The University of Mississippi Athletics
Rebels Host No. 9 Kentucky on Thursday Night
1/20/2016 | Women's Basketball
Game Notes - vs. No. 9/9 Kentucky - Game 19
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
Ole Miss returns to the friendly confines of The Pavilion at Ole Miss when it welcomes another top 10 foe in No. 9/9 Kentucky on Thursday. Tipoff is set for 8 PM CT on the SEC Network with Cara Capuano and Steffi Sorenson on the call, while Courtney Lyle will man the sidelines. Fan can also listen to live audio on OleMissSport.com and 105.1 FM and 105.5 FM locally with Graham Doty and Armintie Herrington.
Game 19: Ole Miss (9-9, 1-4 SEC) vs. Kentucky (14-2, 3-2 SEC)
Date: January 21, 2016
Time: 8 PM
Location: Oxford, Miss. (The Pavilion at Ole Miss)
Television: SEC Network
Live Audio: OleMissSports.com
Livestats:
Live Video: SECN+
Starting Five
1. Ole Miss dropped a 79-51 road contest to No. 10 Mississippi State on Monday night in Starkville, Miss. Shandricka Sessom led the way with a team-best 14 points, while Madinah Muhammad added 10 points for her third straight game in double figures. A'Queen Hayes contributed a team-best nine rebounds. The all-time series moves to 64-27 in favor of Ole Miss.
2. Ole Miss has played a tough stretch of games starting with its Jan. 14 matchup with Texas A&M. Ole Miss is in the middle of a stretch of five straight games against ranked opponents, which include four opponents ranked in the top 15 in Texas A&M, Mississippi State, Kentucky and South Carolina. The Rebels play three of those foes on the road.
3. Ole Miss is arguably the youngest team in the SEC this season. Ole Miss has 13 players on the roster and nine of those players are freshmen or sophomores. The Rebels are the lone team in the SEC without a senior and Ole Miss has only two players who have been in the program for more than two years in Shequila Joseph and Bretta Hart.
4. Shandricka Sessom and Madinah Muhammad have been leading the Ole Miss offense since beginning SEC play. Sessom is averaging 10.4 ppg and is the lone Rebel in double figures, but Muhammad is averaging 9. 8 ppg and has reached double figures in three of Ole Miss' five SEC games. Sessom is also leading the way on the glass with 5.4 rpg vs. SEC opponents.
5. Ole Miss and Kentucky will be meeting for the 38th time on Thursday with the Rebels owning a 21-16 series advantage. Ole Miss stopped a six-game Kentucky winning streak with a 67-59 win in the last meeting and Ole Miss leads the series, 12-6 in game played in Oxford. This will also be the fourth consecutive televised game between the teams.
Ole Miss vs. Kentucky Notables
-Ole Miss head coach Matt Insell is very familiar with Kentucky as he spent five years as the top assistant on Matthew Mitchell's staff. Helping the Wildcats to three consecutive Elite Eight appearances. Since Insell took the job at Ole Miss, Kentucky owns a 2-1 series advantage.
-Ole Miss leads the all-time series 21-16 and 12-6 in games played in Oxford. Each of the last two meetings have been decided by less than 10 points and the margin of victory is 7.0 ppg
A Win Would
-Get Ole Miss back in the win column and snap Ole Miss' current four-game skid. It would also be the first win over a ranked opponent for Ole Miss since defeating No. 10/13 Kentucky on Feb. 23, 2015.
-Give Ole Miss its first win the brand new Pavilion at Ole Miss. The Kentucky game will be Ole Miss' second-ever game at The Pavilion at Ole Miss. Ole Miss played Florida in it's first-ever game at The Pavilion at Ole Miss on Jan. 10.
-Move the Rebels six wins way from the 800th victory in program history. Ole Miss' current record is 793-480. The earliest Ole Miss could hit the 800th win would be on Feb. 15 vs. Texas A&M and they would become the sixth SEC program to record 800 wins.
Rebels By The Numbers
4- Number of different lineups the Rebels have utilized this season. Ole Miss debuted its fourth lineup of Alissa Alston (G), Madinah Muhammad (G), Erika Sisk (G), Shandricka Sessom (G) and Shequila Joseph (F) against Florida. Ole Miss switched it back up at the point guard spot against Mississippi State by starting A'Queen Hayes
10- Number of points Madinah Muhammad scored against Mississippi State. It was her third consecutive game in double figures and her sixth career game in double figures. Muhammad is averaging 9.8 ppg in SEC play and is Ole Miss' third leading scorer with 7.6 ppg.
12-Number of points the Rebels came back from in their SEC opening win over Vanderbilt. Ole Miss trailed by 12 with 7:03 left in the fourth quarter and closed the game on a 20-5 run to record their first come-from-behind win of the season and second of the Matt Insell era.
117- Number of points Erika Sisk is away from 1,000 career points. Sisk, has scored 486 points in an Ole Miss uniform to go with 395 from her freshman season at Murray State. Sisk will need to average 10.6 ppg the remainder of the season to reach the milestone this year.
410- Number of victories Ole Miss posted at Tad Smith Coliseum. The Rebels played their last game in the "Tad Pad" on Jan. 3 and closed the building with an all-time record of 410-126 and with wins in six of their last seven homes games.
Scouting Kentucky
Kentucky enters Thursday game with a 14-2, 3-2 SEC record after a 54-47 win over Auburn on Sunday. The Wildcats are led by Makayla Epps who is averaging 15.9 ppg while Janee Thompson and Evelyn Akhator are also in double figures with 12.5 and 12.1 points per game, respectively. Akhator is also leading the Wildcats on the glass with 10.1 rebounds per game while Alexis Jennings is also adding 7.0 rebounds per game. As a team, Kentucky is averaging 75.6 points per game and 41.4 rebounds per game. Aside from SEC foes both teams have played Middle Tennessee.
About Ole Miss
Sophomore Shandricka Sessom continues to lead the Ole Miss offense with 16.1 points per game and has reached double figures in 16 of 18 games this season. Her 16.1 points currently ranks No. 6 in the SEC. Erika Sisk is also in double figures with 10.3 points per game and has reached double figures in four of the last seven games, including a season-high 23 points against McNeese State. In SEC action, Sessom is leading the team with 10.4 points per game. Madinah Muhammad is nearing double figures against SEC foes with 9.8 points per game, respectively. Bretta Hart leads the rebounding efforts with 6.3 rebounds per game, while Sessom is contributing 6.0 boards per game. As a team, Ole Miss is averaging 72.4 points per game and grabbing 42.4 rebounds per game and each player on the roster is contributing at least 2.0 points per game.
Up Next
Ole Miss will take the weekend off before traveling to Columbia, South Carolina to take on No. 2 South Carolina on Thursday (Jan. 28). Tipoff is 6 PM CT. Fans can hear Graham Doty and Armintie Herrington on the call on 105.1 FM and 105.5 FM as well as OleMissSports.com.
