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HOOPS: Rebels to face LSU Saturday

Neal McCready

All-Pro NFL
Staff
Feb 26, 2008
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Oxford, MS
OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss men's basketball team aims to keep rolling after winning their first two SEC games, hosting LSU on Saturday, January 11 at 5 p.m. in the SJB Pavilion and on the SEC Network.

TEAM FACTS
No. 23/22 Ole Miss Rebels (Record: 13-2, 2-0 SEC)
Head Coach: Chris Beard • 2nd Season at Ole Miss (33-14) • 270-112 career record (13th Season)

LSU Tigers (Record: 11-4, 0-2 SEC)
Head Coach: Matt McMahon • 3rd Season at LSU (42-39) • 196-106 career record (10th Season)

ON THE AIR
Television/Online: SEC Network
Play-by-Play: Richard Cross
Color: Joe Kleine

OLE MISS RADIO
Radio: Ole Miss Radio Network
Play-by-Play: David Kellum
Color: Marc Dukes

SERIES HISTORY VS. LSU
The second-most played rivalry in Ole Miss history, this will be the 218th game between the Rebels and Tigers, with LSU leading the series 126-91. Tied for the 56th-most played rivalry in all of college basketball, the first game was played back in 1910, the second season of Ole Miss men's basketball. When playing in Oxford, the Rebels own a 55-42 advantage but own a slim 6-4 lead over the past 10 at home. Overall, the Tigers have claimed seven of the past 10 games including last year's 89-80 win in Baton Rouge.

LAST MEETING: January 17, 2024 (L, 80-89, Baton Rouge, La.)
• Ole Miss took an early lead before LSU came back to take a two-point advantage into halftime. Despite the Rebels scoring 47 in the second frame, the Tigers posted 54 to hold on for the win.
Jaylen Murray (Ole Miss): 23 points, three rebounds, two assists, three steals.
• Allen Flanigan (Ole Miss): 20 points, eight rebounds, three steals.
• Jordan Wright (LSU): 27 points, seven rebounds, five assists, seven steals.

SCOUTING THE TIGERS
LSU brings an 11-4 record to Oxford on Saturday, having on 0-2 to begin SEC play. Earlier in the season, they picked up key wins over Kansas State, UCF, and Florida State. They began their conference slate with an 80-72 loss to Vanderbilt in Baton Rouge, before dropping a road game at Missouri on January 7. The Tigers currently own a NET ranking of No. 71.

Kansas State transfer Cam Carter leads the Tigers offensively, averaging 17.2 points per game while shooting 41.3 percent from beyond the arc and 89.7 percent from the free throw line. A former Mississippi State player, Carter also leads LSU in assists with 40 on the season. The team is led on the glass by redshirt-freshman forward Corey Chest, who ranks 10th in the SEC with an average of 7.6 per game.

Defense has been the name of the game for LSU this season, as the Tigers rank 21st in all of college basketball by holding their opponents to 38.6 percent from the field. A big part of their game has been defending the paint, as they rank 20th in the nation in blocks per game with an average of 5.3 led by Daimion Collins with 23 swats. LSU also ranks among the best in the country on the glass, pulling in just over 28 defensive rebounds per game to rank 29th in the NCAA, and just under 40 total boards per game to rank 32nd.

In his third season at the helm, LSU is led by head coach Matt McMahon who was hired before the 2022-23 season after a successful run at Murray State. Whlie with the Racers, McMahon put together four 20-win seasons in his seven years, including three NCAA Tournament births and a historical 31-win season in 2021-22. He helped guide Murray State to four regular season and three tournament conference titles, and was named the OVC Coach of the Year in 2022.

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 +6.6, the Rebels own the fifth-best average in all of college basketball, forcing 15.6 per game (No. 33 in the NCAA) while committing just 9.0 to rank second in the NCAA.

They have held opponents to 60 points or less in five games this season, allowing an average of just 64.5 per contest, the 33rd-fewest in the NCAA. Their field goal percentage defense of 40.0 ranks 43rd in the country this season, and Ole Miss holds a record of 15-1 in two years under Beard when holding the opposition to under 40 percent from the field. Their scoring margin of +14.7 this season is the 27th-best figure in the country.

Ole Miss ranks among the top teams in the nation in steals per game at 9.9, the 18th-best clip in college basketball, and blocks per game at 5.1 to rank 29th.

"HURRY UP AND GET YOUR MUSCLE UP, WE OUT THE PLYOMETRIC"
The start of the grueling SEC schedule has arrived and Ole Miss has stepped up to the challenge so far. In game one, the Rebels faced a Georgia team that entered their matchup 12th in the nation in field goal percentage at 50.7 and 12th in the country in rebound margin at +10.4. Ole Miss responded by holding the Bulldogs to just 29.3 percent from the floor, and out-rebounding Georgia, just the second time UGA had lost a battle on the boards this season.

In game two at Arkansas, the Rebels faced another top team in shooting efficiency, as the Razorbacks entered with the ninth-best field goal percentage in the nation at 50.7. The Ole Miss defense held Arkansas to just 37.3 percent shooting, and once again out-rebounded a team entering with a positive rebound margin.

Across their two SEC games, Ole Miss has held their opponents to just 33.3 percent from the field and 17.1 percent shooting from three-point range.

"POLL" POSITION
In the latest top-25 polls released this past Monday, Ole Miss ranks No. 23 in the AP Poll and No. 22 in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Recently at No. 15 in the Coaches Poll on December 9, it was 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, ranking fifth in the nation with a turnover margin of +6.6 while ranking second in turnovers per game at 9.0. The Rebels are forcing an average of 15.6 turnovers per contest which ranks 33rd in the NCAA. Ole Miss' assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.76 also ranks among the nation's best at 10th, led by Jaylen Murray with a season ratio of 3.10. They've been a force on the defensive end with an average of 9.9 steals per game (No. 18 in NCAA), paced by Sean Pedulla, who ranks 22nd in steals per game nationally.

BATTLE TESTED
The future schedule for Ole Miss is one of the most difficult in the nation. As of January 9, they own the fourth-toughest remaining strength of schedule in the nation, according to ESPN's Basketball Power Index. Their remaining opponent's win percentage of 84.6 is the third-highest in all of college basketball, and their cumulative strength-of-schedule win percentage of 73.2 is the sixth-highest in the nation.

Among the SEC programs, Ole Miss has played in the second-most quad-one games and is tied for the second-most quad-one victories with four.

I'LL TAKE THAT, PLEASE
Sean Pedulla
has had a big impact for the Rebels on defense, forcing 35 steals for an average of 2.33 per game. The senior guard has collected a steal in 14 of 15 games during the 2024-25 season, grabbing multiple swipes in ten games this year with a season-best of five against Oral Roberts. He currently ranks 22nd in the NCAA in steals per game and 22nd in total steals.

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 this year with 62 assists to just 20 turnovers. His assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.10 ranks 29th in the nation. "Juju" has registered five or more assists in eight games for the Rebels this season and ranks eighth in the SEC at 4.1 assists per game.

During his time at Ole Miss, Murray is averaging 4.02 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. 4.02, Jaylen Murray (189 assists, 47 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)

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.

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:
...
9. Jarvis Summers - 1,629
10. Joe Gibbon - 1,601
11. Matthew Murrell - 1,573
12. Gerald Glass - 1,564
...
30. Walter Actwood - 1,216
31. Rod Barnes - 1,201
t32. Jaemyn Brakefield - 1,160
t32. Rahim Lockhart - 1,160
33. Ken Turner - 1,159

NETWORKING
The 2024-25 NET Rankings made their debut on Monday, December 2 and Ole Miss has since climbed their way to No. 22 in the nation. Since the ranking's first iteration at the conclusion of the 2018-19 season, their ranking of 21st on December 19 is the highest-ever NET Ranking for the Ole Miss program.

As of January 9, the entire SEC is ranked among the top 100, with 14 of the 16 programs sitting inside the top 50, eight in the top 25, and four in the top 10.

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 national top-25 polls, 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. 9 Texas A&M, No. 2 Auburn, Texas, and No. 6 Kentucky.

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 11th in school history in career points with 1,573, and fifth in both three-point shots made (232), and three-point attempts (660). 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 sixth with 3,815 minutes, just behind Eric Laird with 3,832, and has played in 132 games, tied for third and just behind Jarvis Summers with 134 games.

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 1,291, 10th is Carlos Clark at 1,297), and career steals (Murrell at 145, 10th is Rahim Lockhart at 148).
 
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