OXFORD, Miss. – Following a victory to tip-off the 2023-24 season, the Ole Miss men's basketball team will host Eastern Washington on Friday, November 10 at 7 p.m. in the SJB Pavilion.
TEAM FACTS
Ole Miss Rebels (1-0)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 1st Season at Ole Miss (1-0) • 238-98 career record (12th Season)
Eastern Washington (0-1)
Head Coach: David Riley • 3rd Season at Eastern Washington (41-28) • 41-28 career record (3rd Season)
ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SECN+
Play-by-Play: Jake Hromada
Color: John Stroud
OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Darby
Color: Marc Dukes
A NEW SERIES
This will be the first meeting between Ole Miss and Eastern Washington on the basketball court, and the first of four contests against first-time opponents for the Rebels this season. They will also take on Detroit Mercy, Mount St. Mary's, and Bryant for the first time.
Against the Big Sky Conference, Ole Miss owns a 3-0 record all-time. They previously defeated Portland State 56-54 on December 23, 1996, Northern Arizona 80-74 on November 23, 2014, and Montana 86-81 on November 24, 2016.
SCOUTING THE EAGLES
The 2023 Big Sky Conference regular season champion, Eastern Washington is coming off one of their most successful seasons in program history. A school record 18-game win streak helped the Eagles finish with 23 wins, including a 16-2 conference record. The team upset Washington State in Pullman in the opening round of the NIT last year, before falling to the tournament's number-one seed Oklahoma State.
The opened their season on Monday, November 6 with a 101-66 loss at Utah.
The Eagles lost 2023 conference MVP Steele Venters to the transfer portal, as the guard moved to Gonzaga after averaging 15.3 point, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. The previous season Venters averaged 16.7 points per contest while shooting a blistering 43.4% from three.
Despite the loss of Venters, Eastern Washington returns their fourth-leading scorer in Ethan Price. Now a junior, Price averaged 9.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last season, and led the team defensively with 32 blocks. The leading rebounder from a year ago, Casey Jones returns as well after averaging 5.7 boards per game in 2022-23. After redshirting a season ago, freshman LeJuan Watts began this year by leading the team with 15 points and 10 rebounds in their opening game.
Entering his third year at the helm, head coach David Riley has accumulated an impressive 41-28 record during his time with Eastern Washington. The 2023 Big Sky Coach of the Year was formally an assistant coach on staff from 2014-21, and joined the Eagles program as a graduate assistant and director of operations in 2011.
A NEW ERA BEGINS
With the hiring of Chris Beard last March, the Ole Miss men's basketball program is prepared to take the next step forward, bringing in one of the most successful coaches of the last decade.
Compiling a record of 238-98 as an NCAA head coach since 2012, Beard holds one of the highest win percentages in the nation, ranking 14th among active head coaches with 10 or more years of experience at 70.8%.
The 2019 AP National Coach of the Year has led three different programs to the NCAA Tournament over the previous eight years, and is undefeated in the opening round at 5-0. His all-time record in the NCAA Tournament is 11-5 (.688).
RETURN OF THE "G" AND "F"
Senior guard Matthew Murrell and senior forward Jaemyn Brakefield are one of the most dynamic returning duos in the SEC this season. The top-two leading scorers for the Rebels a year ago, they returned a combined Ole Miss career stat line of 154 games played, 1,538 points, 576 rebounds, and 205 made three pointers at the beginning of the year.
"I'M 22 AND A VET IN THE GAME"
The Ole Miss men's basketball team returned a plethora of NCAA experience to the court to begin the year. Between their returners and transfers, the Rebels' roster included:
Games Played: 624
Minutes Played: 14,975
Points: 5,220
Rebounds: 2,644
Assists: 801
Steals: 425
Blocks: 524 (441 from Cisse and Sharp alone)
EYES UP HIGH
On Friday, October 27th, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced their 20-member watch list for the 2024 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year award. For the second consecutive year, Jamarion Sharp saw his name on that list.
ADAPT TO THE TIMES
The new age of the NCAA often sees heavy roster turnover from year-to-year. While Ole Miss returns five members of last year's team, they added 11 strong newcomers through the transfer portal and the high school recruiting trail: (stats current to opening day)
Returners (5)
Jaemyn Brakefield - 33 GP, 31 GS, 11.1 PPG, 5.8 RPG
Cam Brent - 2022-23 practice squad member
TJ Caldwell - 31 GP, 7 GS, 4.7 PPG, 1.6 RPG
Robert Cowherd - 2022-23 freshman, redshirted
Matthew Murrell - 30 GP, 29 GS, 14.4 PPG, 3.5 RPG
Transfers (7)
Moussa Cisse - Oklahoma St.; 61 GP, 7.0 PPG, 7.3 RPG
Allen Flanigan - Auburn; 114 GP, 8.5 PPG, 4.2 RPG
Cole McGrath - Blue Mountain; 53 GP, 6.5 PPG, 1.8 RPG
Brandon Murray - Georgetown; 27 GP, 13.7 PPG, 3.9 RPG
Jaylen Murray - St. Peter's; 62 GP, 8.9 PPG, 2.2 RPG
Austin Nunez - Arizona St.; 28 GP, 4.5 PPG, 1.1 RPG
Jamarion Sharp - Western Ky.; 65 GP, 7.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG
Freshman (4)
Cameron Barnes - Three-star (ESPN, 247, Rivals), No. 147 national (Rivals)
Jacob Gazzo - Three-star (ESPN), No. 3 in Mississippi (ESPN)
Rashaud Marshall - Four-star (ESPN, 247, Rivals), No. 83 national (247)
Gavin Murphy - His high school's fourth-leading all-time scorer
MILESTONE ALERT
Career milestones to watch for the Rebels:
Allen Flanigan
• Career Points: 981
• Career Rebounds: 491
Matthew Murrell
• Career Points: 941 - Would be 42nd member of 1,000-point club at Ole Miss
• Career 3PM: 141 - 163 enters top-10 in school history
• Career 3PA: 426 - 454 enters top-10 in school history
Jamarion Sharp
• Career Points: 501
• Career Rebounds: 491
• Career Blocks: 283
AMONG THE BEST
Forwards Jamarion Sharp and Moussa Cisse rank among the nation's best in active career leaders in a handful of statistical categories. After becoming the fifth player ever to lead the NCAA in blocks in two seasons, Sharp ranks first in both career blocks and career blocked shots per game. Establishing himself as a premier shot blocker as well, Cisse ranks 13th in each of those cateogires.
Averaging 7.6 rebounds per game in his career, Sharp ranks 25th in the country, while Cisse's 622 career boards rank 49th. Cisse also ranks among the top-50 in double-doubles (15, No. 41 in NCAA), and career field goal percentage (56.5%, No. 41 in NCAA).
SKEE-LO'S HERO
Transfer forward Jamarion Sharp stands as the tallest student-athlete in NCAA Division I men's basketball this season at 7'5", a title he has held for three-straight seasons now, and is even listed as one of the tallest living humans on Wikipedia. After spending his first two college years at John A. Logan College, Sharp played two years at Western Kentucky from 2021 to 2023. In 64 games played, he averaged 7.8 points per game, 7.6 rebounds per game, and became just the fifth person ever to lead the NCAA in blocks twice. His margin of 4.35 blocks per game during his career is currently the 10th-best average in college basketball history.
Career Blocked Shot Average (min. 225 blocks)
1. 5.87 - Keith Closs, Central Conn. St. (54 GP, 317 blks.)
2. 5.66 - Adonal Foyle, Colgate (87 GP, 492 blks.)
3. 5.34 - Shawn James, Northeastern/Duquesne (83 GP, 443 blks.)
4. 5.24 - David Robinson, Navy (67 GP, 351 blks.)
5. 4.66 - Mickell Gladness, Alabama A&M (85 GP, 396 blks.)
6. 4.65 - Wojciech Myrda, La.-Monroe (115 GP, 535 blks.)
7. 4.58 - Shaquille O'Neal, LSU (90 GP, 412 blks.)
8. 4.48 - Jerome James, Florida A&M (81 GP, 363 blks.)
9. 4.42 - Deng Gai, Fairfield (100 GP, 442 blks.)
10. 4.35 - Jamarion Sharp, Western Ky./Ole Miss (65 GP, 283 blks.)
WE BALLIN' LIKE THE MARCH MADNESS
Among the seven transfers for the Rebels, over half have been to the NCAA Tournament during their collegiate career, with a total of five appearances. Brandon Murray (LSU, 2022 First Round), Austin Nunez (Arizona State, 2023 First Round), and Jaylen Murray (Saint Peter's, 2022 Elite Eight) have each been to the postseason once in their careers, while Allen Flanigan has been twice (Auburn, 2022 and 2023 Second Round).
VALUED LEADERSHIP
The Ole Miss men's basketball coaching staff is one of the more experienced around the country. Entering his 14th year as a collegiate head coach, Chris Beard is joined on the court by former head coaches Win Case (16 years), Brian Burg (three years), and Wes Flanigan (two years). Assistant coach Bob Donewald Jr. has 16 years of head coaching experience at the professional and national level, while assistant Al Pinkins has been an associate or assistant coach at six different NCAA Division-I programs, including four within the SEC. The Ole Miss coaching staff has experience at five other SEC programs: Auburn, Florida, LSU, Mississippi State, and Tennessee.
TRANSFER TO THE 'SIP
Head coach Chris Beard and the Ole Miss coaching staff put together one of the top transfer classes in the conference, bringing in seven new players that will help punctuate Beard's emphasis on defense. Two of the top active career leaders in blocked shots, Moussa Cisse (Oklahoma State) and Jamarion Sharp (Western Kentucky) will set a strong presence down low, coming to Ole Miss with a combined 441 career blocks.
Guard Allen Flanigan (Auburn) brings over 100 games of experience, and is among the active career leaders in minutes played with 2,728. He scored nearly 1,000 points while at Auburn and grabbed just under 500 boards, adding 74 steals on defense.
After spending last season at Georgetown, Brandon Murray returns to the SEC, a conference he played in two years ago at LSU. The guard was selected to the Freshman All-SEC Team in 2022 and brings a combination of scoring (11.7 points per game) and strong defense (1.2 steals per game).
A trio of guards round out the Ole Miss transfer class. Jaylen Murray (St. Peter's) and Austin Nunez (Arizona State) give Beard a pair of point guards, each of which have displayed the ability to score. Spending two years at Northeast Mississippi CC and a pair at Blue Mountain, Cole McGrath gives the Rebels a shooting guard with big shot-making ability.
BALL IN THE 'SIP
The Rebels added four freshmen to their roster for 2023-24:
Cameron Barnes • F • 6-9, 195 • Duncanville, Texas • Duncanville
A three-star prospect according to ESPN, 247, and Rivals ... Ranked the No. 147 overall player in the nation by Rivals ... Two-time national champion, three-time state champion.
Jacob Gazzo • F • 6-8, 215 • McComb, Miss. • Parklane Academy
ESPN 3-star rated prospect ... ESPN No. 3 player in Mississippi ... ESPN No. 52 forward nationally ... Named to the Tennessee Sports Writers Association All-State team.
Rashaud Marshall • F • 6-8, 220 • Blytheville, Ark. • Blytheville
ESPN 4-star rated prospect (82 grade) ... ESPN No. 2 player in Arkansas ... ESPN No. 15 center nationally ... 247/247Composite 4-star rated prospect (92/0.9642 grade) ... 247/247Composite No. 1 player in Arkansas ... 247/247Composite No. 12 center nationally ... 247 No. 83 player nationally.
Gavin Muphy • G • 5-11, 165 • Calabasas, Calif. • Calabasas
First team all-league as a senior ... Ended high school career as his school's fourth-leading scorer ... First in his school's history with 100 three pointers and 100 assists.
ROAD WORK AHEAD
The 2023-24 schedule for Ole Miss holds plenty of challenges, competing in one of the top conferences in the nation and setting a strong list of non-conference foes. Among their 31 games, 19 of them will be against teams that finished with a NET ranking in the top 100 last season, while 12 of them finished in the top 50.
"IT AIN'T GON' NEVER STOP"
Head coach Chris Beard and staff continue to work on securing the future for Ole Miss basketball, and did so with a pair of signees in the NLI early signing period in November:
John Bol • F • 7-1 • Buma • Overtime Elite
Ranked as the second-highest recruit in program history according to 247Sports, Bol is a consensus four-star recruit, ranking as high as No. 38 in the nation by 247Sports and No. 40 by ESPN. He is an elite shot blocker and rebounder who stands at 7'1" and is able to affect the game on both ends of the floor. Ranked as the top player in the state of Georgia by ESPN, Bol has developed a reputation as one of the hardest playing big men in the country.
Eduardo Klafke • G • 6-5 • Fanca-Sao Paulo, Brazil • NBA Academy Latin America
A combo guard from the prestigious NBA Academy Latin America, Klafke will come to Oxford from Franca-Sao Paulo, Brazil. One of the top international players in his age group, he has consistently played above his age while representing Brazil on the national stage, playing in U19 games as a 17-year-old. Klafke will help bring a spark to the offense as an elite shooter and is excellent in playing both on and off the ball.
