The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
1-0
Southeastern Louisiana
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Southeastern La. | 5 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 31 |
| Ole Miss | 29 | 14 | 14 | 24 | 81 |
Women's Basketball Cruises to Season-Opening Win
11/11/2016 | Women's Basketball
Boxscore 
| Highlights | Press Conference | Photo Gallery
OXFORD, Miss. - The Ole Miss women's basketball team kicked off the season with an 81-31 win over the Southeastern Louisiana Lady Lions at The Pavilion at Ole Miss on Friday. Madinah Muhammad (Chicago, Ill.) led the way with 16 points while Shequila Joseph (London, England) and Cecilia Muhate (Madrid, Spain) each posted seven rebounds. The win marked the ninth consecutive season-opening win for the Rebels and the fourth of the Matt Insell era.
Ole Miss (1-0) dominated the game from the outset scoring a whopping 29 points in the first quarter and from then was on cruise control. Taylor Manuel (St. Louis, Mo.) Shandricka Sessom (Byhalia, Miss.) and Shelby Gibson (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) joined Muhammad in double figures to give Ole Miss four players in double digits.
The Rebels shot 44.6 percent from the floor and grabbed 53 rebounds. Southeastern Louisiana's 31 points were the fewest points an Ole Miss opponent has scored and the 50-point margin of victory was the largest in the series.
The fourth quarter featured a strong performance from Shandricka Sessom (Byhalia, Miss.). Sessom, who didn't score her first bucket until the third quarter, rattled off seven fourth-quarter points and extended her scoring streak to 32 consecutive games as Ole Miss cruised to the victory.
Holding a 29-5 lead on the strength of a 10-point, 4-of-4 from the floor performance from Manuel both teams started the second quarter a little sluggish and couldn't get much going on the offensive end, but Ole Miss was sharp on the defensive end, keeping the Lady Lions out of double-digits until just forty seconds left in the quarter. The Rebels recorded a big block from Sessom while Madinah Muhammad (Chicago, Ill.) picked up her second charge of the game.
Muhammad sparked the Ole Miss offense near the end of the second quarter, with a back-to-back field goals, to put her double digits with 11 points and pushing Ole Miss' lead to a whopping 31 points - 43-12 at halftime.
The first points of the 2016-17 season belonged to senior forward Taylor Manuel (St. Louis, Mo.) and sparked a 9-0 run to open the game for the Rebels forcing Southeastern Louisiana to take a timeout at the 7:44 mark of the first quarter. The Lions didn't get on the board until the 7:29 mark of the first quarter on a free throw, but Ole Miss pulled ahead 17-1 and Southeast Louisiana didn't earn their first field goal until the 4:14 mark. With Ole Miss leading 25-5, Erika Sisk (Oxford, Miss.) and Bretta Hart (Poplarville, Miss.) picked up the first charges of the season giving the Rebels the ball back with and keeping the Lady Lions off the board for the final three minutes of the first quarter.
From The Head Coach
On the game...
"We've got a lot we have to clean up. Right now, we're kind of down in numbers on the perimeter with Alissa Alston being out, Chrishae Rowe not being able to play until December. That's something that'll be fixed here in about a week or so, but it's something we'll deal with right now. I'm real proud of this win tonight. We have a good basketball team. We have a lot of things to clean up, but we'll get it cleaned up."
On improving going forward...
"We didn't play our best and we know that. But we'll get better from that. I told them, I don't care if we win 28 games by one point, we can miss-execute all day long, but just as long as we win the game. That's what we did. We won the game. We didn't play our best, but we won the game."
On Taylor Manuel...
"She's not going to miss very many. She does that in every aspect. She takes a lot of pressure off us offensively. She's a very good player. She knows the game, very smart. She passes the ball extremely well."
On Madinah Muhammad...
"I'm really proud of Madinah Muhammad. If I had to say the player of the game, it was her. She had to play 37 minutes at multiple positions. She's playing really well and I was really proud of her."
Rebel Sidelines
-Taylor Manuel made her official Ole Miss debut and earned a spot in the starting lineup. Manuel transferred from Loyola Chicago where she averaged 15.2 PPG and was a two-time All-MVC performer. Ole Miss freshman Kate Rodgers (Birmingham, Ala.), Shelby Gibson (Murfreesboro, Tenn.) and Bree Glover (Glasgow, Ky.) also made their collegiate debuts.
-Today's game marked the first season-opener for the Rebels in The Pavilion at Ole Miss. Last season, Ole Miss opened the season at Tad Smith Coliseum before moving to the Pavilion in January.
-Ole Miss moves to a perfect 18-0 in the series against Southeastern Louisiana and the 50-point margin of victory is the larges in the series.
-The Rebels win was its ninth consecutive season opening win and the fourth straight season opening win with Matt Insell at the helm. The Rebels move to 37-6 all-time in season-openers.
- Madinah Muhammad was in double figures for the 12th time in her career with 16 points. Her career high is 21 points, a mark she hit twice as a freshman.
-Shandricka Sessom extended her scoring and rebounding streaks to 32 consecutive games
Up Next
Ole Miss continues its four-game season opening homestand on Sunday when they take on Lipscomb at 5 pm. The game will be available on SECNetwork+ and on the WatchESPN app. For ticket information go to OleMissTix.com or call the Ole Miss Ticket Office at 1-888-REB-TKTS (732-8587).
Next Five Games
Nov. 13 - Lipscomb 5 PM
Nov. 17 - Jacksonville State 6 PM
Nov. 20 - High Point 2 PM
Nov. 26 - vs. Wisconsin^ 1 PM
Nov. 27 - vs. TBA^ 1/3:30 PM
^-At UNLV Lady Rebel Roundup (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Keep Up With the Rebels
Keep up to date with the Ole Miss women's basketball team throughout the season on social media. For all Ole Miss women's basketball news and information, go to OleMissSports.com, and follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWBB, Facebook at Ole Miss WBB on Instagram at Ole MissWBB and on Snapchat with the handle @OleMissWBB. Fans can also follow Ole Miss women's basketball head coach Matt Insell on Twitter at @minsell.
