OXFORD, Miss. – The Ole Miss men's basketball team gears up for the 2021-22 campaign, hosting Trevecca Nazarene in an exhibition Friday night (Nov. 5). Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. CT.
The only way to watch the Rebels for the first time this season is to come to the Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss. Admission is free, and fans can park for free in the SJB Pavilion garage. There is no television, streaming or radio coverage of the matchup.
YEAR FOUR OF THE DAVIS ERA
Kermit Davis enters his fourth season at the helm of Ole Miss Basketball. Over his first three seasons, Davis led the Rebels to a pair of postseason appearances (2020 postseason was cancelled due to COVID-19). With 51 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 is 38th among active Division I head coaches with 454 career wins over 23 seasons, including stints at MT, Idaho and Texas A&M. In 26 seasons as a college basketball head coach, he has amassed 520 wins.
HOMETOWN REBEL LEADS THE WAY
Jarkel Joiner, the hometown Rebel, returns for his senior campaign after averaging 12.0 ppg as a junior. The Oxford native made an impact in his first season, ranking second on the team in scoring with the help of five 20-point games. Joiner was a team-best 84.5 percent from the free throw line, which ranked third in the SEC.
MORE EXPERIENCE RETURNS
Luis Rodriguez, the team's leader in rebounds and steals a season ago, is back as well. After breaking is foot five games into the 2019-20 season, the Ole Miss wing bounced back with a strong season. His 45 steals ranked fifth in the SEC, while his 176 rebounds were ninth in the conference. Ole Miss also returns four Rebels who found themselves in the rotation off the bench last year. Robert Allen and Matthew Murrell played in all 28 games during their first season in Oxford, while also making a total of 11 starts between the pair. Austin Crowley and Sammy Hunter came off the bench as sophomores, playing in 27 and 25 games, respectively.
FROM THE PORTAL
The newcomers feature three transfers with a plethora of college basketball experience. Jaemyn Brakefield (Duke) Nysier Brooks (Miami, FL) and Tye Fagan (Georgia) have played a combined 241 games at the Division I level. Following his freshman season at Duke, Jackson, Mississippi, native Brakefield decided to return home. Brooks brings his rebounding skills to the Rebels after leading the Hurricanes on the glass a season ago. After scoring a team-high 19 points to lead Georgia to a road win over Ole Miss last season, Fagan decided to join the Rebels to provide additional SEC experience to the squad.
FRESH FACES
A quartet of freshman are led by Jackson, Mississippi, native Daeshun Ruffin. The guard decided to remain in the Magnolia State to continue his career, becoming the first McDonald's All-American to sign with Ole Miss out of high school. Grant Slatten was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in the state of Tennessee and scored a school-record 2,765 points over his high school career. Eric Van Der Heijden led Millbrook High School to an undefeated record and their first state title, averaging a double-double (18.2 ppg, 11.2 rpg). James White tallied 27.5 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 3.0 apg as a senior to earn first team all-state accolades in Georgia.
REPLACING THESE REBELS
The Rebels must replace First Team All-SEC guard Devontae Shuler, who also won the Howell Trophy as the best college basketball player in the state of Mississippi. Shuler finished his career ranked 20th on the program's all-time scoring list with 1,319 points. He ended his career third in steals (185), eighth in three-pointers made (178) and 10th in assists (329). Ole Miss also lost Romello White, a graduate transfer who left his mark in his lone season as a Rebel. White (11.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg) shot 64.9 percent from the field throughout the 2020-21 season, setting a new school record.
UNDERRATED
Ahead of the season, a panel consisting of SEC and national media members picked the Rebels to finish ninth in the conference standings this season. That shouldn't worry Ole Miss fans, as the Rebels have placed higher than the media's projection in eight of the last 10 seasons since the SEC went away from the divisional format. That includes last year when Ole Miss was predicted to finish ninth in the SEC, only to place sixth and become a top seed in the NIT.
LAST SEASON SNAPSHOT
Last season, the Rebels just missed out on making the NCAA Tournament. Led by the SEC's best scoring defense (65.4 ppg), Ole Miss finished sixth in the conference with a 10-8 mark. The Rebels won 10 of their final 13 games to receive a No. 1 seed in the NIT. Ole Miss ended the 2020-21 season 3-0 against ranked teams, including two victories against top 10 squads, one of only four programs to go undefeated against ranked opponents throughout the year.
SCOUTING TREVECCA
Trevecca Nazarene, a Division II school out of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, enters Friday's matchup following a 76-55 setback to Tennessee State in an exhibition (Oct. 27). The Trojans shot 33.3 percent (21 of 63) from the field, including a 25.9 percent (7 of 27) clip from beyond the arc. Junior guard Chris Rogers produced a double-double with team highs in points (16) and rebounds (10). CJ Penha added 14 points, while Josh Price (11) reached double figures as well. Omar Mance, who spent time as the director of recruiting and player personnel at Vanderbilt, is in his fourth season as the Trojans' head coach.
SAME HOME, NEW NAME
In January 2016, the $96 million Pavilion at Ole Miss opened its doors to Rebel fans. About to begin its fifth full season, the home of Ole Miss Basketball has a new name. Now, the state-of-the-art basketball and event arena has been officially named the Sandy and John Black Pavilion at Ole Miss in recognition of a $10 million gift from the Madison, Mississippi, couple. Longtime supporters, the Blacks said they wanted to make a gift they could enjoy with their family: three adult children, eight grandchildren and a great-granddaughter – most of whom attended Ole Miss. John Black, a University of Mississippi Foundation board member, earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics from the university in 1961 and a master's degree in accountancy in 1962. He was a Taylor Medalist and member of Omicron Delta Kappa academic honorary and Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Sandy Black attended the university and was a member of Phi Mu sorority.
TIPPING OFF OPENING WEEK AT HOME
Ole Miss opens the 2021-22 regular season with a pair of home games throughout the week. First, New Orleans treks to SJB Pavilion to lift the lid on the season (Nov. 9, 6:30 p.m.). Three days later, the night before the Ole Miss football team hosts Texas A&M in a nationally-ranked SEC battle, the Rebels welcome Charleston Southern for a 6 p.m. tip (Nov. 12). Both basketball contests will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
