Ole Miss Begins SEC Play Against South Carolina

Ole Miss begins a new segment of its seasonÂ on SundayÂ and arguably its most important one as South Carolina comes to The Pavilion to tip off SEC play.

It was an up-and-down non-conference season for the Rebels who lost three games at home, all of which came in overtime. Andy Kennedy has seen flashes of what he thinks this team can be, but the consistency has not been there at times. He's implored his group to play with a sense of urgency and not dig itself in difficult holes to climb out of early in games.

"I'm certainly not pleased with the fact that we lost three home games," Kennedy said. "I have said since 2006 when I got this job, that those are just no-no's. You can't do that because it is so difficult to win on the road."

There is reason to believe things could trend upward for Ole Miss in SEC play. It won its final two games before Christmas, concluding with the Rebels' most complete performance of the season in an 82-59 thrashing of a Bradley team that came into the game 10-2. The Rebels have shot the basketball better in their recent stretch of games. The team has made 26 three-pointers in its last two games and are shooting 45 percent from deep during that stretch.

Offense hasn't been the issue for the Rebels. Kennedy has said multiple times this team shares the ball better than any team he's been a part of in his tenure here. Ole Miss has 214 assists on 344 made baskets through 12 games. Decision making from the guards troubled the team early on. Kennedy saw signs of that improving of late.

"Deandre (Burnett) and Breein (Tyree) are making better decisions with the ball," Kennedy said. "Those are things we are going to have to do to win SEC games."

The majority of the team's struggles have stemmed from the defensive end, but even that appeared to be getting better during the final two games before the Christmas break. Bradley shot a pedestrian 32 percent from the field and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi shot 42 percent.

"I am encouraged that the guys are understanding who we are and that we have to be blue-collar," Kennedy said. "Sometimes it is hard to be blue-collar because it is hard. It is not easy. That is just the way we have to play. I think offensively we are finding a rhythm."

The SEC is deeper than it has been in a decade and has three teams in the top 25 and seven KenPom top 50 teams. The road will not be easy, and the team knows that but thinks they are beginning to play better basketball.

"We have a lot of things we need to work on," Terence Davis said. "But I think our mindset is now where it needs to be as a whole."Â

A deeper league means a tougher path, but also one with more opportunities to notch resumÃ©-building wins. Ole Miss will have a number of chances to strengthen its postseason case. The non-conference season brought some tough moments, but the Rebels are feeling better about themselves heading into their SEC schedule.Â

"I do think we are beginning to understand the thin line between winning and misery," Kennedy said. "Unfortunately for us, I think we have been on the wrong side of that too many times to this point in the season. It really is a thin line, a play here or there. As we approach the holiday break, which is needed, we will come back and it is now SEC play. These guys will be excited about the opportunities."

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Players Mentioned

Terence Davis

The University of Mississippi Athletics