The University of Mississippi Athletics
Women's Hoops At Alabama Sunday
2/18/2011 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 18, 2011
Complete Release in PDF Format 
Ole Miss Rebels, 10-15 overall, 3-10 SEC (2-7 away)
This Week ...
at Alabama, 14-12 overall, 3-10 SEC (9-5 home)
Sunday, February 20, 2011, 2 p.m.
Date: Sunday, February 20, 2011
Tip-off: 2 p.m. (CT)
Location: Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Arena: Foster Auditorium (5,400)
TV: None
Radio: SuperTalk 105.5: Gary Darby (play-by-play)
Web: Gametracker
Up Next:
Thursday, February 24 vs. No. 4/4 Tennessee, 7 p.m. (SportSouth)
Sunday, February 27 at Mississippi State, 2 p.m.
REBELS TRAVEL TO ALABAMA SUNDAY AFTERNOON
After playing four-consecutive games at home, Ole Miss will play two of its final three regular-season games on the road starting with a 2 p.m. game at Alabama Sunday. The Rebels have won nine of the last 10 meetings against the Crimson Tide and are 10-10 all-time in Tuscaloosa. Ole Miss is 2-7 on the road this year but both of its road wins have come during SEC play.
ABOUT OLE MISS
The Rebels are 10-15 (3-10 SEC) this year and are coming off a 56-53 loss at home against Arkansas on Thursday. Ole Miss is led by Kayla Melson who is averaging 15.6 points per game. Valencia McFarland is second, averaging 13.2 points per game while Shae Nelson is third averaging 8.1 points per game. Pa'Sonna Hope leads the team in rebounding (6.6 rpg) while Courtney Marbra is second in rebounding averaging 5.6 boards per game. As a team, the Rebels are averaging 60.0 points per game while its opponents average 66.9 points per game.
NEWS AND NOTES
Valencia McFarland leads the conference in SEC games in assists per game (5.0) ...Maggie McFerrin grabbed a career-high four boards against Arkansas ... Pa'Sonna Hope has grabbed at least seven rebounds in each of the past five games while Coutrney Marbra has grabbed at least six in four of the last five games ... with its 56-53 loss to Arkansas, Ole Miss fell to 5-2 in games decided by four points or less ...
LaTosha Laws set a career-high with four made free throws versus No. 24 Georgia ... Valencia McFarland has recorded at least five assists in 11 games this year ... Ole Miss leads the SEC in conference games in free throw percentage (74.1 percent) ... the Rebels shot a season-low 23.2 percent from the floor in its 76-38 loss to LSU on February 6 ... Ole Miss' 38 points scored against LSU tied for the second fewest points scored in program history ... the 12 points Ole Miss scored in the second half versus LSU ties the fewest points scored in the second half in program history ... Ole Miss' top three scorers in the Florida win were freshmen (McFarland, Hope and Nelson) ... Ole Miss played six of its first nine conference game on the road ... the Rebels will play five of its final eight games at home including four straight at home starting February 6 ... in all games, three of Ole Miss' top four scorers are freshmen (Valencia McFarland, Shae Nelson and Pa'Sonna Hope) ... Pa'Sonna Hope was held scoreless for the first time in her career against No. 17/18 Kentucky ... Ole Miss' 11 point lead against No. 17/18 Kentucky marks the Rebels' biggest lead in a loss this year ... of the 24 1,000 point scorers on Ole Miss's career list, only five have averaged more points as a freshman than freshman Valencia McFarland ... McFarland is averaging 13.2 points per game this season ... McFarland is the first freshman since now assistant coach Arminite Price Herrington to average more than 13.0 points per game as a freshman (Price Herrington averaged 14.9 ppg as a freshman in 2003-04).
OLE MISS VS. ALABAMA
Ole Miss leads the all-time series, 32-17. The Rebels have won nine of the last 10 games. Ole Miss won the last meeting between the two schools, 70-56, on January 6, 2010 in Oxford. Alabama won the last meeting between the two schools in Tuscaloosa, 67-59, on February 19, 2009. Ole Miss is 10-10 all-time against Alabama on the road.
A LOOK AT ALABAMA
Alabama is 14-12 overall and 3-10 in SEC play. After starting SEC play 0-9, the Crimson Tide has won three of its last four games including a 59-51 win at Auburn on Thursday. Alabama is led by Tierney Jenkins who averages a double-double with 16.3 points per game and 10.7 rebounds per game. Ericka Russell is second on the team in scoring with 9.9 points per game. As a team, the Crimson Tide average 66.3 points per game while its opponents average 66.7. Alabama shoots 37.0 percent from the floor, 27.6 percent from three-point range and 64.3 percent from the free throw line. The Crimson Tide average 39.8 rebounds per game, 10.7 assists per game, 17.0 turnovers per game and 10.8 steals per game.
A WIN SUNDAY WOULD .....
- Give Ole Miss its third road win of the year - all in SEC games.
- Snap the Rebels' four-game losing streak.
A LOSS SUNDAY WOULD .....
- Give Ole Miss its fifth loss in a row - a season high.
- Give the Rebels their eighth loss on the road this year.
BYRD DROPS 18 ON ARKANSAS
Junior Nikki Byrd scored a season-high 18 points in Ole Miss' 56-53 loss against Arkansas on February 17. Byrd was one point away from tying her career high a.d she ended the game 9-of-18 from the floor. Byrd's 18 points marks the seventh time this year she has scored in double figures including back-to-back games for Ole Miss.
MCFARLAND LEADS CONFERENCE IN FOUR CATEGORIES
Freshman Valencia McFarland leads the league in SEC games in assists per game (5.0 apg), free throw percentage (86.4%), assist to turnover ratio (1.8) and minutes played (38.6 mpg).
REBELS LEAD SEC IN FREE THROW PERCENTAGE IN LEAGUE GAMES
As a team, Ole Miss is shooting a conference-leading 74.1 percent from the free throw line in SEC games this year. Freshman Valencia McFarland leads the conference in SEC games shooting a league-best 86.4 percent (38-of-44) from the free throw line.
FRESHMAN MCFARLAND LOGGING MAJOR MINUTES
Freshman Valencia McFarland has played in eight games this year where she played 40 or more minutes. Her eight games with 40 or more minutes are the most by an Ole Miss freshman since Alliesha Easley played three games with 40+ minutes during the 2006-07 season. McFarland has also played in four games with 39 minutes and three games with 38 minutes. This season, McFarland is second on the team averaging 36.9 minutes per game. In SEC games, McFarland leads the conference in minutes played with 38.69 minutes per game.
UNDERCLASSMEN GETTING EXPERIENCE
Ole Miss, who has consistently had two freshmen in the starting lineup all year in Valencia McFarland and Pa'Sonna Hope, added freshman Shae Nelson to the starting lineup. In four consecutive games against LSU, Mississippi State, Georgia and Arkansas, Ole Miss did not have an upperclassmen in its starting lineup. McFarland, Nelson, Hope and sophomores Courteny Marbra and Maggie McFerrin made up Ole Miss' starting lineup in each game. In the first three games using that starting lineup, underclassmen have accounted for 518 of the team's 600 minutes played and accounted for 110 of the team's 137 points during the three-game span.
NELSON SECOND IN THE LEAGUE IN THREES MADE IN SEC GAMES
Freshmen Shae Nelson is second in the league in SEC games in threes made per game with 2.3. Nelson has made 30 threes in the team's 13 SEC games. In all games, Nelson leads the team with 40 made threes. She is one of four players in the conference to average at least two made threes a game in SEC play.
NELSON TIES SCHOOL RECORD
Freshman Shae Nelson tied the school record for three pointers in a game with seven against Auburn. Nelson, who finished the game with a then career-high 21 points, was 7-for-9 from three point range. She tied four players who accomplished the feat a total of six times. Nelson recorded the fewest attempts (9) of any player that recorded seven threes in a game.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
The Rebels host No. 4/4 Tennessee on Thursday, February 24 at 7 p.m. (SportSouth) in the team's final regular-season home game of the season. Ole Miss will play at Mississippi State on Sunday, February 27 at 2 p.m. The SEC Tournament will be held in Nashville, Tenn., March 3-6.
