Women's Hoops Hosts MVSU Wednesday Night

Dec. 14, 2010

Ole Miss Rebels (6-3, 0-0 SEC)
This Week ...
vs. Mississippi Valley State University (2-5, 0-0 SWAC)
Wednesday, 7 p.m. CT
Dec. 15, Oxford, Miss.

Date: Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Tip-off: 7 p.m. (CT)
Location: Oxford, Miss.
Arena: Tad Smith Coliseum (9,061)
TV: None
Radio: Gary Darby, play-by-play
WTNM Supertalk Mississippi (105.5 FM)
Web: Gametracker - available here RebelVision - available here
Up Next:
Dec. 18 at Central Michigan, 1 p.m. CT
Dec. 21 vs. Miami, Noon CT

Rebels Host MVSU Wednesday Night
Ole Miss will look to win its second straight game as it hosts Mississippi Valley State University on Wednesday night at 7 p.m. Ole Miss is 4-1 at home this year and will look for its fifth win at home this season. The Rebels and the Devilettes will meet for the first time since the 1997 season.

About Ole Miss
The Rebels are 6-3 this year and will play two of its next three games at the Tad Smith Coliseum. Ole Miss is led by Kayla Melson who is averaging 15 points per game. Valencia McFarland is second, averaging 13.3 points per game while Pa'Sonna Hope is third averaging 10.1 points per game. Nikki Byrd leads the team in rebounding (6.7 rpg) followed by Pa'Sonna Hope who averages 6.6 rebounds per game. As a team, the Rebels are averaging 66.3 points per game while holding its opponents to 61.2 points per game.

News and Notes
Senior Tori Slusher tied her career-high with six points versus SELA ... Nikki Byrd became the third player this year to record a double-double (Kayla Melson and Courtney Marbra are the others) ... LaTosha Laws tied her career-high with six assists versus SELA ... Ole Miss' double overtime game against Hawai`i marked the team's first double overtime game since a February 2007 game at Arkansas ... Kayla Melson is the only player to have started all nine games this year ... Pa'Sonna Hope recorded a career-high nine rebounds against Hawai`i ... Valencia McFarland and Melson are each averaging nearly 40 minutes a game for Ole Miss ... Melson is averaging 37.1 mpg while McFarland is averaging 38.2 ... Ole Miss came from 14 points down in two games this year to win, versus Gonzaga and versus Illinois ... Ole Miss' guards recorded 32 of the team's 53 boards in their win over Nicholls State ... Kayla Melson tied her career-high with 12 boards against Nicholls State ... McFarland matched her career high in assists with seven versus Arizona ... 10 of the 13 Rebels who have seen action for Ole Miss this year have scored and all 13 players on the roster have played in at least one game this season.

Ole Miss vs. MVSU
Ole Miss leads the overall series, 10-2, with the last meeting between the two teams coming during the 1997-1998 season in which the Rebels posted a 71-62 win in Oxford. Prior to that meeting Ole Miss posted a 92-62 win over MVSU in Oxford in 1993.

A Look at MVSU
MVSU is 2-5 this year and are coming off a 68-60 win over Talladega College. The Devilettes are led by Alia Frank (9.9 ppg) and De'Kisha Fondon (8.0 ppg). Ka'Neshia Smith leads the team in rebounding averaging 5.7 boards per game. As a team, MVSU averages 51.3 points per game while its opponents average 75. The Devilettes shoot 32.6 percent from the floor, 26.8 percent from three-point range and 54.8 percent from the free throw line. MVSU is coached by Nate Kilbert who is in his fifth season.

Last Time Out
Pa'Sonna Hope scored a career-high 20 points to lead four players in double figures in a 85-51 win over SELA. Nikki Byrd recorded a double-double (15 points, 10 rebounds), while Kenyotta Jenkins (13 points) and Maggie McFerrin (11 points) also added career highs in the win.

Hope Named SEC Freshman of the Week
Freshman forward Pa'Sonna Hope was named SEC Freshman of the Week the SEC announced Monday. This is the first career honor for Hope and it's the first time this season an Ole Miss player has won a weekly honor from the SEC. Last week she led Ole Miss with a career-high 20 points in an 85-51 win over SE Louisiana. Hope also grabbed eight rebounds to tie her career high. For the week she went 10-for-23 scoring 20 points with eight rebounds, four steals and two assists.

Donate Nonperishable Food Items and Receive Free Admission Wednesday Night
Fans who bring two nonperishable food items for the Oxford Food Pantry will receive free admission to the Ole Miss/MVSU game at 7 p.m.

Hope Records Career-High 20 Points vs. SELA
Freshman Pa'Sonna Hope scored a career-high 20 points to lead Ole Miss past SELA. Hope is the third player and second freshman to record a 20-point game this year. Her 20 points marks her fourth game this year scoring in double figures.

Byrd Records Her First Double-Double of the Year
Junior Nikki Byrd recorded her first double-double of the year, and fourth of her career, with a season-high 15 points and 10 rebounds versus SELA. The 10 boards marks the second time this year she has recorded double-digit rebounds. Byrd is the third player this year to record a double-double along with Kayla Melson and Courtney Marbra.

Jenkins Makes the Most of her First Career Start
Freshman Kenyotta Jenkins made her first career start in her third career appearance against SELA. Jenkins made the most of her first career start recording career highs in points (13) and rebounds (7). She is fourth on the team in scoring (7.7 points per game) and is a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line.

Ole Miss Offensive Comes Alive vs. SELA
Ole Miss scored a season-high 85 points in a win over SELA, marking the most points the Rebels have scored since February 7, 2010 when Ole Miss scored 102 points in a triple-overtime win over a ranked LSU team. The Rebels recorded season-highs in points (85), field goals (33), field goal attempts (73) and assists (20).

McFerrin Scores in Double Figures in Second Career Game
Sophomore walk-on Maggie McFerrin scored a career-high 11 points and added career highs in rebounds (2) and assists (2) against SELA. McFerrin, who logged 29 minutes in the win over SELA, made her first career appearance against South Alabama.

Three Players Make Collegiate Debuts Against SELA
Jasmine Trotter and walk-ons Kelsey Nutt and Jasmine Curtis each made their collegiate debuts for the Rebels against SELA. Trotter recorded two rebounds and one steal in seven minutes while Nutt recorded one rebound in eight minutes and Curtis went 2-for-2 from the free throw line in four minutes.

Melson Fifth in the SEC in Scoring
As of Dec. 12, senior Kayla Melson is fifth in the SEC in scoring averaging 15 points per game. She has scored at least 20 points in three games this year including a career-high 29 points in a loss at South Alabama. This season she has scored in double figures in six of the team's nine games.

Ole Miss Second in the SEC in Rebounding
In games through Dec. 12, Ole Miss is second in the SEC in rebounding, averaging 44.3 rebounds per game. The Rebels went from fifth to second in the league in a week. Nikki Byrd leads the team in rebounding (6.7 rpg) while Pa'Sonna Hope is second with 6.6 rebounds per game. Ole Miss is also first in the SEC in offensive rebounds with 18.2 per game.

Ole Miss in the National Stats
In the national stats through Dec. 12, Ole Miss is ranked 48th (out of 333 teams) in the nation in rebounding margin with +6.3 rebounds per game and 16th in fouls per game (14). Kayla Melson is ranked 30th (out of 250) in assists per game (5.3).

Melson on Track for 1,000 Career Points
Senior Kayla Melson has recorded a total of 890 career points and needs 110 points to reach 1,000 for her career. This season, Melson is averaging a team-leading 15 points per game.

Melson Looks to Break into top Five in Career Assists
Senior Kayla Melson has recorded 406 assists during her career. She needs to record 50 assists this season to claim the fifth spot on the career list (456). Last season, Melson recorded a league-leading 178 assists. This year she has leads the team with 48.

Career Assists
1. 566, Glenda Springfield, 1975-79 (134 games)
2. 559, Kim Bullard, 1984-88 (118 games)
3. 552, Dana Fortenberry, 1979-83 (123 games)
4. 531, Carol Ross, 1977-81 (135 games)
5. 455, Jackie Martin, 1987-92 (130 games)

Melson Records Career-High 29 Points at USA
Senior Kayla Melson recorded a career-high 29 points in Ole Miss' 67-60 loss at South Alabama. Melson's 29 points passed her previous career-high of 21 points set on Nov. 28 in a win over Illinois. Melson has scored at least 20 points in three of her last four games. Melson's 29 points are the most by a Rebel this season.

McFarland Named to All-Tournament Team in Hawaii
Freshman Valencia McFarland was named to the All-Tournament team at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Rainbow Wahine Showdown. McFarland averaged 14.7 points per game including a career-high 24 versus Illinois. McFarland also scored the game-winning layup versus Gonzaga with four seconds left on the clock. McFarland was also named to the Inn at Ole Miss Classic All-Tournament team earlier this month.

McFarland Sets Career High vs. Illinois
Freshman Valencia McFarland set a career high in Ole Miss' win over Illinois. McFarland scored 24 points which is the second-most point by an Ole Miss player this season behind Kayla Melson's 29 at South Alabama.

Marbra Records First Career Double-Double
Sophomore Courtney Marbra recorded her first career double-double against Hawai`i with 10 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. The 10 points also ties her career high.

Freshman Nelson Records First Career Start
Freshman Shae Nelson made her first career start for the Rebels against Illinois. Nelson has played in seven games this year and is averaging 6.3 points per game and 3.9 rebounds per game.

Rebels Take Third at Rainbow Wahine Showdown
Ole Miss took third in the Waikiki Beach Marriott Rainbow Wahine Showdown in Honolulu, Hawaii. Ole Miss beat Illinois in the third-place game. The Rebels finished the eight-team tournament with a 2-1 record recording wins over Gonzaga and Illinois while falling to Hawai`i.

Iron Woman
In her first seven games, freshman point guard Valencia McFarland played 279 out of a possible 290 minutes for Ole Miss through the Rebels first seven games. She is averaging 39.9 minutes per game and has tallied 105 points (including 21 three pointers), 31 rebounds, 33 assists, 14 steals while committing 14 turnovers.

Close Games
Eight of Ole Miss' first nine games were decided by nine points or less while four of those games were decided by five points or less. The Rebels have gone 3-1 in games decided by five points or less in those games with their narrowest margin of defeat coming versus Arizona (72-70) and their narrowest margin of victory coming versus Gonzaga (53-52).

Become a Fan Of Ole Miss Women's Basketball On Facebook
The Ole Miss women's basketball team launched its Facebook page this week at facebook.com/OleMissWBB. The site also has links to the team's YouTube, Twitter and Picasa sites. "Like" the page today and become a fan to get updates on games, pictures from games and road trips, videos and more.

Melson Records Second Double-Double of the Year
Senior guard Kayla Melson recorded second double-double of the season against Nicholls State with 12 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. She recorded her first double-double of the year against Sam Houston State with 15 points and a career-high 12 boards.

Active Players With Double-Doubles
Season Career
Kayla Melson 2 5
Nikki Byrd 1 4
Courtney Marbra 1 1

Ladner Gets 50th Career win at Ole Miss
Fourth-year head coach Renee Ladner recorded her 50th career win at Ole Miss with the Rebels 69-60 win over Sam Houston State in the championship game of the Inn at Ole Miss Classic. Ladner, who got career win number 54 versus SELA, is now the fourth all-time winningest coach in Ole Miss history. Currently she trails Ron Aldy (1997-2003, 79 wins); Carol Ross (2003-07, 77 wins) and Van Chancellor (1978-1997, 439 wins).

McFarland, Melson Lead Team in 20-point Games this Year
Senior Kayla Melson has recorded three 20-point games this year while freshman Valencia McFarland has recorded two. McFarland scored a career 24 agaisnt Illinois and added 20 versus Arizona while Melson scored a career-high 29 at South Alabama and added 21 against Illinois and 20 versus Gonzaga. Pa'Sonna Hope has recorded one 20-point game this year scoring a career-high 20 versus SELA.

McFarland, Byrd Earn All-Tournament Honors
Freshman point guard Valencia McFarland was named the Inn at Ole Miss Classic MVP while junior forward Nikki Byrd was named to the All-Tournament team. McFarland ended the weekend averaging a team-leading 12.5 points per game and recorded 12 rebounds, 10 assists and eight steals. Byrd ended the weekend averaging nine points and seven rebounds per game.

McFarland Impressive in Debut for Rebels
Freshman point guard Valencia McFarland played 79 out of a possible 80 minutes in Ole Miss' two wins this weekend. She recorded just one turnover in 40 minutes against Jackson State and ended the weekend with just three turnovers in 79 minutes. She scored a career-high 18 points against Sam Houston State and ended the weekend with 12 rebounds, 10 assists and eight steals.

Scoring in Double Figures
Through their first nine games of the season, the Rebels have had a total of nine different players record a total of 23 double-digit scoring games. Three players (Valencia McFarland, LaTosha Laws, Kayla Melson, Pa'Sonna Hope and Nikki Byrd) have recorded a total of 12 games of 15 points or more while McFarland, Melson and Hope have accounted for a combined six 20-point games.

Laws Records Career-High
Junior LaTosha Laws recorded a career-high 17 points against Jackson State. Laws went 7-of-16 from the field and passed her previous career-high of 10 points versus Winston-Salem State on December 20, 2009.

Rebounding Advantage
Ole Miss outrebounded Sam Houston State by a margin of 16 boards, 50-34. The Rebels had five players record at least five boards in the game including Kayla Melson who recorded a game and career high 12 boards. The Rebels turned in their biggest rebounding margin of the year versus Nicholls State with a 53-25 advantage on the boards. The Rebels also outrebounded Gonzaga by 19, 48-to-29.

Home Court advantage
Including the exhibition game, Ole Miss will play its first five games on the year at home. Overall, the Rebels are 362-87 at the Tad Smith Coliseum.

Ticket information
Ticket prices for the regular season are $5 per game or $61 for season tickets. For more information call the Ole Miss ticket office at 662-915-7167.

Follow the rebels
Ole Miss' regular-season games can be heard on WTNM Supertalk Mississippi (105.5 FM) with the pregame show starting 15 minutes before tipoff. Eli Savoie will be calling all of the games in November while Gary Darby will pickup the rest of the game this season.

Women's Hoops Signs Four
Head coach Renne Lander announced the signing of Danielle McCray, Gracie Frizzell, Monique Jackson and Tia Faleru to National Letters of Intent for the 2011-12 year. McCray Daneille McCray is a 6-1 forward from West Palm Beach, Fla. She is the 85th best player and 25th best forward in the country as ranked by ESPNU HoopGurlz. Frizzell Gracie Frizzell is a 5-10 guard from Little Rock, Ark. Frizzell averaged 16 points and seven rebounds per game at Central Arkansas Christian High School. Jackson Monique Jackson is a 6-1 forward from, Phenix City, Ala. She averaged 20 points and 16 rebounds per game at Central High School and was named the Ledger-Enquirer Girls Basketball Player of the Year and First Team All Bi-City. Faleru Faleru is a 6-0 wing from Carroll, Ala. Faleru averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds and six assists per game at Ozark High School.

2011-12 recruiting Class Ranked 39th in the Nation by ESPNU Hoopgurlz
ESPNU HoopGurlz ranked Ole Miss' 2011-12 signing class as the 39th best class in the nation. The publication ranked the top 60 2011-12 signing classes in the nation and have Ole Miss ahead of fellow SEC schools, Mississippi State (44th), Auburn (60th) and Arkansas who was listed as "on the cusp."

Ole Miss on TV
Ole Miss is schedule to be on TV at least eight times during the season. All times are Central.

Jan. 9 at Tennessee, 11 a.m., CSS

Jan 22 vs. Kentucky, 8 p.m., FSN

Jan. 30 at Vanderbilt, 2 p.m., FSN

Feb. 6 vs. LSU, 1 p.m., SEC Network

Feb. 13 vs. Georgia, 2 p.m., CSS

Feb. 17 vs. Arkansas, 7 p.m., COX

Feb. 24, vs. Tennessee, 7 p.m., FSN

Follow Head Coach Renee Ladner on Twitter
Head coach Renee Ladner is on Twitter. Follow her at @Renee_Ladner.

Upcoming Promotions
Dec. 21 vs. Miami "Holiday Hoopla"-Free Admission for everyone! Special Visit by Santa.

Jan. 2 vs. Vanderbilt "Holiday Hoopla" - kids up to age 14 can enter to win a portable hoop

Upcoming Schedule
Ole Miss will travel to Central Michigan on Saturday, December 18 for a 1 p.m. game before hosting Miami on Dec. 21 at noon. The Rebels will open SEC play at home hosting Vanderbilt on Jan. 2 at 2 p.m.

The University of Mississippi Athletics

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