SEASON OPENER: Ole Miss vs. Nebraska
November 11, 2007 2:05 p.m. CT
Lincoln, Neb. C.M. Devaney Center (13,595)
MEDIA
Live Video: OleMissSports.com
Live Audio: Ole MissSports.com
Live Stats: OleMissSports.com
OXFORD, Miss. Following a pair of exhibition games against DT-3 and the Ohio Girls Basketball Report, the Ole Miss women’s basketball season raises the curtain on its 33rd season on the hardwood when the Lady Rebels travel to Lincoln, Neb., Sunday afternoon at 2:05 p.m. to take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers at the Devaney Center.
Fans wishing to have access to live video or audio of Sunday’s game will get that opportunity by logging on to www.OleMissSports.com. Live video streaming of the contest will be available to www.OleMissSports.tv subscribers, while live audio of the game will be offered to everyone free of charge.
Sunday’s game also marks the highly anticipated debut for Ole Miss first-year head coach Renee Ladner. Ladner was selected to become the sixth head coach in school history Apr. 26, 2007 following the resignation of former head coach Carol Ross. Ladner is no stranger to the Ole Miss family as she was a point guard from the Lady Rebels from 1978-81 before serving as an assistant coach under Ross from 2003-06. In addition, Ladner was an assistant coach with Ross at the University of Florida from 2002-02 before the duo returned to Oxford.
Ole Miss returns two starters and nine additional letterwinners from last year’s team that posted a 24-11 overall record en route to the school’s fifth appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight. The Lady Rebels’ magical run through the NCAA Tournament began with an opening round victory over TCU before Ole Miss turned heads by eliminating defending NCAA Champion Maryland from the tournament with a convincing 89-78 over the Terps. In the following round, the Lady Rebels bounced Big 12 champion Oklahoma from the tournament with a 90-82 victory to advance into the Dayton Regional finals. Ole Miss was then eliminated from the tournament by SEC rival and eventual NCAA Champion Tennessee.
The Lady Rebels enter Sunday’s contest at Nebraska having split a pair of exhibition games at Tad Smith Coliseum. Ole Miss opened the preseason with a convincing 83-56 victory over DT-3 as junior center Shawn Goff notched a double-double with a game-high 21 points while collecting 10 rebounds. Sophomore Bianca Thomas also chipped in with 12 points, while fellow sophomore Shantell Black added 10 points to go along with seven assists. Ole Miss next dropped an 84-78 decision to OGBR Thursday evening at the Tad Pad despite several rigorous comeback attempts throughout the game. Despite the loss, Goff once again proved to be the offensive leader and she tallied her second consecutive double-double with a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds. In addition, freshman Kayla Melson showed off her offensive and defensive skills as she recorded 13 points and three steals in 25 minutes of action. Sophomore Alliesha Easley and senior Danetra Forrest also scored in double figures as the duo tallied 13 and 12 points respectively.
Nebraska, directed by sixth-year head coach Connie Yori, returns just one starter from last year’s team that went 22-10 an earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament. The Huskers, however, do return one of the top players in the Big 12 in the form of junior Kelsey Griffin. Griffin was a First Team All-Big 12 selection a season ago after averaging 15.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. As expected, Griffin also earned preseason First Team All-Big 12 accolades prior to the start of this season.
The Cornhuskers (1-0) began their regular season Friday night with an 81-74 victory over UTEP in their home opener. Trailing 74-68 to the Miners, the Huskers used a 13-0 run over the final 5:22 en route to victory. Senior forward Danielle Page scored a career-high 19 points to go along with nine rebounds to lead four Huskers in double figures.
Prior to Sunday afternoon’s meeting, Ole Miss and Nebraska have met just once in women’s basketball with the Lady Rebels owning a 1-0 all-time series lead. The two teams only other meeting took place in late November during the 2003-04 season in the Memphis Thanksgiving Tournament. In that meeting, then Ole Miss freshman Armintie Price nailed a jumper with 20 seconds remaining in the game to lift the Lady Rebels to a 69-66 victory. Price would go on to become only the second player in NCAA history to amass over 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds, 400 assists and 400 steals over her career.
