NAIA All-American and three-time SSAC Defensive Player of the Year. With the Wolf Pack, Burns played in 120 career games with 111 starts, while setting career averages of 15.3 points (1,852), 8.8 rebounds (1,069), 3.0 steals (358), 2.5 assists (298) and 1.0 blocks (116). In Loyola's record book, Burns ranks No. 1 in steals (358), No. 2 all-time in points (1,852), No. 2 in rebounds (1,069), No. 4 in blocks (116) and No. 7 in assists (298), with his 358 steals resting 163 more than any other player in Loyola history.
Burns helped lead Loyola to the 2022 NAIA National Championship title, the first in school history since 1945, as the tournament MVP at 19.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 5.2 steals with four double-doubles in six tournament games.
Burns is no stranger to dominating these two distinct statistical categories, as his 151 offensive rebounds and 152 steals in 2021-22 had no rival in all of college basketball, with the nearest Division I comparison being defending national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe of Kentucky, who had 179 offensive rebounds and 60 steals last season. Furthermore, Burns' 152 steals last season earned him the 2022 Marques Haynes Award, which is given annually to the player with the most steals in all of college basketball, regardless of division.
BEST OF THE BEST
Ole Miss' four senior transfers are among some of the best returning big men in all of college basketball. Jayveous McKinnis stands as one of the best returners in the nation this year, currently fourth in total rebounds (1,056), fifth in total blocks (248), sixth in career double-doubles (38), ninth in rebounds per game (9.0), 10th in blocks per game (2.1) and 21st in field goal shooting (.611). McKinnis is one of just six active players in all of college basketball with 1,000 career rebounds alongside South Alabama's Kevin Samuel (1,178), North Carolina's Armando Bacot (1,156), Nicholls' Manny Littles (1,070), Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe (1,046), and Lipscomb's Ahsan Asadullah (1,019). He is also just one of five, alongside Samuel, Bacot, Asadullah, and Tshiebwe with 1,000 career points (1,135) and 1,000 career rebounds.
Ole Miss is one of three schools with multiple top-25 rebounders on the active career list alongside Texas Tech and Virginia. McKinnis (1,056) and Josh Mballa(825; No. 21) combine for 1,881 career rebounds, the second-most among teammates behind Texas Tech's 1,894 from Kevin Obanor (976) and Fardaws Almaq (918).
Ole Miss also ranks highly on the career blocks list with two top-10 entries. McKinnis ranks fifth at 248 swats, while Theo Akwuba is 10th at 200. Ole Miss stands as one of just two schools with multiple top-25 active blockers alongside Gardner-Webb, but the Rebels are the only school with two within the top-10. The Rebel trio of McKinnis (38, No. 5), Mballa (29, No. 14) and Akwuba (17) combine for 84 career double-doubles, with McKinnis and Mballa owning the second-most by a pair of teammates at 67 behind Texas Tech's Almaq (41) and Obanor (36) at 77.
* Note: Myles Burns' 1,069 career rebounds while at NAIA Loyola New Orleans do not transfer over to the NCAA records lists, but he would rank second in the nation at 1,160 if they did and give Ole Miss a combined 4,398 boards between Burns (1,160), McKinnis (1,056), Mballa (825), Akwuba (683) and Robert Allen (674). Burns' combined career total of 1,948 points would also rank No. 18 among all NCAA divisions.
AIN'T WASTING TIME NO MORE
With eight new faces for Ole Miss this season, the Rebel newcomers are already seeing serious minutes, and contributing in all major stat categories.
Newcomer Splits:
Minutes: 52.8% (1,479 of 2,800)
Scoring: 47.5% (456 of 961)
Rebounding: 52.4% (282 of 538)
Assists: 47.7% (83 of 174)
Steals: 58.1% (64 of 110)
Blocks: 81.4% (57 of 70)
Newcomer Scoring:
vs. Alcorn State: 29 of 73 (39.7%)
vs. Florida Atlantic: 36 of 80 (45.0%)
vs. Chattanooga: 33 of 70 (47.1%)
vs. UT Martin: 35 of 72 (48.6%)
vs. Stanford: 48 of 72 (66.7%)
vs. Siena: 37 of 74 (50.0%)
vs. Stanford: 39 of 55 (70.1%)
at Memphis: 32 of 57 (56.1%)
vs. Valparaiso: 27 of 98 (27.6%)
vs. UCF: 38 of 61 (62.3%)
vs. Temple: 24 of 63 (38.1%)
vs. North Alabama: 26 of 65 (40.0%)
vs. Tennessee: 27 of 59 (45.8%)
vs. Alabama: 25 of 62 (40.3%)
DYNAMIC DUO
Matthew Murrell and sophomore Daeshun Ruffin were a potent combo when on the court together last season, giving Ole Miss two of the SEC's top returning guards for 2022-23. Last year, the duo combined for 24.7 PPG, 5.1 APG, 3.1 SPG, shot a combined .408 from the field and .343 from 3PT.
So far this season the two rank first and second on the team in scoring average, and have combined for 24.6 PPG, 5.3 APG, and 2.0 SPG in their seven games together.
GUESS WHO'S BACK?
After missing the final month of the season last year and first seven games of the 2022-23 season, Daeshun Ruffin returned to action on Dec. 3 against Memphis, coming off the bench and playing 14 minutes. Tearing his ACL at No. 25 LSU on Feb. 1 last season following an incredible effort to help the Rebels earn their second AP Top-25 win of the year, Ruffin's return this season was delayed due to a minor bone bruise. In seven games since his return he ranks second on the team with 10.0 points per game and leads the team with 3.3 assists per contest while averaging 18.7 minutes. His 21.4 points per 40 minutes lead the Rebels so far this season.
Last year against LSU, Ruffin led Ole Miss with 19 points, three assists and two steals alongside a 6-of-11 line from the field, a 2-of-4 clip from three and a perfect 5-of-5 from the free throw line in 20 minutes of action. Ruffin had been electric since returning to the team following an eight-game absence due to a broken right hand suffered in last year's season opener against New Orleans. On the season, Ruffin averaged a team-high 2.3 steals per game and led the Rebels with a 52-of-69 (.754) clip from the charity stripe, to go along with 12.6 points, 3.4 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game. In SEC season he was just as impressive against some of the best in the nation, ranking at the time of his injury second in the conference in SEC-only action in steals (2.7/game), ninth in free throw shooting (.833) and 10th in assists (3.9/game).
Ruffin was named SEC Freshman of the Week on Jan. 31 – the first such honor by a Rebel since Jarvis Summers on Dec. 5, 2011. His honor came courtesy of an excellent three-game stretch from Jan. 24-29, during which he averaged 16.0 points, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals with a 19-of-24 (.792) mark from the free throw line – at one point hitting 14 in a row during those three games. Included in there is a career-high 21 points vs. Florida on Jan. 24, with 15 of those points coming in the second half. In just 14 career games played, Ruffin had scored in double-digits in 10, scored 15 or more in six contests, and had multiple steals in nine games. Ruffin was on pace to break Elston Turner's 1978 record for steals by a freshman of 47, but ended his season at 32 swipes. Ruffin came to Ole Miss following a superb high school career at Callaway High School in Jackson, Miss., joining as the first McDonald's All-American signee in program history.
YEAR FIVE FOR COACH DAVIS
Kermit Davis enters his fifth season at the helm of Ole Miss basketball. Over his first four seasons, Davis has led the Rebels to a pair of postseason appearances, going to the NCAA Tournament in 2019 and the NIT in 2021 (2020 postseason was cancelled due to COVID-19). With 72 victories as head coach of the Rebels, Davis is one of only four coaches in Ole Miss history to rack up at least 50 wins over their first three seasons. A nine-time conference coach of the year, Davis has 475 career Division I wins over 25 seasons, including stints at Middle Tennessee, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 28 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 541 wins.
DAVIS ERA TRENDS TO WATCH
• 58-23 when leading at half
• 6-0 when scoring 90+, 30-4 when scoring 80+, 56-22 when scoring 70+
• 51-21 when winning the rebounding battle
• 33-5 when at 50 percent shooting or better
• 20-8 when shooting 40 percent or better from three
• 69-38 when keeping opponents below 50 percent shooting, 39-7 when below 40 percent
EXPERIENCE FROM THE PORTAL
Ole Miss went into the portal looking for experienced big men, and came away with four of the most well-seasoned options available. Those four senior transfers -- F Theo Akwuba, F Myles Burns, F Josh Mballa and F Jayveous McKinnis -- hold an incredible combined career stat lines across their respective careers prior to Ole Miss:
Combined Career Stats (NAIA included for Burns):
• 479 games played
• 371 games started
• 4,953 points
• 3,724 rebounds
• 659 steals (389 from Burns alone)
• 647 blocks
